Fanning the Flames: Fans and Consumer Culture in Contemporary Japan (Suny Series in Japan in Transition) [Paperback]

William W. Kelly (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 15, 2004 | ISBN-10: 0791460320 | ISBN-13: 978-0791460320

A fascinating look at fans of a variety of popular culture phenomena in Japan.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Fanning the Flames examines the worlds of fans in the exuberant and commercialized popular culture of contemporary Japan. The works collected here profile denizens of all-night rap clubs; sumo stable patrons; passionate fan clubs of a professional baseball team; enthusiasts of traditional rakugo storytelling; a club of middle-aged female fans of a popular music star; youthful followers of Japan's longest-running rock band; vinyl record collectors; and a thriving community of girls and women who produce and devour amateur comics. Grounded in close, often extended fieldwork with the fans themselves, each case study is an effort to understand both the personal pleasures and political economies of fandoms. The contributors explore the many ways that fans in and of Japanese mass culture actively search for intimacy and identity amid the powerful corporate structures that produce the leisure and entertainment of today's Japan. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

About the Author

William W. Kelly is Professor of Anthropology and Sumitomo Professor of Japanese Studies at Yale University. He is the author of Deference and Defiance in Nineteenth-Century Japan. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 214 pages
• Publisher: State University of New York Press (July 15, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0791460320
• ISBN-13: 978-0791460320
• Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 0.5 x 9.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,566,117 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Serious ethnography of Japanese popular culture August 14, 2004

By T. C. Bestor

Format:Paperback

This is a great collection by some of the outstanding contemporary specialists on Japanese popular culture. It is a serious ethnographic collection about popular culture and the dynamics of "fandom" across sports, manga and anime, popular music, and sumo, among other things. It sets a high standard for studies of popular culture in Japan and elsewhere. Highly recommended both for fans and observers of Japanese trends.

4.0 out of 5 stars Very interesting January 31, 2011

By Anne-Li

Format:Paperback

I mostly bought this book because I heard it mentioned my favourite manga, From Eroica With Love. I don't know much about fandom in Japan and I overall found it very interesting, a good read and I felt I learned a lot. I can't judge the content much apart from that I enjoyed reading it - the part about Eroica seems correct, though.