W8

W8

1. Referring to Mountfort et al. (2018), in what ways is cosplay analogous to citation.

Cosplay is people who wear their costumes inspired by fiction characters (Lamerichs, 2011). They will reference follow four elements: “a narrative, a set of clothing, a play or performance before spectators, and a subject or player” (Lamerichs, 2011). These references can be used as an analysis of cosplay (Lamerichs, 2011). People choose who they want to be as a source that they can dress up and imitate their character as references. Cosplay is a source of citation for people who use this source to transform their body into the characters from popular media texts (Mountfort et al., 2019).

Cosplay is a fan-based, who performed a character in a manga, or anime character in a parodic performance by Mari Kotani in Japan in 1978 (Lunning, 2012). Western imitates Cosplay from Japan with their popular culture sources such as mange, anime, otaku and idol culture but in Western and it is quite common source texts with mix and mashup their influence (Mountfort et al., 2019). Cosplay is considering as a form of citation, which cosplayers will dress themselves follow a source of citation called “citation acts” (Mountfort et al., 2019). Cosplayers dress into a character in manga or anime or movie that they want to be. The manga or anime is their source use of references to change themselves into a character in theirs. When others dress up as a character in anime or mange, people are implicitly known as a citation in a source text that cosplayers use in their costumes (Mountfort et al., 2019).  The costumes do not only imitate the character’s look but including pose and gesture (Mountfort et al., 2019). For the references or citation help the audience know what the character that cosplayers dress up and acting out (Mountfort et al., 2019) is. The fan not only wears and make up the same as the characters but they try to use the source text or story world to get closer to the audiences. Cosplayers not only play around with the character but use the source for “parody, pastiche, satire, burlesque, and caricature” (Mountfort et al., 2019). Cosplay is not only cited materials from the source but they change it more creative or change to a new version with their citation. They not only simple imitate to become a character or just only for acting out but they are mixing and mashing practices for fanfiction or anime music videos.

Cosplay reference can be seen as a source text of translation and adaptation where people use their body to “embodied translation” to citational act (Mountfort et al., 2019). Cosplay is not only imitated but they try their best to look as much as the same character as possible. That will make them successful in cosplay their characters. People also follow their gender and race to dress and imitate their character in cosplay. Still, many people dress differently from their gender; for example, a woman dressed up like a Spiderman or a superhero who is opposite her gender.

Cosplay likes an entertainment game or a way for others want to dress in a character that they love in an anime or manga. They use their favourite anime or mange as their citation to dress same as a character in the story.

Reference:

Lamerichs, N. (2011). Stranger than fiction: Fan identity in cosplayTransformative Works and Cultures7(3), 56-72.

Lunning, F. (2012). Cosplay and the Performance of Identity. Retrieved from http://www. quodlibetica. com/cosplay-and-the-performance-of-identity/(tarkastettu: maaliskuu 2016).

Mountfort, P., Peirson-Smith, A., & Geczy, A. (2019). Planet Cosplay: Costume Play, Identity and Global Fandom. Intellect Books.

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