2. What does the terms détournement mean and how is it applicable to cosplay?

Détournement as a practice refers to taking a text and “reappropriating” it via “creative disruption”, subverting the core messaging of the text or revealing its underlying ideology in a critical manner. This practice first emerged during the Situationalist movement, which used the technique to criticise many capitalist texts by reshuffling them and injecting a Marxist reading (Malitz, n.d.). In the context of cosplay, the exploration of Détournement is less politically charged, but still is an important tool in understanding Cosplay’s role as a “citational act” (Mountfort, 2018). Many early conceptions of cosplay’s relationship with the source material from which the costumes/performances are derived is one of mere ‘borrowing’ or theft where the performer temporarily references the source text in celebration of it. More recent theoretical approaches to Cosplay are less one-sided, suggesting a more complex exchange between text and performance. While these frameworks still acknowledge that this relationship is citational and intertextual in nature – requiring the replication of elements from the source material, they also argue that by performing characters from these texts in new dimensions and contexts can act as a type of Détournement, where creative intent is subverted and new understandings of the original text are constructed. These arguments suggest that cosplay is not merely replication, but also a non-canonical addition to the cited text, operating in a very similar way to fanfiction by recontextualizing and expanding upon the franchise’s identity. Discussed by Mountfort (2018) are a few notable ways in which this subversion and contribution can occur. Frequently within cosplay, concessions must be made in the performance of a text due to the physical limitations of a performer, resulting in character depictions which may vary in gender, body shape and race. These recontextualizations, while referential, provide new means to understand the performed character while potentially criticising the source material’s limited depiction of race, body or gender. This highlights the existence of intentionally satirical or critical performances which also occur in cosplay, where elements of characters are stylistically altered to a point where they are still recognisable but communicate a disparate message, one which often subverts the audience’s initial comprehension of source material. Even in instances where the performer intends to faithfully replicate all elements of the original text, the fundamentally limited act of translation between image/text and bodily performance means the performer will be forced to extract the character from its initial position in setting and narrative and position it within a new one, providing a potentially unintended reinterpretation and expansion of text. While such a performance can never capture the narrative of a source material as a whole (Gn, 2011), via this extraction and positioning within the performer’s life, Mountfort (2018) points out that the character becomes involved within a new narrative, again underlining how cosplay shares qualities of Détournement with fanfiction. While these new narratives are not directly connected to the cannon of the text a cosplay cites, a character’s inherent ability to allude to the narrative which they traditionally exist within means that these additional narratives act to construct new understandings the same way a fanfiction might. Especially in late capitalism where characters often exist within transmedia franchises and cannot be tied to one singular canon identity, cosplay and other forms of fan interactions provide significant agency to the audience in regards to defining the brands of characters and their franchises going forward. By presenting Détournement in association with postmodern theories of audience consumption, Mountfort (2018) explores cosplay not only as a means to honour a text, but as a means for a community to fundamentally shape the media they consume.

Mountfort, P. (2018). Cosplay as Citation. In P. Mountfort, A. Peirson-Smith, & A. Geczy, Planet Cosplay (pp. 21-38). Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

Malitz, Z. (n.d.). Détournement/Culture jamming. Beautiful Trouble. https://beautifultrouble.org/tactic/detournementculture-jamming/

Gn, J. (2011). Queer simulation: The practice, performance and pleasure of cosplay. Continuum, 25(2), 583-593. https://doi.org/10.1080/10304312.2011.582937

Cosphotography refers to the videoing and photographing of a person participating in cosplay and can act as a way for the cosplayer to gain capital through promotion which allows recognition (). Paul Mountfort believes “photography pays a crucial role in contemporary cosplay,( Mountfort, 2020) as it  “as long as it is not of the invasive variety can thus provide cosers not only with tokens pf private value but fan capital that circulates within wider, largely online networks of exchange operating in the cosphere,”(Mountfort, 2020). Meaning cosplaying through cosphotography creates a new space for the cosplayer not only space for expression but offers a chance for them to gain capital from the labour they have put into their costuming.

Of the three main genres of cosphotography as outlined by Paul Mountfort the most formal of the three would have to be the runway cosphotography. This is where cosplayers could be gathered usually in a competition event where preparations for these cosplayers are made before the photos and videos are taken (Geczy, & Peirson- Smith, 2018). It is here where cosplayers are directly rewarded for their hard work as often, they gain monetary capital for the creations of their cosplay. This type of cosphotography is narrated as occurring in 1941 we have photographs of these cosplay competitions creating the earliest moments of the formal runway cosphotography despite these cosplayers entering costumed competitions as early as 1910 when a young woman won first prize at a masquerade ball as she went in cosplay in a  skyjack costume(Mountfort, 2020).

The less formal version of cosphotography compared to the other main genre of cosphotography would have to be hallway cosphotography. This refers to the photographs and videos which are taken of cosplayers in a more natural none planed space (Geczy, & Peirson- Smith, 2018). Oftentimes these photographs are done without the cosplayer’s consent (Mountfort, 2020) this type of cosphotography began to occur around the same time technology developed in a way allowing people to become cosphotographers, technology like the handheld camera (Mountfort, 2020). In doing this everyday people gained access to recording events as such cosplay can spread more easily and

The slightly less formal, when compared to runway cosphotography, is the studio portrait. This involves yet again planning and the complete consent of the cosplayer as time is put in for selecting lighting and backdrops and occurs in a private location (Geczy, & Peirson- Smith, 2018). They are in a sense taking steps to ensure that they are gaining capital by sharing and distributing these photographs. In 1969 we see one of the first examples of studio portrait through the image of Angelique Trouvere in cosplay as Vampirella (Mountfort, 2020). Studio portrait, in the end, can be described as a combination of the formal runway and informal hallway cosphotography ().

Looking at these main genres of cosphotography one will not that as they developed through history it does seem that the less formal hallway cosphotography has developed into a much larger medium of the three and one could attribute this to the development of technology such as the handheld cameras.

Reference

Geczy, A., Mountfort, P., Peirson- Smith, A. (2018). Planet cosplay. United Kingdom: Bristol, United States: Chicago. Interlect

Mountfort, P (Lec). (2020). [Lecture powerpoint]. Retrieved from https://blackboard.aut.ac.nz/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_96250_1&content_id=_5273101_1&mode=reset

Mountfort, P (Lec). (2020). [Lecture recording]. Retrieved from https://blackboard.aut.ac.nz/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_96250_1&content_id=_5273101_1&mode=reset

In the blog, I will be discussing the term détournement and how exactly it applies to cosplay. I will be mentioning the definition of détournement, the origins of it, the death of the author, and how this helps connect the critical theory of détournement and cosplay.

The word détournement in the literal translation means to hijack (Geczy, & Peirson- Smith, 2018) as a literary term it involves the deliberate plagiarism of a text (Geczy, & Peirson- Smith, 2018). The history of détournement involves situations International, a group of revolutionary artists and intellectuals in the 1950s (Geczy, & Peirson- Smith, 2018). Détournement refers to where “authoritative books, maps, and other text were cut and pasted along the polemical and aesthetic line,” (Geczy, & Peirson- Smith, 2018). This hijack was a form of rebellion as it used the playfulness of these pranks to undermine these authoritative social hierarchy’s, political and aesthetic lines (Geczy, & Peirson- Smith, 2018) by reclaiming and expressing things the original work may not have intended. Détournement today is seen as a critical theory as reuse and imitation of the original work.

Cosplay Involves the audience of the original text “dressing up and performing as characters from popular media texts, e.g. comics, animated or live-action films and tv, games, and other popular culture media including music videos.” (Mountfort, 2020) in other words the audience of a certain text is taking the text into their own hands and from that creating new meaning through their design and expression of these characters that differ from the original text meaning the audience then become the author. As Paul Mountfort states “Fanfiction and parodies, cosplay is part of the feedback loop that allows fans to enter into a text and transform it, turning readers into authors and blurring the distinction between fan and critic, as well as reader and text” (Mountfort, 2020). In doing this there is a sense of rebellion from the audience as they are removing the large authority originally held by the author often described as the death of the author (Mountfort, 2020). It is through this process that the critical theory of détournement finds itself situated in.

By the text becoming a “negotiation between the readers, you guys, us and the texts themselves,” (Mountfort, 2020) the audience is given more control of its expression they form their understanding of the text based on their own experience thus they are from a critical theory standpoint participating in détournement. Cosplay is the three-dimensional version of taking text and physically representing their understanding or interpretation of it (Mountfort, 2020). As such one can look at it as a physical hijacking of the text is an example in the marvel cinematic universe a section of the audience began shipping title character Captain America and his best friend the winter soldier forming the ship Stucky (Tracy 2016), for the couple to occur the fans have taken the text hijacked its canonical work and placed within it their reading that Steve, Captain America, and Bucky, winter soldier, are romantically involved. they then through cosplay take it a step further and allow themselves to embody these characters allowing the roleplay of them being a couple (Tracy, 2016).

In conclusion, détournement involves the reuse and imitation of the original text, hijacking, and placing within its new meaning as the original author’s authority is reduced allowing for a new interpretation of a text. Cosplay in all its forms involves the removal of an author’s original meaning as those who cosplay as these characters add new meaning to said characters through their experiences and understanding of the character which now resides outside of the original text. Therefore détournement is applicable to cosplay as the very act of cosplay is the expression of détournement.

Reference

Geczy, A., Mountfort, P., Peirson- Smith, A. (2018). Planet cosplay. United Kingdom: Bristol, United States: Chicago. Interlect

Mountfort, P (Lec). (2020). [Lecture powerpoint]. Retrieved from

Mountfort, P (Lec). (2020). [Lecture recording]. Retrieved from

Tracy, J (writ). (2016). Chris evans and sebastian stan meet stucky cosplayers at wizard world philadelphia. retrieved from https://www.outerplaces.com/science-fiction/item/12369-chris-evans-and-sebastian-stan-meet-stucky-cosplayers-at-wizard-world-philadelphia

What are some of the problematics around cosphotography in terms various (potentially unwelcome) gazes?

The most obvious of problematic gazes in regards to cosplay is the male gaze. That is, the gaze commonly held by men – although sometimes perpetrated by women as well, due to taught misogyny – that views women solely as sexual objects, objects of their desire and for their personal gratification. While an issue in almost every aspect of society, it is particularly notable within cosplay for several reasons.

The first is the larger population of women participating in cosplay culture compared to in other areas, especially within wider fandom. While typically seen as a ‘boy’s club’, fandom, especially for genres such as science fiction and action comics, has always had a relatively large amount of women participating in the art of cosplay, described as being ‘a product of female DIY culture’ (Mountfort, 2018, p. 48). This is evident from the very beginnings of cosplay, with cosplay pioneers such as ‘Morojo’ (Myrtle R. Jones) in the 30s through to famous female cosplayers such as Yaya Han in today’s world (Mountfort, 2018, pp. 51, 63). With a larger than usual group of women participating in this area of fandom, this unfortunately makes instances of unwanted ‘male gaze’ much more likely.

The second is the range of characters available to female cosplayers. While, given the nature and general attitude of cosplay and cosplay communities from the beginning of the movement, effectively any person can cosplay as any character regardless of gender – and there are even recorded instances of drag costuming at early cosplay events (Mountfort, 2018, p. 54) – many prefer to cosplay as their chosen gender identity in every day life (i.e. those who identify as men cosplay as male characters, and women cosplay as female characters). This becomes problematic for women as many female characters – across genres, mediums and time periods – are hypersexualized in both appearance and behaviour. This means that female cosplayers are often forced into highly sexualized, caricature-like female roles in order to participate – to the best of their ability – in cosplay culture. This wouldn’t be a problem if not for the aforementioned ‘male gaze’, which is attracted in a far greater amount by such characters (as these characters were, originally, created for the male gaze by the male gaze). If not, female cosplays must then find ways around this; often through strict ‘rules of engagement’ for both socialization and photography, allowing them at least some form of control if not outright rejection of this ‘gaze’. (Mountfort, 2018, pp. 63-64)

There are other ‘gazes’ which provide issues within the cosplay community, however. One such ‘gaze’ is that of the outsider – someone with no authentic, genuine interest in cosplay or the cosplay community. As recalled by cosplayer Kane Anderson within Planet Cosplay, ‘not all photographers actually want to celebrate cosplayers. Many spectators surreptitiously diminish cosplayers with their gazes even while the costumed performers enjoy the attention.’ (Mountfort, 2018, pp. 63-64) This often leads to another problematic gaze within the cosplay community – the judgemental gaze. These ‘outsiders’ to the cosplay community often post images and videos of cosplayers online and, along with others like them, mock and judge them for perceived ‘flaws’: in weight, in race, in general beauty standards. (Mountfort, 2018, p. 64) This can lead to many cosplayers (especially women, who already face higher standards of beauty due to the aforementioned ‘male gaze’) feeling self-conscious about their cosplay or growing disheartened with the art of cosplaying; with social media growing bigger, more invasive and more toxic by the day, this may become an even greater issue for the cosplay community, as it has become for many others.

References

Mountfort, P. (2018). Cosphotography and Fan Capital. In P. Mountfort, Peirson-Smitth, Anne, & A. Gaczy, Planet Cosplay (pp. 45-74). Bristol: Intellect Books.