filing off the seriAl nuMbers
69
is plagiarism is based on a simplified notion of fanfiction, which assumes
that these texts are predominantly interested in replications of a preexisting
narrative. 33 Brennan and Large rightly observe that because of the fanfiction
genre AU/AH (alternate universe and all human), it is obvious that Master of
the Universe would not resemble Twilight. Once the explicit announcement
of a connection to a pre-text is taken away, most readers lack the background
knowledge to read the text as an adaptation. The commonalities between
the texts, once any supernatural elements were stripped off, and the setting
had been changed, were the names of the protagonists, and the inference
of the features of the characters from the pre-text by its readers. In the new
context, in the version of the fanfiction as reincarnated in Fifty Shades of
Grey, the similarities between the characters Christian and Edward as well as
Ana and Bella might as well be explained through the genre of the texts: if at
all, they appear to be romance characters of the same type. 34 Nevertheless,
the public discussion about the genesis of the text led Vintage publishing
to explain that Master of the Universe had been edited and rewritten to
an extent that resulted in the production of an “entirely original work,” 35
thereby restoring James’ status as a traditional author.
Unlike the feuilleton, fanfiction readers accept and value derivative
writing and collaboration as the fundament of fan authorship of texts that
often center on female desire and are mostly written and read by women.
For fans, a comparison between Master of the Universe, which was created
in the communal context of fandom, and Fifty Shades of Grey, which was
published as a book by E.L. James, is therefore paramount to a comparison
of Master of the Universe and Twilight. Fans deemed it scandalous that James
should claim singular authorship for a text that was created in the fan
community, and sell it on the book market. On the blog Dear Author, Jane
Little compared the texts with the help of three similarity software programs
and found 89% similarity between them. Comparisons of text passages on
the blog show the extensive editing, the correction of orthographic mistakes
33 On the NPR blog On the Media, Rebecca Tushnet, head of the legal board of The Organization
of Transformative Works, explains that Fifty Shades of Grey is not infringing any copyrights,
because it “does not actually copy any of the expression” of Twilight; see Rebecca Tushnet, “Fan
Fiction and the Law,” On the Media, March 8, 2013.
34 Katherine Morrissey has investigated the similarities between these texts more thoroughly.
See Katherine Morrissey, “Fifty Shades of Remix: The Intersectional Pleasures of Commercial
and Fan Romances,” Journal of Popular Romance Studies 4, no. 1 (2014). Eva Illouz describes the
cultural work of Fifty Shades of Grey and the reasons why the specific negotiation of sexuality
and romance and the related gender ideology is the basis for the huge impact of the book.
35 Brennan and Large, 29.
69
is plagiarism is based on a simplified notion of fanfiction, which assumes
that these texts are predominantly interested in replications of a preexisting
narrative. 33 Brennan and Large rightly observe that because of the fanfiction
genre AU/AH (alternate universe and all human), it is obvious that Master of
the Universe would not resemble Twilight. Once the explicit announcement
of a connection to a pre-text is taken away, most readers lack the background
knowledge to read the text as an adaptation. The commonalities between
the texts, once any supernatural elements were stripped off, and the setting
had been changed, were the names of the protagonists, and the inference
of the features of the characters from the pre-text by its readers. In the new
context, in the version of the fanfiction as reincarnated in Fifty Shades of
Grey, the similarities between the characters Christian and Edward as well as
Ana and Bella might as well be explained through the genre of the texts: if at
all, they appear to be romance characters of the same type. 34 Nevertheless,
the public discussion about the genesis of the text led Vintage publishing
to explain that Master of the Universe had been edited and rewritten to
an extent that resulted in the production of an “entirely original work,” 35
thereby restoring James’ status as a traditional author.
Unlike the feuilleton, fanfiction readers accept and value derivative
writing and collaboration as the fundament of fan authorship of texts that
often center on female desire and are mostly written and read by women.
For fans, a comparison between Master of the Universe, which was created
in the communal context of fandom, and Fifty Shades of Grey, which was
published as a book by E.L. James, is therefore paramount to a comparison
of Master of the Universe and Twilight. Fans deemed it scandalous that James
should claim singular authorship for a text that was created in the fan
community, and sell it on the book market. On the blog Dear Author, Jane
Little compared the texts with the help of three similarity software programs
and found 89% similarity between them. Comparisons of text passages on
the blog show the extensive editing, the correction of orthographic mistakes
33 On the NPR blog On the Media, Rebecca Tushnet, head of the legal board of The Organization
of Transformative Works, explains that Fifty Shades of Grey is not infringing any copyrights,
because it “does not actually copy any of the expression” of Twilight; see Rebecca Tushnet, “Fan
Fiction and the Law,” On the Media, March 8, 2013.
34 Katherine Morrissey has investigated the similarities between these texts more thoroughly.
See Katherine Morrissey, “Fifty Shades of Remix: The Intersectional Pleasures of Commercial
and Fan Romances,” Journal of Popular Romance Studies 4, no. 1 (2014). Eva Illouz describes the
cultural work of Fifty Shades of Grey and the reasons why the specific negotiation of sexuality
and romance and the related gender ideology is the basis for the huge impact of the book.
35 Brennan and Large, 29.