scholarly journals Why Imaginary Worlds?

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-52
Author(s):  
Edgar Dubourg ◽  
Nicolas Baumard
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Behavioral Ecology ◽  
Developmental Psychology ◽  
Graphic Novels ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Harry Potter ◽  
Fictional World ◽  
Star Wars ◽  
Cultural Preference ◽  
Striking Success

Abstract Imaginary worlds are extremely successful. The most popular fictions produced in the last decades contain such a fictional world. They can be found in all fictional media, from novels (e.g., Lord of The Ring, Harry Potter) to films (e.g., Star Wars, Avatar), video games (e.g., The Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy), graphic novels (e.g., One piece, Naruto) and TV series (e.g., Star Trek, Game of Thrones), and they date as far back as ancient literature (e.g., the Cyclops Islands in The Odyssey, 850 BCE). Why such a success? Why so much attention devoted to nonexistent worlds? In this article, we propose that imaginary worlds co-opt our preferences for exploration, which have evolved in humans and non-human animals alike, to propel individuals toward new environments and new sources of reward. Humans would find imaginary worlds very attractive for the very same reasons, and under the same circumstances, as they are lured by unfamiliar environments in real life. After reviewing research on exploratory preferences in behavioral ecology, environmental aesthetics, neuroscience, and evolutionary and developmental psychology, we focus on the sources of their variability across time and space, which we argue can account for the variability of the cultural preference for imaginary worlds. This hypothesis can therefore explain the way imaginary worlds evolved culturally, their shape and content, their recent striking success, and their distribution across time and populations.

scholarly journals Exploratory preferences explain the cultural success of imaginary worlds in modern societies

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edgar Dubourg ◽  
Valentin Thouzeau ◽  
Charles de Dampierre ◽  
Nicolas Baumard
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Young People ◽  
Personality Trait ◽  
Graphic Novels ◽  
Demographic Data ◽  
Harry Potter ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Modern Culture ◽  
Star Wars ◽  
Cognitive Preferences

Imaginary worlds are one of the hallmarks of modern culture. They are present in many of the most successful fictions, be it in novels (e.g., Harry Potter), films (e.g., Star Wars), video games (e.g., The Legend of Zelda), graphic novels (e.g., One piece) and TV series (e.g., Game of Thrones). This phenomenon is global (e.g., the worldwide success of Lord of the Ring, the emergence of xuanhuan and xanxia genres in China), and massive: people spend an increasing amount of time, energy and resources involved in fictions with imaginary worlds. Why so much attention devoted to nonexistent worlds? In this paper, we propose that imaginary worlds co-opt exploratory preferences, a set of cognitive preferences that have evolved in humans and non-human animals to motivate individuals to explore new sources of reward. Imaginary worlds are fictional superstimuli that tap into the human’s interest for unfamiliar and potentially rewarding environments. This theory predicts that 1) fictions with imaginary worlds should be more appealing for individuals higher in Openness to experience (because this personality trait is associated with exploratory preferences), 2) such fictions should be more attractive for younger people (because young people reap more rewards from exploratory behaviors) and 3) such fictions should be more successful in more economically developed societies (because affluent ecologies lower the costs of exploration). We successively test these predictions with two large cultural datasets, namely IMDb (N=85,855 films) and Wikidata (N=96,711 novels), as well the Movie Personality Dataset, which aggregates averaged personality traits and demographic data from the Facebook myPersonality Database (N=3.5 million), the films they like on Facebook and metadata for films from the Internet Movie Database (IMDb). We provide evidence that the appeal for imaginary worlds relies on our exploratory psychology.

scholarly journals Interview: Acclaimed Game Designer Ryan Kaufman Discusses Telltale Games, Star Wars, Harry Potter, and How Video Games Can Transform Us

Arts ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 46
Author(s):  
Christian Thomas
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Harry Potter ◽  
Profound Impact ◽  
Star Wars ◽  
Tv Shows ◽  
Game Designer

Ryan Kaufman—whose rich body of work often centers on video games adapted from movies or TV shows—has had a profound impact on video game designers, writers, and players alike [...]

Cultural Hegemony in J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter Series

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 57
Author(s):  
Shalih Dzakiyyah Farda
Keyword(s):  
Real Life ◽  
Harry Potter ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Cultural Hegemony ◽  
The People

This article discusses the issue of politics and hegemony in Harry Potter, a fantasy series by British author J. K. Rowling. The work is apparently coded with class systems and hierarchy in its society, and how it can be seen as a reflection of real-life society. It explores how the ruling group tries to keep the power only on the hands of the few by inserting their views and ideologies to their people, and thus resulting into a certain status quo that the ruling group finds desirable. The seven novels of Harry Potter are analysed through Marxist perspective using Antonio Gramsci’s theory of Cultural Hegemony, in which the people in power impose and spread their ideas to those below them as a way to control them. It is concluded that the series also involves criticisms on class domination, corruption on power, and rebellion.

Mainstream Superhero Comics and Gendered Representations of Social Control

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hope Hutchins
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Social Control ◽  
Police Officers ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Graphic Novels ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Women Police Officers ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Media Constructions ◽  
Women Police

In the context of increasing familiarity with mainstream superhero comics and their characters, a wide range of readers are being exposed to the values regarding gender and social control being communicated in this genre. Therefore, it is important to assess whether social control is signified differently for males and females in superhero comics. This presentation will begin with a discussion of why it is important to study comics and graphic novels. I will then outline the concept of social control and criminological theories centered on this idea before demonstrating why superheroes may be understood as agents of social control. This will bring me to a discussion of preliminary findings of a qualitative content analysis of issues of Batman, Captain America, Wonder Woman, Ms Marvel, Justice League of America, and New Avengers comics released from May to October 2007. In examining the leadership positions, the formal and informal methods employed, those over whom social control is exercised, and relative success of each superhero in these issues, I am seeking to assess whether social control is portrayed as being exercised by male and female superheroes in different ways and to identify how this happens. The results of this content analysis will be compared with previous studies of women police officers to assess whether representations of female agents of social control in superhero comics are consistent with the experiences of real‐life criminal justice practitioners. Finally, the reasons for and implications of the nature of such media constructions will be briefly explored to encourage other students to study comics and graphic novels.

scholarly journals A Survey of Graphic Novel Collection and Use in American Public Libraries

2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 68 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward Francis Schneider
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
New Media ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Adult Literacy ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Graphic Novels ◽  
Comic Book ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Similar Data ◽  
Marketing Tool

Abstract Objective – The objective of this study was to survey American public libraries about their collection and use of graphic novels and compare their use to similar data collected about video games. Methods – Public libraries were identified and contacted electronically for participation through an open US government database of public library systems. The libraries contacted were asked to participate voluntarily. Results – The results indicated that both graphic novels and video games have become a common part of library collections, and both media can have high levels of impact on circulation. Results indicated that while almost all libraries surveyed had some graphic novels in their collections, those serving larger populations were much more likely to use graphic novels in patron outreach. Similarly, video game collection was also more commonly found in libraries serving larger populations. Results also showed that young readers were the primary users of graphic novels. Conclusion – Responses provided a clear indicator that graphic novels are a near-ubiquitous part of public libraries today. The results on readership bolster the concept of graphic novels as a gateway to adult literacy. The results also highlight differences between larger and smaller libraries in terms of resource allocations towards new media. The patron demographics associated with comics show that library cooperation could be a potential marketing tool for comic book companies.

Use of Photogrammetry in Video Games: A Historical Overview

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 289-307 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nataska Statham
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Modeling Technique ◽  
Future Trends ◽  
Historical Overview ◽  
Game Development ◽  
Star Wars ◽  
Game Engines

In 2014, the developers of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter revealed that the stunning settings in the game were created using photogrammetry, a modeling technique up to then generally disregarded as being too cumbersome for the technical limitations of game engines. Shortly after, EA DICE announced that its 2015 flagship title Star Wars Battlefront would be adopting photogrammetry extensively not only to capture key props and costumes but also to recreate key locations beloved to Star Wars fans. Since then, the games industry has been flooded with articles, tutorials, and new software dedicated to the use of photogrammetry to create 3-D game assets. This article examines the key developments in the field since 2014, how the technique is being adopted by game studios, what are the current and future trends, and how the use of photogrammetry is likely to disrupt the well-established game development pipelines.

Dumbledore’s army: civil disobedience in “Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix”

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 177-198
Author(s):  
Arthur Emanuel Leal Abreu ◽  
Alexandre de Castro Coura
Keyword(s):  
Real Life ◽  
Civil Disobedience ◽  
School Community ◽  
Harry Potter ◽  
Law And Literature ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Persuasive Strategies ◽  
Law In Literature ◽  
The Phoenix ◽  
Do So

This paper explores the connection between law and literature, considering the concept of civil disobedience as developed in the plot of the novel “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”. To do so, this research uses the approach of law in literature, by linking the actions of Dumbledore’s Army to the theory of civil disobedience by Dworkin. Also, the narrative is compared to the conception of civil disobedience as a fundamental right, based on the conflict between facticity and validity, as described by Habermas. Thus, the analysis identifies, in the novel, two categories of civil disobedience proposed by Dworkin, and discusses, in real life, the overlapping of disobedience based on justice and on politics, in order to identify the conditions that justify actions of civil disobedience. Besides that, this paper analyzes the tension between legality and legitimacy, considering the decisions of the Ministry of Magic and its educational decrees, which sets the school community apart from the official political power. In conclusion, the research examines the use of persuasive and non-persuasive strategies and the reach of civil disobedience’s purposes based on the actions of Harry Potter and of Dumbledore’s Army.

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