Enterprising Women
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Enterprising Women, written by Camille Bacon-Smith, was published in 1992.
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[edit] Criticisms
[edit] Over generalizations
"Bacon-Smith also overgeneralizes with regard to the gender of fans, declining entirely to address the phenomenon of male participation in media fandom. Although it is true that men make up a minority of fanzine editors and contributors, their participation is nonetheless significant and should not be ignored. Some of Bacon-Smith's analyses pertain specifically to the psychological and social qualities of women; because not all fans are women, her analyses cannot be applied to fandom as a whole." [1]
[edit] Sampling problems
"Another problem is her claim that many fans live unsatisfactory lives and experience unusually deep pain. A survey she cites as evidence for this claim was conducted among fans at a single small convention on the East Coast; although the number is not specified, it cannot be enough for a representative sample. She also mentions information from surveys conducted informally by fans themselves, but these are even less scientific. In addition, the evidence suffers from the lack of comparison to a control group." [2]
[edit] Treatment of subjects
"Bacon-Smith states (p. 269) that she had accepted at the beginning of her search that the heart of fandom is the place "where the tears fell." By pre-defining the object of her quest in this fashion, she is making the assumption that there must be something wrong with these women, an assumption which is not only unnecessary but pernicious. If one asks why the warm, talented women portrayed in this book would form creative and supportive communities, at least part of the answer lies in the question itself, in the warmth and talent of the participants. Certainly the answer need not assume that there must be something wrong with them. This undercuts the respect and dignity accorded her subjects in earlier chapters." [3]
