Ship
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[edit] Introduction
Ship is short for "relationship" and is a fan-created term that refers to the relationship between characters in fiction as well as between real people. This word can be used as a noun (e.g., Squid/Hogwarts is one of my ships) or as a verb (e.g., I ship Squid/Hogwarts). A shipper is someone who supports a ship.
[edit] Historical Definitions
The following term dates to 1997 and was written by JPayne:
- Relationship stories: A story that deals with interpersonal relationships, rather than problem solving or action/adventure; many of these stories assume the reader already is familiar with the characters through exposure to them in a TV series or films. [...] They explore the interaction of the characters in an already existing situation, instead of setting up the situtation and inserting the characters into it. They relationship is often a deepening friendship between two antagonistic men, which may further develop into a male-bonding situation, or, if it is extended far enough, into a slash situation.
- Hurt/Comfort stories began as a combination of relationship and action/adventure. The two main characters would be in a life-threatening situation; one would be hurt, while the other would have to give comfort, and the relationship would determine the outcome.
- Relationship stories may not necessarily be SF; however, the proliferation of the soft sciences into SF has increased the number of SF stories that include relationship interactions. (Rogow, 280) [1]
The following definition dates to November 2002 in media fandom:
- A 'ship can be canon, in other words, written into the series by the writers and creators, as in the case of Sam & Jack in Stargate SG1, or projected, that is in the eyes (and hearts) of the fans, as is the case of Janeway & Chakotay in Star Trek: Voyager. Some shows have multiple 'ships such as Star Trek: The Next Generation, which has 'shippers devoted to Picard & Crusher, Riker & Troi, Troi & Worf and Data & Tasha. Even sitcoms like Fraiser have 'shippers, in this case Niles & Daphne 'shippers. [2]
The following term dates to 2005 in the Lord of the Rings fandom:
- Pairing - two (or more) characters in an intimate scene/ story; that is usually sexual in nature. [3]
The following definition dates to December 2005 in the Harry Potter fandom:
- 'ship also ship - One of the weirder terms in any fandom. The term "ship" originated in X-files fandom, where it was used to describe fanfic about a romantic relationship between Mulder and Scully. Soon, people who supported this "ship" were calling themselves "shippers." These terms found their way to Harry Potter fandom, so someone who thought Ron & Hermione were meant for each other would call themselves a "R/H shipper." But it didn't stop there - people began forming clubs, using a metaphor of ships moving on the sea. Each has gained a strange and wonderful name, so the Ginny/Tom is called "The HMS Gin n' Tonic" and the Harry/Hermione club is called "The HMS Pumpkin Pie." More information on ships can be found on the Park at SCUSA.[4]
The following definition dates to January 11, 2007 in the Avatar: The Last Airbender fandom:
- ship- a character pairing or relation ship [5]
The following definition dates to 2008 in the Superman fandom:
- Pairing - The selection of characters that are in a relationship together. This is denoted by using the abbreviations of their names together or just their name. R/L would be Richard/Lois put together or Richlois. That is a pairing.[6]
[edit] History
This section needs more information.
[edit] Lists of Ships
[edit] Examples
The Harry Potter fandom has taken the term "ship" to another level: some fans, instead of using portmanteaus to name their favorite couple, have played upon the "ship" theme to name couples as if they were nautical ships. For example, some fen call Sirius/Remus HMS Puppy Love.
[edit] External Links
[edit] Meta/Discussion
- So what is it that you see, in canon or fanon, that makes your heart melt over how obviously in love your favorite pairing is, even if they're not able to admit it? by cin1607 on February 10, 2010
