Social Status

I Think to an extent There is a bit of a social class issue. I have a bobobie mei and i feel like people think im a cheap butt or something, and I also have observed people Fanning over a person with an amazing doll and ignoring other all together.

But i'm sure those were just isolated incidents.

 

You've sort of answered your own concern there, though. Whatever is amazing is going to get more attention; that doesn't necessarily have anything to do with how much the doll cost or if someone is snooty or rude or not. The more attention-grabbing stuff is, well, going to grab more attention -- between a doll I find amazing and a doll I don't find interesting at all, I know which one I'm going to pay more attention to. That has nothing to do with the company, the price tag, or 'status' -- it has everything to do with presentation and creativity. Those qualities don't have anything to do with how someone collects, what they collect, or how much they've spent (since amazing things come at all price points) -- it's a factor not of what you have, but of what you do with it.

 

I have to point out though, just because someone doesn't fawn over one doll and does over another doesn't mean they think the other doll or the owner is cheap, beneath them or any of the other things people mentioned. Everyone has different tastes and people are not obliged or required to talk non-stop about things they may not find interesting. It doesn't mean they hate it or you, it just means it may not be their cup of tea. But here's something to think about for those of you with bobobie dolls, who may also feel other people think your cheap for buying cheap dolls. Bobobie/Resinsoul hasn't gone under yet, nor does it look like it'll be happening anytime soon, so obviously someone is buying these dolls, and apparently a lot of someone's. So no one person can be the only one who likes these "cheap" dolls.

Edit: This is what happens when I take to long to post, someone beats me to it. xD

 

In this case I think you have two class of "collectors", the ones ho just enjoy their dolls regardless of the social status and the ones ho gave their dolls a reason to presume a bigger social status, like diamonds or gold bracelets, or expensive clothing, you might buy a t-shirt because you like the shirt or because it's from a famous designer and you can presume it with your friends, and please notice this is only my most humble opinion, I'm on the range of "if you like your dolls it doesn't matter the price", but I know many people think different and I respect their opinions as well as I like mine to be respected, so if this is your first doll-meet, just go, don't give yourself a bad time thinking what the other people will think of your dolls, just go, and if they ignore you or mistreat you, ignore them as well, learn from the experience and try again with new people next time you might be "more lucky"...

 

I've seen a few 'snobs', but certainly not here. However, I will say this: My Volks Myu was my first doll, and honestly? She's the least important to me, least aesthetically pleasing, and I'd sell/trade her in a heartbeat. My 'cheap' doll (Illusion Spirit Meilin) isn't even here yet, and I'm in love.

 

This is a good point. I pay less attention to the sculpt and company than I do to what an owner has done with the doll. I see such remarkable creativity here every day and that is what impresses me.

 

I remember that, too -- I think it was the "cheap doll after cheap doll" thread that's now locked.

 

This might be a dumb question, since that's not a term I'm familiar with... but does it mean the poster is a big name, or that the posters are fans of a 'big name' company? <-- yes, I have the case of the dumb today.

 

The former; BNF generally refers to a fan who has gained notoriety for one reason or another, and is basically considered to be 'internet famous'.

 

I don't go to doll meets and I don't take my dolls out in public, aside from the occasional trip to work. So, unless I post pictures of them here, the only people who see my dolls are NON-doll people. They don't know how much I spent, how limited or not they are, whether it's Volks or Bobobie, nor do they care. The only thing they do care about is whether or not the doll is creepy!

I'm pretty upfront at work about being a doll owner and I've had several customers and coworkers ask me to bring one in so they can see it. More often than not, I bring in one of my Pukis. They certainly aren't the most expensive in my collection, or the most prestigious, but they are ALWAYS a crowd pleaser! I don't think I've met anyone who didn't love a Puki!

So, any sense of elitism is internal to the doll community, therefore it's created BY the doll community. I love my dolls, even the Bobobies, and I really don't give a crap what anyone else thinks. We all have the right to love our dolls anyway we choose and if another doll owner disagrees, that's their problem and they need to mind their own business.

 

But calling someone a BNF isn't implying that their is some kind of hierarchy or at least none associated with elitism. All that means is that there just happens to be people who are well know in the community.

 

My situation is pretty similar to yours, Krissy. Never been to a meet and don't take my dolls out in public. They have only ever "met" some family members and friends. I suppose that's why I find this thread so interesting as I really wasn't aware of any elitism or social status within this hobby before.

 

I just went to a meet-up yesterday and didn't notice any elitism, everyone's dolls got oooh, and ahhh'd over by different people, and I thought a lot of other people's dolls were way better then my own, and that he looked rather plain next to many others, and yet I still had people comment on him and his faceup/tattoo(none of which I can take credit for). So far the meets I have been two have been really fun and inviting, and didn't see anyone lording it over anyone else.

 

Thanks -- that helps greatly, since I could find ways to interpret it both ways, but neither really clicked as being inherently elitist (much like Cloudedmind mentioned), so I was really wondering if I had missed something somewhere in there.

Back to the general topic -- I've only gone to the local meetups in my area, and I don't live in a big area. (The area of Delaware I'm in isn't in the absolute middle of nowhere, but it's not what I'd call a major metropolitan center by a long ways, either. ) The dolls people bring pretty much run the gamut, though. I know I'd feel fine bringing my most, or least costly dolls there without any worries, limited or not limited, etc. without any concerns.

 

You really don't think the term "Big-Name Fan" implies a social hierarchy? Or that a Big-Name Fan would, by definition, be a member of an elite group? (Not an "elitist", mind you.)

Or am I muddying the waters? Is the debate strictly as regards economic status?

 

It really depends on the fandom, IMO. In one where a person's BNF status is based on what he or she has done, I don't really see the social hierarchy. At least not as something a social climber could navigate. The way to become a BNF in this fandom is to do something amazing with your dolls.

But in other fandoms where BNF status is conferred based on less concrete things (whom you know, etc.) a social hierarchy would apply. I belong to both types of fandoms, and the bjd one is remarkably free from the grasping and pushing for position seen in others.

 

BNF is not a term meant to be flattering to the person being called one. I've been in other fandoms where being called a BNF is akin to being called something much, much worse. In other words, the idea of a person being a Big Name Fan carries the connotation of someone who uses their status to control or otherwise manipulate other people in fandom. I'm also in Harry Potter fandom and I've seen it happen time and time again.

I think there's probably elitism in just about every hobby. Just the other day, I was reading a Livejournal post about an astrology community and how b*tchy they were. Why? It's ASTROLOGY, for pity's sake

 

This is pretty much how I see it, in this fandom anyway. I personally think social status and elitism has to do with how a person reacts to being "famous" within a group or community, and whether or not they try to use that against others, and not necessarily how they are regarded by others in said community.

Perhaps that's true in other fandoms, but in regards to this one I do not believe that is how the person using it, mean't it, as I also saw that comment, and although I don't know that person personally, but from what I've seen of their other thoughts on things I do not feel that they were implying some kind of doll hierarchy or social status among it's members, or that they mean't something negative, but I could be wrong.

 

Thank you. This is an important point of clarification. I'm with you now.

 

Quote: "Don't confuse your own jealousy for some kind of elitism."

Very well said.