User blog:Techne/Little help on an essay? Your opinions are appreciated!

So, this fall I’m taking an University course called Modern Popular Culture, and we have to write two essays. One is a top-down essay and the other a bottom-up essay. I’m doing the latter first. In case you were wondering, a top-down means culture as the source (things like ideology, gender, individualism etc.). Something that comes from the above, so to speak. Bottom-up, on the other hand means culture from the point of view of the consumer (like subcultures, fans, local modifications to a global practice…) In any case, I have chosen fanfiction as my subject, and more specifically, how genders are portrayed. This is where you come along. I’d like you to take part of my little survey, and tell me what your view on fanfiction is. All the answers will be cited properly according to my university’s guidelines and not given to anyone else except to my professor. I promise you I will not use the answers to anything else except this one essay without your permission. I will not pick up any single answer and comment on it, but I will treat them as a group and try to find the similarities and differences within groups as well as between two or more groups.

If you have any questions, please, ask.

The survey:

Please be through in your answers. It’ll help me a lot.

1. Your gender:

2. Your age group:
 * Younger than 13
 * 13-15
 * 15-18


 * Older than 18

3. Why do you write fanfiction?

4. Are your characters mostly male or female? Why?

5. Do you convey your images of an ideal man/woman to your characters? Why or why not?

6. What is your idea of a Mary Sue?

7. Do you avoid Mary Sues like a plague, or have you got a ‘I couldn’t care less’ attitude? Something in the middle? Why?

8. What is your opinion on Mary Sue Litmus Tests? Do you find them accurate or helpful?

9. Any other comments?

Thank you so much for answering!