A Universe Divided: Texts vs. Games in The Elder Scrolls

Abstract

In this paper, I seek to understand how online fan-made archives function as spaces wherein fans of The Elder Scrolls construct its narrative universe together, using the web-based archive The Imperial Library as a primary tool that facilitates a certain type of fannish engagement known as ‘archontic fandom’. I see fannish discussions surrounding the canonical status of several works within the universe as an entry point into one of the most important underlying controversies of The Elder Scrolls as a shared idea between its fans; that is, the tension between the ‘universe-as-games’ and the ‘universe-as-texts’. Some fans give primacy to the written texts found within the universe, and neglect the universe-as-games in their world-building discussions. Consequentially, The Imperial Library’s paratextual functioning and overt emphasis on texts come to strengthen the position of the universe-as-texts in relation to the universe-as-games.