Cultural Analysis Project

Hillary Wallace

Regent University

November 23, 2014

The Winchester Gospels

Television is a large part of American culture.

“In its approximately 40 years as a part of American society, television has become an integral part of almost every home. It accompanies much of daily life, either as foreground or as background.” (Huston, et al., 1992).

Television Influence

And its influence only continues to grow.

“Network television, one of the most powerful social forces in America, is assuming increasingly important and complex social functions in contemporary societies. Television networks determine the structure and content of news and information, as well as the dominant forms, values, and ideologies in television entertainment” (Kellner, 1981).

Supernatural “Two brothers follow their father's footsteps as "hunters" fighting evil supernatural beings of many kinds including monsters, demons, and gods that roam the earth” (IMDb.com Inc., 2014).

As a cultural artifact, Supernatural addresses the human need for a higher power and an explanation for the unexplainable events in life.

200+ Episodes

The sheer amount of episodes means that there is something for almost anyone in one episode or another.

Everyone can find something to relate to in Supernatural.

Beyond typical viewers, Supernatural has built a large fandom – a kingdom of avid fans – who create fictions based on the show, dream about the characters and actors, and spend countless hours looking at photos and video of the show.

Supernatural Influence

“Turns out we needed Supernatural.

Why Supernatural? Solid writing, an intricate mythology, scary monsters both literal and metaphorical. A story of love, loyalty, and family. An emotionally intense relationship between the main characters that generates enough chemistry to power a small city. Two very hot actors. Wasn’t that enough?

It probably would have been, but there was more. We could relate to the Winchester brothers. Both are damaged heroes who have put their own needs aside to save others. They feel deeply but show little. Putting our own needs aside and swallowing emotions was something we had both done too—for partners, children, career. Add to this the Winchesters’ appeal to anyone who’s ever felt like they don’t quite “fit in” with the rest of the world” (Larsen & Zubernis, 2013).

Fanfiction

Fan fiction of the brothers and their companions has blanketed the internet and social media. Facebook pages, twitter feeds, pinterest boards, and tumblr accounts all document the fandom’s obsession with Supernatural.

The site “Archive of Our Own” (pictured above) has over 87,000 works in the Supernatural category.

The Leaders

Like any good religion, the leaders of Supernatural are charismatic and enticing. Sam is gentle and caring. Dean is bold and strong. Castiel (Cas), is powerful and principled.

The Followers

Even in the show, fans are portrayed as excited readers (the Supernatural series in the show is a series of books). Real life fans are just as excitable, invested, and involved in the continuing story of the Winchester brothers.

The Texts

The books written by “Carver Edlund” are the basis of the fandom in the show. These are the basis for the fanfiction in the real world.

They present the cultural implications of the Supernatural story on society.

These beliefs range from simple statements from the brothers to in-depth analysis of the value of family and perseverance.

Tumblr.com user “the-winchester-gospels” takes some of these statements and turns them into parts of the “Winchester Gospel.”

For example, a quote from the pilot episode, “Driver picks the music, shotgun shuts his cakehole” is re-quoted as a verse of the first book of the Winchester Gospel: “First Winchester 1:1 - And the righteous man proclaimed, “Whosoever driveth the chariot shall have command over the musical anthology, while whosoever accompanies him shall render himself noiseless” (the-winchester-gospels, 2014).

The Beliefs

First Winchester 1:1

If no other information was available on humanity and the gospel, Supernatural would present an interesting perspective of the meaning of life.

The story includes humans, family, friends, monsters, ghosts, vampires, werewolves, angels, demons, Lucifer, and the possibility of a Higher Power (perhaps the mysterious “prophet author,” Chuck, is actually God?).

The show also addresses many themes – love, hatred, vengeance, family ties, responsibility, personal roles, danger, sacrifice, and more. Bonds are formed, friendships forsaken, love discarded, sacrifices made, and deals struck in order to save the human race from dangers of which it isn’t even aware.

Supernatural as Gospel

The Family Business

The main belief of Supernatural is the idea that the human race needs to be saved.

The Winchester’s claim that their “family business” is saving people (while hunting things). But often, Dean’s only concern is saving Sam, and Sam doesn’t always make excellent choices.

Their roles as “savior” leave much to be desired.

Unlike the gospel story of the Bible, Supernatural leaves you with more questions than answers. Though the gospel of Jesus does not answer all the questions of the universe, it is made clear that there is a higher power, an all-powerful Creator, God, and that He cares for the world – enough to send His only son to die in order to save it. Supernatural leaves that question unanswered, dangling over the viewers’ head like a question mark.

Supernatural is an entertaining show, but as a gospel, it falls short. Someone trying to place their belief in the saving power of Sam or Dean would find a lack of real trust and a vacancy of faith. The influence of the show on creative works and viewers’ attention is great, but the story cannot be seen as all-consuming or a real interpretation of the saving gospel of Jesus.

 

Conclusion

References

Huston, A., Donnerstein, E., Fairchild, H., Feshbach, N. D., Katz, P. A., Murray, J. P., . . . Zuckerman, D. (1992). Big World, Small Screen: The Role of Television in American Society. U of Nebraska Press.

IMDb.com Inc. (2014). Supernatural (2005-). Retrieved November 23, 2014, from IMDb.com: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0460681/

Kellner, D. (1981, January). Network television and American society. Theory and Society, 10(1), 31-62.

Larsen, K., & Zubernis, L. S. (2013, December 18). Supernatural Fangirls: How the cult sci-fi show turned two academics into experts on fandom - and crazy stalkers. Retrieved November 23, 2014, from Slate.com: http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2013/12/academic_studies_of_fandom_two_professors_become_stalker_fangirls_of_supernatural.html

the-winchester-gospels. (2014). The Winchester Gospels. Retrieved November 23, 2014, from tumblr.com: http://the-winchester-gospels.tumblr.com/