Abstract
Fun is a vital part of entertainment. In this chapter McKee shows that entertainment and art emerged as distinct cultural systems in Western democracies during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Entertainment industries developed alongside industrialisation and urbanisation. Since its emergence—and contrary to the concerns of many philosophers—the aesthetic system of entertainment has remained remarkably consistent. Good entertainment is vulgar. It has a story. Seriality is valued. Good entertainment has a happy ending. It is interactive, fast, loud, and spectacular. It provokes a strong emotional response in the consumer. And—importantly for thinking about its cultural function—good entertainment is fun.
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McKee, A. (2016). Entertainment and Fun. In: FUN!. Palgrave Entertainment Industries. Palgrave Pivot, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-49179-4_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-49179-4_2
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