Don Quixote of La Mancha: transmedia storytelling in the grey zone

Abstract

Transmedia storytelling is one of the most interesting phenomena emerging from the /ncontemporary media ecology. In this/narticle, the focus moves from contemporary /ntransmedia productions to a literary classic: /nThe /nIngenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La /nMancha/n, written by/nMiguel de /nCervante from 1605/n–/n1615). Inspired by the conceptions of /nHenry Jenkins and Jesús Martín/n-/nBarbero/n, this article first reflects on the relationships /nbetween participatory culture, the media industry, and popular cultures; second, the /narticle analyses from a narratological perspective a corpus of productions published /nbetween the 19th and 20th centuries/nin Spain that expanded the narrative universe of /nCervantes’ masterpiece. The research specifically focuses on the /nauques/n, a series of /nperipheral graphic productions situated in a grey zone between Cervantes’ official /nnarrative (the canon) and user/n-/ngenerat/ned content (the fandom).