One of the main reasons that people memorialize themselves in places of death is proof for other people who also come by those spaces that the person was there. It would seem to be far too much work to do something without reward from the living.
In fan situations, this is truly exceptional. Fans grapple with deaths of fictional and sometimes real characters all the time, leading to feelings of real grief and despair. When it came to Jim Morrison's grave, for instance, one testimony of a fellow researcher (Liz Bell) was that there were fans at the site that were crying in grief of Morrison's death, and that the feelings for them were real, regardless of whether or not they had actually met Morrison. His impact on their lives seems to transcend all interpersonal relations.
In fan situations, this is truly exceptional. Fans grapple with deaths of fictional and sometimes real characters all the time, leading to feelings of real grief and despair. When it came to Jim Morrison's grave, for instance, one testimony of a fellow researcher (Liz Bell) was that there were fans at the site that were crying in grief of Morrison's death, and that the feelings for them were real, regardless of whether or not they had actually met Morrison. His impact on their lives seems to transcend all interpersonal relations.
For fans of Morrison, like Liz Bell in this picture, this was a special time to make their mark in a space that has been participated in for decades. Below, one can see that she actually wrote on the wall near where Morrison's grave was:
Henry Jenkins, an aca-fan, while referencing Nancy Baym's work, says the following about this: "Soap talk, Baym notes, allows people to 'show off to one another' their various competencies while making individual expertise more broadly available" (139)*. The same can be said for the reasons why people photograph themselves in spots of interest, or leave notes and cards for the deceased: part of them is exchanging information with other fans, leaving bits of themselves behind for others to find. It isn't simply making fans feel good for having found it, though Baym coined the term "socioemotional" in beginning to describe this concept (139)*. For them, it's about completing a journey to getting to a spot that makes the fandom they identify themselves with real. Liz Bell even said that she really understood that Morrison was dead when she went to his grave.
It isn't all about grief. It's about communication. Fans in famous cemeteries communicate to each other as they do in other spaces, but the interesting part is that they are simultaneously grappling with ideas of respect and distance from the dead. For passionate fans, this is not an issue. They are able to separate (or un-identify) from those societal norms and do what they believe is best for the fandom. They are able to write on walls and leave notes and cigarettes and alcohol at Morrison's grave.
And that's probably how he would have wanted it, anyway.
It isn't all about grief. It's about communication. Fans in famous cemeteries communicate to each other as they do in other spaces, but the interesting part is that they are simultaneously grappling with ideas of respect and distance from the dead. For passionate fans, this is not an issue. They are able to separate (or un-identify) from those societal norms and do what they believe is best for the fandom. They are able to write on walls and leave notes and cigarettes and alcohol at Morrison's grave.
And that's probably how he would have wanted it, anyway.