In
subcultural and fictional uses, a mundane is a person who does not belong to a particular group, according to the members of that group; the implication is that such persons, lacking imagination, are concerned solely with the mundane: the
quotidian and
ordinary
Ordinary or The Ordinary often refer to:
Music
* ''Ordinary'' (EP) (2015), by South Korean group Beast
* ''Ordinary'' (Every Little Thing album) (2011)
* "Ordinary" (Two Door Cinema Club song) (2016)
* "Ordinary" (Wayne Brady song) (2008)
* ...
.
The term first came into use in
science fiction fandom to refer, sometimes deprecatingly, to non-fans; this use of the term antedates 1955.
Etymology
Mundane came originally from the Latin mundus, meaning ordinary and worldly as opposed to spiritual, and has been in use in English since the 15th century.
In popular culture
Some
western cultural examples:
* In
Cassandra Clare's book series ''
The Mortal Instruments
''The Mortal Instruments'' is a series of six young adult fantasy novels written by American author Cassandra Clare, the last of which was published on May 27, 2014. ''The Mortal Instruments'' is chronologically the third series of a planned fi ...
'' and ''
The Infernal Devices
''The Infernal Devices'' is a trilogy by author Cassandra Clare, centring on a race called the Shadowhunters introduced in her ''The Mortal Instruments'' series. The trilogy is a prequel series to ''The'' ''Mortal Instruments'' series. Cassandr ...
'', humans who were not Shadowhunters nor Downworlders were referred to as "mundanes".
* In fantasy literature the term is sometimes used to apply to non-
magic
Magic or Magick most commonly refers to:
* Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces
* Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic
* Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...
al people or the non-magical society. It is used in
Piers Anthony's
Xanth novels and
Bill Willingham's comic book series ''
Fables'' (often shortened to "mundies" in the latter).
* In
furry fandom
The furry fandom is a subculture interested in anthropomorphic animal characters. Examples of anthropomorphic attributes include exhibiting human intelligence and facial expressions, speaking, walking on two legs, and wearing clothes. The term ...
, it is used to describe non-furries, or "humans".
* In
historical reenactment groups such as the
Society for Creative Anachronism (which originated in science fiction fandom):
**'Mundanes', sometimes shortened to just "'danes" (not to be confused with people of Danish descent), is also a term for normal everyday clothes, as opposed to those dressed in historical garb.
**Similarly, one's "mundane" name is the legal name one goes by in the outside world.
**Some participants classify all non-participants as "mundanes".
* In
science fiction fandom, some fans classify all non-fans as "mundanes."
* In text-based online
role-playing games, the term is commonly used to refer to the player as opposed to their character, typically shortened to "mun".
* In the
science fiction television series ''
Babylon 5'',
telepathic humans (especially
Psi Corps
The list of ''Babylon 5'' characters contains characters from the entire ''Babylon 5'' universe. The Babylon station was conceived as a political and cultural meeting place. As such, one of the show's many themes is the cultural and social intera ...
members) classify all non-telepathic humans as "mundanes". The classification is employed mainly, but not solely, by telepathic characters who have telepath-supremacist ideologies (such ideologies being one of the issues dealt with by the series), and was deliberately chosen to mirror the classification in science fiction fandom.
* In the scope of the software communities of
free
Free may refer to:
Concept
* Freedom, having the ability to do something, without having to obey anyone/anything
* Freethought, a position that beliefs should be formed only on the basis of logic, reason, and empiricism
* Emancipate, to procur ...
and
open-source software some proponents of the respective movements classify those that do not know enough about their views as "mundanes".
* In
Vampire lifestyle
The vampire lifestyle, vampire subculture, or vampire community (sometimes spelt as "vampyre") is an alternative lifestyle and subculture based around the mythology of and popular culture based on vampires. Those within the subculture commonly id ...
circles the word "mundane" means "non-sanguinarian", although some consider it derogatory.
*
Mundane science fiction is science fiction that does not make use of
interstellar travel or other common
trope
Trope or tropes may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Trope (cinema), a cinematic convention for conveying a concept
* Trope (literature), a figure of speech or common literary device
* Trope (music), any of a variety of different things ...
s of the genre.
[{{Cite web , date=January 2006 , title=Geoff Ryman: The Mundane Fantastic: Interview excerpts , url=http://www.locusmag.com/2006/Issues/01Ryman.html , access-date=23 September 2007 , website= Locus]
See also
*
Muggle
*
Plain vanilla
*
Populism
Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term developed ...
*
Reactionary
In political science, a reactionary or a reactionist is a person who holds political views that favor a return to the ''status quo ante'', the previous political state of society, which that person believes possessed positive characteristics abse ...
*
Reform movement
A reform movement or reformism is a type of social movement that aims to bring a social or also a political system closer to the community's ideal. A reform movement is distinguished from more radical social movements such as revolutionary mo ...
*
Revival movement
*
Underground culture
References
Science fiction terminology
Pejorative terms for people