I think that a lot of it has to do with age and experience. A lot of fandom finds it difficult to connect to others outside of their group. And they lack the outside experiences (due to age or whatever) to really be secure and comfortable. Their hearts are probably in the right place, but they just don't have the wherewithal to pull a lot off. When they see other things, they get threatened.
This is just based off my own fandom. One of the most famous/popular pairings involves a married man in his mid to late 30s. They don't have the ability to write the ending of a 10+ year marriage and his new gay sex life so they just write off the wife in horrible ways. But when anyone threatens this ship they tend to go off. They just don't have the ability to do it. It's a fun thing to read when done well, though.
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on 2012-01-24 01:21 am (UTC)This is just based off my own fandom. One of the most famous/popular pairings involves a married man in his mid to late 30s. They don't have the ability to write the ending of a 10+ year marriage and his new gay sex life so they just write off the wife in horrible ways. But when anyone threatens this ship they tend to go off. They just don't have the ability to do it. It's a fun thing to read when done well, though.