Hand fan

A hand fan is a tool to keep cool, flaunt like a jewel, and, though not to be cruel, slap a fool.

Hand fans are broad and thin objects primarily meant to direct air flow. In a pinch any sheet or leaf will do, but a society interested in the technique sooner rather than later develops dedicated tools. They allow people to keep themselves cool on hot days and regulate heat and smoke when grilling. Alternatively, hand fans constructed with regard for aesthetics make for a good fashion accessory and as items that aren't too sturdy, they're also suitable for a corrective whack.

Fiction

The Transformers cartoon

In the days of the ancient empress, fans were an accessory of standing among the Zamojin as both the empress and the sky-dancer Nijika owned gold-colored and decorated fans that were part of their ensemble. Nijika would've taken her fan with her among the stars but a Quintesson damaged her beyond function before she could start her journey. Her broken body nd its accessories were stored away by her creator and inherited by his descendant, who "repaired" Nijika with Perceptor's machinery. For as long as it lasted, Perceptor readily took to his new body and the fan that came with it, handling it as if he'd never done else. The Face of the Nijika

Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity

Legends comic

Windblade was created by the Zamojin in the likeness of Nijika. She got the same clothes as her predecessor and also a gold-colored hand fan, though hers looked slightly less fancy than Nijika's. Bonus Edition Vol. 12

Beast Wars II cartoon

BB shot several missiles around in the Predacon lake fortress in an attempt to hit some Maximals. For his efforts, Starscream whacked him with a harisen because he could've easily destroyed the underwater base. The Lake Trap Starscream more unreasonably hit BB again with a harisen for a thoughtless remark Dirge made as he happened to stand next to BB. Autorollers Roll Out!

To lure the Maximals into a trap, Dirge and Thrust had to generate a lot of smoke so that it would look like the Predacons were harvesting Angolmois Energy again. To create this smoke, they burned charcoal and used fans to control the heat and direct the smoke. A Fearsome Combination Plan?

Games

DreamMix TV World Fighters

The baseball playing Power Pro-kun took part in the World Fighters tournament against such opponents as Optimus Prime and Megatron. Instead of a bat, he wielded a harisen. DreamMix TV World Fighters

Notes

• Harisen are a type of paper fan traditionally used in manzai by the tsukkomi to punish the boke for their idiocy with a good whack.