Fantasy girls : gender in the new universe of science fiction and fantasy television / edited by Elyce Rae Helford.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Helford, Elyce Rae, 1962-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Women on television.

Fantasy television programs--United States.

Fantasy television programs.

Science fiction television programs--United States.

Science fiction television programs.

United States.

Physical Description:

vii, 273 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Lanham, MD : Rowman & Littlefield, [2000]

Summary:

Fantasy Girls seeks to explore as well as challenge the power and the promises of this recent media phenomenon. Such TV programming offers the exciting opportunity to rethink established gender norms, but how far is it really pushing the limits of the status quo? Amidst the exuberant optimism of fanzines and doting fan websites, the contributors to this volume endeavor to provide us with a much needed critical analysis of this contemporary trend. These essays explore the contradictions and limitations inherent in the genre, forcing readers to take a fresh and critical look through a variety of lenses including girl power, postfeminism, cyborg feminism, disability politics, queer studies, and much more. Programs covered are Babylon 5, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Disney's Cinderella, Lois and Clark, Mystery Science Theater 3000, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Star Trek: Voyager, The X-Files, Third Rock from the Sun, and Xena: Warrior Princess.

Contents:

Sabrina, the Teenage ...? : Girls, witches, mortals, and the limitations of prime-time feminism / Sarah Projansky and Leah R. Vande Berg

Cartesian novum of Third Rock from the Sun : gendering human bodies and alien minds / Nicole Matthews and Farah Mendlesohn

Scully hits the glass ceiling : postmodernism, postfeminism, posthumanism, and The X-Files / Linda Badley

Lois's locks : trust and representation in Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman / Rhonda V. Wilcox

What's happening on Earth? : Mystery Science Theater 3000 as reflection of gender roles and attitudes toward women / Jessica A. Royer

Feminism, queer studies, and the sexual politics of Xena: Warrior Princess / Elyce Rae Helford

To be a vampire on Buffy the Vampire Slayer : race and ("other") socially marginalizing positions on horror TV / Kent A. Ono

Biology is not destiny; biology is fantasy : Cinderella, or to dream Disney's "impossible"/possible race relations dream / Marleen S. Barr

Science, race, and gender in Star Trek: Voyager / Robin A. Roberts

Construction of feminine identity in Babylon 5 / Sharon Ney and Elaine M. Sciog-Lazarov

No ramps in space : the inability to envision accessibility in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine / Hanley E. Kanar.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0847698343

0847698351

OCLC:

43634837