ISBN 978-0-7864-4814-2
notes, bibliographies, index
215pp. softcover 2010
Price: $35.00
Description
The twentieth century witnessed a dramatic rise in fantasy writing and few works became as popular or have endured as long as the novels of J.R.R. Tolkien. Surprisingly, little critical attention has been paid to the presence of music in his novels. This collection of essays explores the multitude of musical-literary allusions and themes intertwined throughout Tolkien’s body of work. Of particular interest is Tolkien’s scholarly work with medieval music and its presentation and performance practice, as well as the musical influences of his Victorian and Edwardian background. Discographies of Tolkien-influenced music of the 20th and 21st centuries are included.
Table of Contents
Introduction
BRADFORD LEE EDEN 1
Horns of Dawn: The Tradition of Alliterative Verse in Rohan
JASON FISHER 7
“Inside a Song”: Tolkien’s Phonaesthetics
JOHN R. HOLMES 26
Æ´ fre me strongode longas: Songs of Exile in the Mortal Realms
PETER WILKIN 47
J.R.R. Tolkien: A Fortunate Rhythm
DARIELLE RICHARDS 61
Tolkien’s Unfinished “Lay of Lúthien” and the Middle English Sir Orfeo
DEANNA DELMAR EVANS 75
Strains of Elvish Song and Voices: Victorian Medievalism, Music, and Tolkien
BRADFORD LEE EDEN 85
Dissonance in the Divine Theme: The Issue of Free Will in Tolkien’s Silmarillion
KEITH W. JENSEN 102
“Worthy of a Song”: Memory, Mortality and Music
AMY M. AMENDT-RADUEGE 114
“Tolkien is the Wind and the Way”: The Educational Value of Tolkien-Inspired World Music
AMY H. STURGIS 126
Liquid Tolkien: Music, Tolkien, Middle-earth, and More Music
DAVID BRATMAN 140
Performance Art in a Tunnel: A Musical Sub-Creator in the Tradition of Tolkien
ANTHONY S. BURDGE 171
Contributors 201
Index 205
About the Author
Bradford Lee Eden is Associate University Librarian for Technical Services and Scholarly Communication at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He lives in Lompoc, California.
The Literary Angel: Essays on Influences and Traditions Reflected in the Joss Whedon Series
ISBN 978-0-7864-4661-2
notes, bibliography, index
264pp. softcover 2010
Price: $35.00
Description
The fictionalized Los Angeles of television’s Angel is a world filled with literature--from the all-important Shansu prophecy that predicts Angel’s return to a state of humanity to the ever-present books dominating the characters’ research sessions. This collection brings together essays that engage Angel as a text to be addressed within the wider fields of narrative and literature. It is divided into four distinct parts, each with its own internal governing themes and focus: archetypes, narrative and identity, theory and philosophy, and genre. Each provides opportunities for readers to examine a wide variety of characters, tropes, and literary nuances and influences throughout all five televised seasons of the series and in the current continuation of the series in comic book form.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction: Los Angeles, City of Story
AMIJO COMEFORD and TAMY BURNETT 1
One : Archetypes
Biting Humor: Harmony, Parody, and the Female Vampire
LORNA JOWETT 17
Doyle as “The Passing Figure” and Nella Larsen’s Passing
ANGEL ANDERSON 30
Pylean Idol: L.A.’s De(con)struction of a Postmodern Bard
JENNIFER HAMILTON 41
Lilah Morgan: Whedon’s Legal Femme Fatale
SHARON SUTHERLAND and SARAH SWAN 54
Two : Narrative & Identity
Fred’s Captivity Narrative: American Contexts for (Re)Writing Community Identity from Mary Rowlandson to Angel
TAMY BURNETT 69
Feminist Abuse Survivor Narratives in Angel and Sarah Daniels’s Beside Herself
ANIKA STAFFORD 85
Numero Cinco, Border Narratives, and Mexican Cultural Performance in Angel
VICTORIA PETTERSEN LANTZ 98
Three : Theory & Philosophy
(Re)Negotiating the Dystopian Dilemma: Huxley, Orwell, and Angel
MARY ELLEN IATROPOULOS 115
Angel vs. the Grand Inquisitor: Joss Whedon Re- imagines Dostoevsky
KATIA MCCLAIN 130
Charles Gunn, Wolfram & Hart, and Baudrillard’s Theory of the Simulacrum
K. SHANNON HOWARD 147
“It’s a play on perspective”: A Reading of Whedon’s Illyria through Sartre’s Nausea
CYNTHEA MASSON 159
Four : Genre
Helping the Helpless: Medieval Romance in Angel
AMIJO COMEFORD 175
Whedon Meets Sophocles: Prophecy and Angel
LAUREL BOWMAN 191
Detective Fiction/Fictionality from Asmodeus to Angel
ALISON JAQUET 206
It (Re-)Started with a Girl: The Creative Interplay Between TV and Comics in Angel: After the Fall
STACEY ABBOTT 221
About the Contributors 233
Bibliography 237
Index 249
About the Author
AmiJo Comeford is an assistant professor of English at Dixie State College of Utah, teaching courses in women’s literature, early British and nineteenth-century American literature, and literary theory. Tamy Burnett is a lecturer in English and women’s and gender studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, teaching courses in American literature, women’s literature, and popular culture.
Tarnished Heroes, Charming Villains and Modern Monster: Science Fiction in Shades of Gray on 21st Century Television
ISBN 978-0-7864-4858-6
appendices, notes, bibliography, index
316pp. softcover 2010
Price: $35.00
Description
The heroes, villains, and monsters portrayed in such popular science fiction television series as Heroes, Lost, Battlestar Galactica, Caprica, Doctor Who, and Torchwood, as well as Joss Whedon’s many series, illustrate a shift from traditional, clearly defined characterizations toward much murkier definitions. Traditional heroes give way to "gray" heroes who must become more like the villains or monsters they face if they are going to successfully save society. This book examines the ambiguous heroes and villains, focusing on these characters’ different perspectives on morality and their roles within society. Appendixes include production details for each series, descriptions and summaries of pivotal episodes, and a list of selected texts for classroom use.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments v
Introduction 1
Part One
1. The Evolution of the Traditional Hero 12
2. Villains and Monsters 32
3. Shades of Gray: 21st Century SF Heroes and Villains 50
4. The Rise of Sidekicks 84
5. Analyzing Gray SF TV Series 108
Part Two
Introduction to Part Two 131
6. The World of Joss Whedon 133
7. Heroes 151
8. Lost 165
9. Battlestar Galactica and Caprica 188
10. Doctor Who 215
11. Torchwood 239
Appendices—Introduction 267
Appendix 1: Series Background Information 268
Appendix 2: Important Series Episodes 270
Chapter Notes 285
Bibliography 293
Authors of Episodes Discussed 297
Index 299
About the Author
Lynnette Porter teaches in the Humanities and Social Sciences Department of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida. She has written several books about television and film.
Touchstones of Gothic Horror: A Film Genealogy of Eleven Motifs and Images
ISBN 978-0-7864-4782-4
117 photos, notes, bibliography, index
271pp. softcover (7 x 10) 2010
Price: $39.95
Description
Gothic cinema, typified by the films of Universal, Hammer, Amicus and Tigon, grew out of an aesthetic that stretches back to the 18th century and beyond, even to Shakespeare. This book explores the origin of Gothic cinema in art and literature, tracing its connection to the Gothic revival in architecture, the Gothic novel, landscape, ruins, Egyptology, occultism, sexuality, the mythology of werewolves, the philosophy of Hegel, and many other aspects of the Romantic and Symbolist movements.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments vi
Introduction 1
1. Stairways to Hell 7
2. Sturm und Drang 33
3. Ruins 47
4. Municipal Sublimity 73
5. Heaving Cleavage 91
6. Living Pictures 109
INTERLUDE. Werewolves 134
7. Ornate Coffins 146
8. Hegelian Horrors 166
9. Ancient Egypt 180
10. The Occult 199
11. Satire 229
Chapter Notes 243
Select Bibliography 251
Index 255
About the Author
David Huckvale is the author of two books on music in film. A writer, critic and researcher, he has worked extensively for BBC Radio and currently teaches a course on film music at Birmingham University in England.
Sarah Lynne Bowman
ISBN 978-0-7864-4710-7
appendix, notes, bibliography, index
216pp. softcover 2010
Price: $35.00
Description
This study takes an analytical approach to the world of role-playing games, providing a theoretical framework for understanding their psychological and sociological functions. Sometimes dismissed as escapist and potentially dangerous, role-playing actually encourages creativity, self-awareness, group cohesion and "out-of-the-box" thinking. The book also offers a detailed participant-observer ethnography on role-playing games, featuring insightful interviews with 19 participants of table-top, live action and virtual games.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments v
Preface 1
Introduction 7
1. Historical Evolution and Cultural Permutations 11
2. Role-Playing in Communal Contexts 33
3. Interactional Dynamics in Role-Playing Games 55
4. Role-Playing as Scenario Building and Problem Solving 80
5. Tactical and Social Problem Solving 104
6. Role-Playing as Alteration of Identity 127
7. Character Evolution and Types of Identity Alteration 155
Conclusion 179
Appendix: Interview Questionnaire 183
Chapter Notes 185
Bibliography 197
Index 203
About the Author
Sarah Lynne Bowman is an adjunct professor at the University of Texas at Dallas, Richland College, Ashford University, and Brookhaven College. Her current research focus emphasizes character development and social dynamics in role-playing games.
