Download or read book Supervillains and Philosophy written by Ben Dyer and published by Open Court. This book was released on 2011-09-30 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The devil gets his due in the latest entry in the Pop Culture and Philosophy series. Supervillains and Philosophy features an international cabal of philosophers and comics industry professionals conspiring to reveal the dark details — and deeper meanings — lurking behind today’s most popular comic book monsters. Whether it’s their moral justification for world domination or the wavering boundaries they share with the modern anti-hero, everyone's favorite villains generate as much attention as their heroic counterparts. The 20 essays in this accessible book explore the nature of supervillainy, examine the boundaries of good and evil, offer helpful advice to prospective supervillains, and untangle diabolical puzzles of identity and consciousness. All the legends are here, from Dr. Doom and the Spectre to the Joker and the Watchmen, reconsidered through the lens of classic and modern philosophy.
Download or read book Superheroes and Philosophy written by Tom Morris and published by ReadHowYouWant.com. This book was released on 2010-10 with total page 470 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Great Caesars Ghost!! A team of Brainiacs! Superheroes and Philosophy is Kryptonite for those super villains who diss the heroes as lightweights! Riddle me this, Batman: How are Gotham City and Metropolis like ancient Athens and modern Paris? Read this sensational book and find out!
Download or read book The Science of Supervillains written by Lois H. Gresh and published by Turner Publishing Company. This book was released on 2007-08-15 with total page 193 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The authors of The Science of Superheroes now reveal the real genius of the most evil geniuses Ever wonder why comic book villains, such as Spiderman's bionic archenemy Dr. Octopus or the X-Men's eternal rival Magneto, are so scary and so much fun? It's not just their diabolical talent for confounding our heroes, it's their unrivalled techno-proficiency at creating global mayhem that keeps comic book fans captivated. But is any of the science actually true? In The Science of Supervillains, authors Lois Gresh and Bob Weinberg present a highly entertaining and informative look at the mind-boggling wizardry behind the comic book world's legendary baddies. Whether it's artificial intelligence, weapons systems, anti-matter, robotics, or magnetic flux theory, this fun, fact-filled book is a fascinating excursion into the real-world science animating the genius in the comic book world's pantheon of evil geniuses. Lois Gresh (Scottsville, NY) and Bob Weinberg (Oak Forest, IL) are the authors of the popular Science of Superheroes (cloth: 0-471-0246-0; paper: 0-471-46882-7)
Download or read book Dexter and Philosophy written by Richard Greene and published by Open Court. This book was released on 2011-04-12 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What explains the huge popular following for Dexter, currently the most-watched show on cable, which sympathetically depicts a serial killer driven by a cruel compulsion to brutally slay one victim after another? Although Dexter Morgan kills only killers, he is not a vigilante animated by a sense of justice but a charming psychopath animated by a lust to kill, ritualistically and bloodily. However his gory appetite is controlled by “Harry’s Code,” which limits his victims to those who have gotten away with murder, and his job as a blood spatter expert for the Miami police department gives him the inside track on just who those legitimate targets may be. In Dexter and Philosophy, an elite team of philosophers don their rubber gloves and put Dexter’s deeds under the microscope. Since Dexter is driven to ritual murder by his “Dark Passenger,” can he be blamed for killing, especially as he only murders other murderers? Does Dexter fit the profile of the familiar fictional type of the superhero? What part does luck play in making Dexter who he is? How and why are horror and disgust turned into aesthetic pleasure for the TV viewer? How essential is Dexter’s emotional coldness to his lust for slicing people up? Are Dexter’s lies and deceptions any worse than the lies and deceptions of the non-criminals around him? Why does Dexter long to be a normal human being and why can’t he accomplish this apparently simple goal?
Download or read book The Supervillain and Me written by Danielle Banas and published by Swoon Reads. This book was released on 2018-07-10 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A girl with no special powers teams up with a so-called supervillain to investigate an insidious plot in their city in this action-packed YA debut.
Download or read book Doctor Who and Philosophy written by Courtland Lewis and published by Open Court Publishing. This book was released on 2010 with total page 450 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Philosophers look at the deeper issues raised by the adventures of Doctor Who, the main character in the long-running science fiction TV series of the same name.
Download or read book The American Villain written by Richard A. Hall and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2020-12-02 with total page 303 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The American Villain: Encyclopedia of Bad Guys in Comics, Film, and Television seeks to provide one go-to reference for the study of the most popular and iconic villains in American popular culture. Since the 1980s, pop culture has focused on what makes a villain a villain. The Joker, Darth Vader, and Hannibal Lecter have all been placed under the microscope to get to the origins of their villainy. Additionally, such bad guys as Angelus from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Barnabas Collins from Dark Shadows have emphasized the desire for redemption—in even the darkest of villains. Various incarnations of Lucifer/Satan have even gone so far as to explore the very foundations of what we consider "evil." The American Villain: Encyclopedia of Bad Guys in Comics, Film, and Television seeks to collect all of those stories into one comprehensive volume. The volume opens with essays about villains in popular culture, followed by 100 A–Z entries on the most notorious bad guys in film, comics, and more. Sidebars highlight ancillary points of interest, such as authors, creators, and tropes that illuminate the motives of various villains. A glossary of key terms and a bibliography provide students with resources to continue their study of what makes the "baddest" among us so bad.
Download or read book The Rolling Stones and Philosophy written by Luke Dick and published by Open Court. This book was released on 2011-11-07 with total page 318 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From their commanding role in the so-called British Invasion of the early 1960s to their status as the elder statesmen (and British Knight) of rock and roll, the Stones have become more than an evanescent phenomenon in pop culture. They have become a touchstone not only for the history of our times—their performance at the Altamont Raceway marked the "end of the sixties," while their 1990 concert in Prague helped Czechoslovakia and other eastern bloc nations celebrate their newfound freedom (and satisfaction) out from under Moscow’s thumb. Because of their longevity, the music and career of the Stones—much more than The Beatles—stand as touchstones in the personal lives of even casual Stones fans. Everyone of a certain age remembers the Stones on Ed Sullivan, the death of founder Brian Jones, their favorite songs, concerts, or videos, and their stance in the classic “Beatles versus Stones” debates. In the wake of Keith Richards’s bestselling autobiography, Life (2010), many are now reliving these events and decades from the viewpoint of the band’s endearing and seemingly death-defying guitarist. The chapters in The Rolling Stones and Philosophy celebrate the Stones’ place in our lives by digging into the controversies, the symbols, and meanings the band and its songs have for so many. What might you mean (and what did Mick mean) by “sympathy for the Devil”? Did the Stones share any of the blame for the deaths at Altamont, as critic Lester Bangs charged they did in Rolling Stone magazine? What theories of ethics and personality lay behind the good-boy image of the Beatles and the bad-boy reputation the Stones acquired? If Keith Richards really had his blood replaced four separate times, does that make him a zombie? How do the Glimmer Twins help us refine our understanding of friendship? Written by a dozen philosophers and scholars who adore the Rolling Stones not only for their music, this book will become required reading for anyone seeking maximum satisfaction from "the world's greatest rock and roll band."
Download or read book The Walking Dead and Philosophy written by Wayne Yuen and published by Open Court Publishing. This book was released on 2012 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The Walking Dead" is both a hugely successful comics series and a popular TV show. This epic story of a zombie apocalypse is unique. It focuses on the long-term individual, social, and moral consequences of survival by small groups of humans in a world overrun by infected zombies. Guns, chainsaws, and machetes are not enough for survival: humans also need agreement on rules of conduct. Can equality or fairness have any polace in the post-apocalyptic world? Do theft or even assault and murder become okay under desperate circumstances? Who should be recognized as having political authority? What about eating human flesh? Should survivors have children?
Download or read book Louis C K and Philosophy written by Mark Ralkowski and published by Open Court. This book was released on 2016-04-06 with total page 325 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Charlie Rose has called Louis C.K. “the philosopher-king of comedy,” and many have detected philosophical profundity in Louis’s comedy, some of which has been watched tens of millions of times on YouTube and elsewhere. Louis C.K. and Philosophy is designed to help Louis’s fans connect the dots between his pronouncements and living philosophical themes. Twenty-five philosophers examine the wisdom of Louis C.K. from a variety of philosophical perspectives. The chapters draw upon C.K.’s standup comedy, the show Louie, and C.K.’s other writings. There is no attempt to fit Louis into one philosophical school; instead the authors bring out the diverse aspects of the thought of Louis C.K. One writer looks at the different meanings of C.K.’s statement, “You’re gonna be dead way longer than you were alive.” Another explores how Louis knows when he’s awake and when he’s dreaming, taking a few tips from Descartes. One chapter shows the affinity of C.K.’s “sick of living this bullshit life” with Kierkegaard’s “sickness unto death.” Another pursues Louis’s thought that we may by our lack of moral concern “live a really evil life without thinking about it." C.K.'s religion is "apathetic agnostic," conveyed in his thought experiment that God began work in 1982.
Download or read book Ender s Game and Philosophy written by D. and published by Open Court. This book was released on 2013-10-21 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ender’s Game, Orson Scott Card’s award-winning 1985 novel, has been discovered and rediscovered by generations of science fiction fans and young adult readers, banned and challenged in schools, assigned in high school English classes, and adopted as reading by the US Marine Corps. Ender's Game and its sequels explores rich themes—the violence and cruelty of children, the role of empathy in war, and the balance of individual dignity and the social good—with compelling elements of a coming-of-age story and exciting and immersive battle scenes. Ender’s Game and Philosophy brings together over thirty philosophers to engage in wide-ranging discussion on the troubling, exciting, and fascinating issues raised in and amidst the excitement and fear of Orson Scott Card’s novels and Gavin Hood’s film. Authors address issues such as: the justifiability of pre-emptive strikes, how Ender’s disconnected and dispassionate violence is mirrored in today’s drone warfare, whether the end of saving the species can justify the most brutal means, the justifiability of lies and deception in wartimes, how military schools produce training in virtue, how Ender as the “good student” is held to a different educational standard, which rules can be broken in games and which cannot, Ender’s world as a mirror of our own surveillance society, the moral hazards of child warriors, the value of Ender’s ability to sympathize with his enemies, the meaning of a “hive-mind,” the limits of our ability to relate to one, the relationship between Ender’s story and Card’s Mormonism. The authors of Ender’s Game and Philosophy challenge readers to confront and work through the conceptual and emotional challenges that Ender’s Game presents, bringing a new light on the idea of a just war, the virtues of the soldier, the nature of childhood, the social value and moral corruption of lies and deception, the practices of education and of leadership, and the serious work of playing games.
Download or read book Downton Abbey and Philosophy written by Adam Barkman and published by Open Court. This book was released on 2015-10-19 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Downton Abbey and Philosophy, twenty-two professional thinkers uncover the deeper significance of this hugely popular TV saga. Millions of viewers throughout the world have been enthralled by this enactment of a vanished world of decorum and propriety, because it presents us with emotional and interpersonal problems that remain urgent for people in the twenty-first century. Why do we attach such importance to our memories and to particular places? What do war and epidemics tell us about life in peacetime and in good health? Is it healthy or harmful for people to feel that they know their place? What does Downton Abbey teach us about the changes in women’s roles since 1912? Do good manners always agree with good morals? How can everybody know what no one will talk about? What’s the justification for a class of people who pride themselves on not having a job? Should we sometimes just accept the reality of social barriers to love, and abandon the pursuit? What happens when community reinforces oppression? All of these and many other issues are discussed through a detailed examination of the actual characters and situations in Downton Abbey.
Download or read book Breaking Bad and Philosophy written by David Richard Koepsell and published by Open Court Publishing. This book was released on 2012 with total page 254 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Breaking Bad tells the story of a man whose life changes because of the medical death sentence of an advanced cancer diagnosis. The show depicts his metamorphosis from inoffensive chemistry teacher to feared drug lord and remorseless killer. In Breaking Bad and Philosophy, a squad of professional thinkers investigate the crimes of Walter White, showing how this story relates to the major themes of philosophy and the major life decisions facing all of us.
Download or read book Dracula and Philosophy written by Nicolas Michaud and published by Open Court. This book was released on 2015-07-14 with total page 303 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Twenty-four nocturnal philosophers stake out and vivisect Dracula from many angles, unearthing evidence from numerous movies and shows—macabre, terrifying, tragic, and comic. Altmann decides whether Dracula can really be blamed for his crimes, since it’s his nature as a vampire to behave a certain way. Arp argues that Dracula’s addiction to live human blood dooms him to perpetual misery. Karavitis sees Dracula as a Randian individual pitted against the Marxist collective. Ketcham contrives a meeting between Dracula and the Jewish theologian Maimonides. Littmann maintains that if we disapprove of Dracula’s behavior, we ought to be vegetarians. Mahon uses the example of Dracula to resolve nagging problems about the desirability of immortality. McCrossin and Wolfe, disinter some of the re-interpretations of this now-mythical character, and asks whether we can identify an essential Dracula. Pramik shows how the Dracula tale embodies Kierkegaard’s three stages of life. Barkman and Versteeg ponder what it would really feel like to be Dracula. The Greens publish some previous unknown letters between Dracula and Camus's Meursault. Vuckovich looks at the sexual morality of characters in the Dracula saga. De Waal explains that "Dragula" is scary because every time this being appears, it causes "gender trouble."
Download or read book The Lord of the Rings and Philosophy written by Gregory Bassham and published by Open Court. This book was released on 2013-11-13 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Lord of the Rings is intended to be applicable to the real world of relationships, religion, pleasure, pain, and politics. Tolkien himself said that his grand tale of wizards, orcs, hobbits, and elves was aimed at truth and good morals in the actual world. Analysis of the popular appeal of The Lord of the Rings (on websites and elsewhere) shows that Tolkien fans are hungry for discussion of the urgent moral and cosmological issues arising out of this fantastic epic story. Can political power be wielded for good, or must it always corrupt? Does technology destroy the truly human? Is it morally wrong to give up hope? Can we find meaning in chance events? In The Lord of the Rings and Philosophy, seventeen young philosophy professors, all of them ardent Tolkien fans and most of them contributors to the four earlier volumes in the Popular Culture and Philosophy series, address some of these important issues and show how clues to their solutions may be found in the imaginary world of Middle-earth. The book is divided into five sections, concerned with Power and the Ring, the Quest for Happiness, Good and Evil in Middle-earth, Time and Mortality, and the Relevance
Download or read book The Princess Bride and Philosophy written by Richard Greene and published by Open Court. This book was released on 2015-11-14 with total page 279 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Princess Bride is the 1987 satirical adventure movie that had to wait for the Internet and DVDs to become the most quoted of all cult classics. The Princess Bride and Philosophy is for all those who have wondered about the true meaning of “Inconceivable!,” why the name “Roberts” uniquely inspires fear, and whether it’s truly a miracle to restore life to someone who is dead, but not necessarily completely dead. The Princess Bride is filled with people trying to persuade each other of various things, and invites us to examine the best methods of persuasion. It’s filled with promises, some kept and some broken, and cries out for philosophical analysis of what makes a promise and why promises should be kept. It’s filled with beliefs which go beyond the evidence, and philosophy can help us to decide when such beliefs can be justified. It’s filled with political violence, both by and against the recognized government, and therefore raises all the issues of political philosophy. Westley, Buttercup, Prince Humperdinck, Inigo Montoya, the giant Fezzik, and the Sicilian Vizzini keep on re-appearing in these pages, as examples of philosophical ideas. Is it right for Montoya to kill the six-fingered man, even though there is no money in the revenge business? What’s the best way to deceive someone who knows you’re trying to deceive him? Are good manners a kind of moral virtue? Could the actions of the masked man in black truly be inconceivable even though real? What does ethics have to say about Miracle Max’s pricing policy? How many shades of meaning can be conveyed by “As You Wish”?
Download or read book More Doctor Who and Philosophy written by Courtland Lewis and published by Open Court. This book was released on 2015-10-15 with total page 353 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: More Doctor Who and Philosophy is a completely new collection of chapters, additional to Doctor Who and Philosophy (2010) by the same editors. Since that first Doctor Who and Philosophy, much has happened in the Whoniverse: a new and controversial regeneration of the Doctor, multiple new companions, a few creepy new enemies of both the Doctor and planet Earth. And the show’s fiftieth anniversary! We’ve learned some astounding new things from the ever-developing story: that the Doctor’s number one rule is to lie, that he claims to have forgotten his role in the mass extermination of the Time Lords and the Daleks, that the Daleks do have a concept of divine beauty (divine hatred, of course), and that Daleks may become insane (didn’t we assume they already were?) Oh, and the cult of the Doctor keeps growing worldwide, with more cultish fans in the US, more and bigger Who conventions, more viewers of all ages, and more serious treatment by scholars from many disciplines. New questions have been raised and new questioners have come along, so there are plenty of new topics for philosophical scrutiny. Is the “impossible” girl really impossible? Is there anything wrong with an inter-species lesbian relationship (the kids weren’t quite ready for that in 1963, but no one blinks an eye in 2015)? Can it really be right for the Doctor to lie and to selectively forget? We even have two authors who have figured out how to build a TARDIS—instructions included! (Wait, there’s a catch, no . . . ?) And then there’s that old question that just won’t go away: why does the Doctor always regenerate as a male, and is that ever going to change? An added feature of this awesome new volume is that the editors have reached out to insiders of Who fandom, people who run hugely successful Who conventions, play in Who-inspired bands, and run wildly popular podcasts and websites, to share their privileged insights into why the Doctor is so philosophically deep. No more spoilers. It’s time for the truly thoughtful travelers in both time and space to rev up the TARDIS once more. . . . Allons-y, Alonzo!
