Download or read book The Animal Fable in Science Fiction and Fantasy written by Bruce Shaw and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2010-04-23 with total page 269 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Though animal stories and fables stretch back into the antiquity of ancient India, Persia, Greece and Rome, the reasons for writing them and their resonance for readers (and listeners) remain consistent to the present. This work argues that they were essential sources of amusement and instruction--and were also often profoundly unsettling. Such authors in the realm of the animal fable as Tolkien, Freud, Voltaire, Bakhtin, Cordwainer Smith, Karel Capek, Vladimir Propp, and many more are discussed.
Download or read book Mind and Paws written by Bruce Shaw and published by . This book was released on 2003 with total page 734 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Furry Tales written by Fred Patten and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2019-09-06 with total page 237 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Tales featuring anthropomorphic animals have been around as long as there have been storytellers to spin them, from Aesop's Fables to Reynard the Fox to Alice in Wonderland. The genre really took off following the explosion of furry fandom in the 21st century, with talking animals featuring in everything from science fiction to fantasy to LGBTQ coming-out stories. In his lifetime, Fred Patten (1940-2018)--one of the founders of furry fandom and a scholar of anthropomorphic animal literature--authored hundreds of book reviews that comprise a comprehensive critical survey of the genre. This selected compilation provides an overview from 1784 through the 2010s, covering such popular novels as Watership Down and Redwall, along with forgotten gems like The Stray Lamb and Where the Blue Begins, and science fiction works like Sundiver and Decision at Doona.
Download or read book Animals and Science Fiction written by Nora Castle and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on with total page 376 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Stuff of Science Fiction written by Gary Westfahl and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2022-09-27 with total page 298 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: While students and general readers typically cannot relate to esoteric definitions of science fiction, they readily understand the genre as a literature that characteristically deals with subjects such as new inventions, space, robot and aliens. This book looks at science fiction in precisely this manner, with twenty-one chapters that each deal with a subject that is repeatedly addressed in science fiction of recent centuries. Based on a packet of original essays that the author assembled for his classes, the book could serve as a supplemental textbook in science fiction classes, but also contains material of interest to science fiction scholars and others devoted to the genre. In some cases, chapters offer thorough surveys of numerous works involving certain subjects, such as imagined vehicles, journeys beneath the Earth and undersea adventures, discovering intriguing patterns in the ways that various writers developed their ideas. When comprehensive coverage of ubiquitous topics such as robots, aliens and the planet Mars is impossible, chapters focus on major themes referencing selected texts. A conclusion discusses other science fiction subjects that were omitted for various reasons, and a bibliography lists additional resources for the study of science fiction in general and the topics of each chapter.
Download or read book Science Fiction Collections written by Lee Ash and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-08-21 with total page 181 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Science/Fiction Collections offers different views and attitudes toward Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature and descriptions of a variety of collections. Written during a time when Science Fiction and Fantasy writings had just gained widespread popularity, it offers suggestions and considerations for approaching any special collection dealing with a relatively new field.
Download or read book The Talking Beasts written by Various and published by BoD - Books on Demand. This book was released on 2023-09-25 with total page 261 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Talking Beasts" is a collection of animal-themed stories from various authors, typically associated with fables and tales. These stories often feature animals as characters who possess the ability to communicate with one another or with humans. They convey moral lessons and wisdom through the interactions and adventures of these talking animals. Throughout "The Talking Beasts," readers encounter a diverse array of creatures, each with its own personality and traits. These animals often engage in conversations and exhibit human-like qualities, making them relatable and intriguing characters for readers of all ages. The stories in "The Talking Beasts" typically explore themes such as friendship, cooperation, kindness, and the consequences of one's actions. By anthropomorphizing animals and giving them the power of speech, these tales provide a unique and engaging way to impart important life lessons and values. Overall, "The Talking Beasts" is a charming collection of stories that appeals to readers who appreciate the timeless appeal of animal characters and the wisdom hidden within their tales.
Download or read book Science Fiction Literature through History 2 volumes written by Gary Westfahl and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2021-07-19 with total page 681 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides students and other interested readers with a comprehensive survey of science fiction history and numerous essays addressing major science fiction topics, authors, works, and subgenres written by a distinguished scholar. This encyclopedia deals with written science fiction in all of its forms, not only novels and short stories but also mediums often ignored in other reference books, such as plays, poems, comic books, and graphic novels. Some science fiction films, television programs, and video games are also mentioned, particularly when they are relevant to written texts. Its focus is on science fiction in the English language, though due attention is given to international authors whose works have been frequently translated into English. Since science fiction became a recognized genre and greatly expanded in the 20th century, works published in the 20th and 21st centuries are most frequently discussed, though important earlier works are not neglected. The texts are designed to be helpful to numerous readers, ranging from students first encountering science fiction to experienced scholars in the field.
Download or read book The Science Fiction Mythmakers written by Jennifer Simkins and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2016-09-13 with total page 201 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A literary genre that pervades 21st-century popular culture, science fiction creates mythologies that make statements about humanity's place in the universe and embody an intersection of science, religion and philosophy. This book considers the significance of this confluence through an examination of myths in the writings of H. G. Wells, Arthur C. Clarke, Philip K. Dick and Frank Herbert. Presenting fresh insights into their works, the author brings to light the tendency of science fiction narratives to reaffirm spiritual myths.
Download or read book Saving the World Through Science Fiction written by Michael R. Page and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2017-02-27 with total page 295 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of the major figures in science fiction for more than sixty years, James Gunn has been instrumental in making the genre one of the most vibrant and engaging areas of literary scholarship. His genre history Alternate Worlds and his The Road to Science Fiction anthologies introduced countless readers to science fiction. He founded the Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction in 1982. But Gunn has also been one of the genre's leading writers. His classic novels Star Bridge (with Jack Williamson), The Joy Makers, The Immortals and The Listeners helped shape the field. Now in his nineties, he remains a prominent voice. His forthcoming novel is Transformation. Drawing on materials from Gunn's archives and personal interviews with him, this study is the first to examine the life, career and writing of this science fiction grandmaster.
Download or read book Science Fiction and Futurism written by Ace G. Pilkington and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2017-02-28 with total page 235 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Science and science fiction have become inseparable--with common stories, interconnected thought experiments, and shared language. This reference book lays out that relationship and its all-but-magical terms and ideas. Those who think seriously about the future are changing the world, reshaping how we speak and how we think. This book fully covers the terms that collected, clarified and crystallized the futurists' ideas, sometimes showing them off, sometimes slowing them down, and sometimes propelling them to fame and making them the common currency of our culture. The many entries in this encyclopedic work offer a guided tour of the vast territories occupied by science fiction and futurism. In his Foreword, David Brin says, "Provocative and enticing? Filled with 'huh!' moments and leads to great stories? That describes this volume."
Download or read book The Monomyth in American Science Fiction Films written by Donald E. Palumbo and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2014-11-19 with total page 205 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of the great intellectual achievements of the 20th century, Joseph Campbell's The Hero with a Thousand Faces is an elaborate articulation of the monomyth: the narrative pattern underlying countless stories from the most ancient myths and legends to the films and television series of today. The monomyth's fundamental storyline, in Campbell's words, sees "the hero venture forth from the world of the common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons to his fellow man." Campbell asserted that the hero is each of us--thus the monomyth's endurance as a compelling plot structure. This study examines the monomyth in the context of Campbell's The Hero and discusses the use of this versatile narrative in 26 films and two television shows produced between 1960 and 2009, including the initial Star Wars trilogy (1977-1983), The Time Machine (1960), Logan's Run (1976), Escape from New York (1981), Tron (1982), The Terminator (1984), The Matrix (1999), the first 11 Star Trek films (1979-2009), and the Sci Fi Channel's miniseries Frank Herbert's Dune (2000) and Frank Herbert's Children of Dune (2003).
Download or read book The Postnational Fantasy written by Masood Ashraf Raja and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2014-01-10 with total page 227 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In twelve critical and interdisciplinary essays, this text examines the relationship between the fantastic in novels, movies and video games and real-world debates about nationalism, globalization and cosmopolitanism. Topics covered include science fiction and postcolonialism, issues of ethnicity, nation and transnational discourse. Altogether, these essays chart a new discursive space, where postcolonial theory and science fiction and fantasy studies work cooperatively to expand our understanding of the fantastic, while simultaneously expanding the scope of postcolonial discussions.
Download or read book Gender and the Quest in British Science Fiction Television written by Tom Powers and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2016-10-14 with total page 285 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The subjects of this book constitute a significant cross section of BBC science fiction television. With such characters as the Doctor (an enigmatic time-traveling alien), Kerr Avon (a problematic rebel leader), Dave Lister (a slovenly last surviving human) and Captain Jack Harkness (a complex omnisexual immortal), these shows have both challenged and reinforced viewer expectations about the small-screen masculine hero. This book explores the construction of gendered heroic identity in the series from both production and fan perspectives. The paradoxical relationships between the producers, writers and fans of the four series are discussed. Fan fiction, criticism and videos are examined that both celebrate and criticize BBC science fiction heroes and villains.
Download or read book Imperial Beast Fables written by Kaori Nagai and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2020-07-28 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book coins the term ‘imperial beast fable’ to explore modern forms of human-animal relationships and their origins in the British Empire. Taking as a starting point the long nineteenth-century fascination with non-European beast fables, it examines literary reworkings of these fables, such as Rudyard Kipling’s Jungle Books, in relation to the global politics of race, language, and species. The imperial beast fable figures variably as a key site where the nature and origins of mankind are hotly debated; an emerging space of conservation in which humans enclose animals to manage and control them; a cage in which an animal narrator talks to change its human jailors; and a vision of animal cosmopolitanism, in which a close kinship between humans and other animals is dreamt of. Written at the intersection of animal studies and postcolonial studies, this book proposes that the beast fable embodies the ideologies and values of the British Empire, while also covertly critiquing them. It therefore finds in the beast fable the possibility that the multitudinous animals it gives voice to might challenge the imperial networks which threaten their existence, both in the nineteenth century and today.
Download or read book The Anticipation Novelists of 1950s French Science Fiction written by Bradford Lyau and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2014-01-10 with total page 249 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Following World War II, the Fleuve Noir publishing house published popular American genre fiction in translation for a French audience. Their imprint Anticipation specialized in science fiction, but mostly eschewed translations from English, preferring instead French work, thus making the imprint an important outlet for native French postwar ideas and aesthetics. This critical text examines in ideological terms eleven writers who published under the Anticipation imprint, revealing the way these writers criticized midcentury notions of progress while adapting and reworking American genre formats.
Download or read book Patricia A McKillip and the Art of Fantasy World Building written by Audrey Isabel Taylor and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2017-10-17 with total page 191 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From wondrous fairy-lands to nightmarish hellscapes, the elements that make fantasy worlds come alive also invite their exploration. This first book-length study of critically acclaimed novelist Patricia A. McKillip's lyrical other-worlds analyzes her characters, environments and legends and their interplay with genre expectations. The author gives long overdue critical attention to McKillip's work and demonstrates how a broader understanding of world-building enables a deeper appreciation of her fantasies.
