Full Description
Supernatural Youth: The Rise of the Teen Hero in Literature and Popular Culture, edited by Jes Battis, addresses the role of adolescence in fantastic media, adventure stories, cinema, and television aimed at youth. The goal of this volume is to analyze the ways in which young heroic protagonists are presented in such popular literary and visual texts. Supernatural Youth surveys a variety of sources whose young protagonists are placed in heroic positions, whether by magic, technology, prophecy, or other forces beyond their control. Series examined include Harry Potter, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Veronica Mars, and Sabrina the Teenage Witch. Supernatural Youth, edited by Jes Battis, is essential for educators who work in the fields of English, media studies, women's studies, LGBT studies, and sociology, as well as undergraduate students who are interested in popular culture.
Contents
Introduction: Supernatural Youth, by Jes Battis
Chapter One: Spiritual, Not Sexual: The Plight of the Adolescent Human Wizard in Diane Duane's Young Wizards Series, by Alice Mills
Chapter Two: Magical Learning and Loss: Hermione Granger and the Female Intellectual in Harry Potter, by Alissa Burger
Chapter Three: Magic, Adolescence, and Education on Terry Pratchett's Discworld, by Gideon Haberkorn and Verena Reinhardt
Chapter Four: "Does the Phrase 'Vampire Slayer' Mean Anything to You?": The Discursive Construction of the Just Woman Warrior Trope in Joss Whedon's Buffy, the Vampire Slayer TV Series, by David Nel
Chapter Five: Why Xander Matters: The Extraordinary Ordinary in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, by David Kociemba
Chapter Six: "Kinda Gay": Queer Cult Fandom and Willow's (Bi)Sexuality in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, by Jennifer Moorman
Chapter Seven: Postfeminism in a Postmodern Landscape: Navigating Difference on Veronica Mars, by Cary Elza
Chapter Eight: "Bigger Things to Worry About": Allusions and the British Fantasy Tradition in Hex, by Hugh H. Davis
Chapter Nine: Being Harvey Kinkel: The Laws of the Other Realm in Sabrina the Teenage Witch, by Tiffany S. Teofilo
Chapter Ten: Closed Minds: Tamora Pierce's Teenagers and the Problem of Desire, by Anastasia Salter
Chapter Eleven: Nerds, Geeks, and Dorks, Oh My!: The Teen Wizard as Social Outcast, by R.C. Neighbors
Chapter Twelve: Breaking the Spell: Power and Choice in Holly Black's Valiant, by Alison Ching
Chapter Thirteen: Enrolling in the 'Hidden School': Timothy Hunter and the Education of the Teenage Comic Book Magus, by Jason L. Winslade
About the Contributors
Index
