Six Myths of Our Time: Little Angels, Little Monsters, Beautiful Beasts, and More
by:
Marina Warner (author)
Is Jurassic Park a work of covert misogynist propaganda? Does romanticizing childhood lead to abusing children? What secret correspondence links Mary Shelley's Frankenstein to video games and Shakespeare's Caliban to Hannibal Lecter? in what ways do our culture's most hallowed legends inform the...
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Is Jurassic Park a work of covert misogynist propaganda? Does romanticizing childhood lead to abusing children? What secret correspondence links Mary Shelley's Frankenstein to video games and Shakespeare's Caliban to Hannibal Lecter? in what ways do our culture's most hallowed legends inform the current debates over single mothers, the men's movement, and animal rights?In these six dazzlingly intelligent and provocative essays, the distinguished English novelist and critic Marina Warner weaves classical mythology, pop culture, and today's headlines into a potent work of cultural criticism that is both unsettling and entertaining. Ranging from Medeato Thelma and Louise and from myths of cannibalism to the politics of rape, Six Myths of Our Time is at once a celebration of the enduring power of fable and a welcome antidote to its more virulent manifestations in our public life.
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Format: paperback
ISBN:
9780679759249 (0679759247)
ASIN: 679759247
Publish date: January 31st 1995
Publisher: Vintage
Pages no: 160
Edition language: English
Many of the themes are treated in greater detail in Warner's excellentNo Go The Bogeyman: Scaring, Lulling, and Making Mock, but this is a shorter and more accessible treatise for readers who want the ideas without all the examples and footnotes. The weakest section is that on video games, which is ...
It is important to note that Six Myths of Our Time was published in 1994 so Warner's comments about video games, while still much on point, are dated (there is, of course, no mention of Grand Theft Auto). After reading the first chapter, I doubt that I will be able to ever look at Jurassic Park(boo...
This slim volume is made up of essays Warner presented via a BBC radio show on themes often found in myth and fairy tale. Most interestingly, Warner also addresses current sociological problems at the same time. In her opening essay 'Monstrous Mothers' she addresses misogyny, the 'problem' of single...