Religion and Myth in the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Religion and Myth in the Marvel Cinematic Universe
Author: Michael D. Nichols
Publsiher: McFarland
Total Pages: 209
Release: 2021-02-22
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 9781476681597

Download Religion and Myth in the Marvel Cinematic Universe Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

Breaking box office records, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has achieved an unparalleled level of success with fans across the world, raising the films to a higher level of narrative: myth. This is the first book to analyze the Marvel output as modern myth, comparing it to epics, symbols, rituals, and stories from world religious traditions. This book places the exploits of Iron Man, Captain America, Black Panther, and the other stars of the Marvel films alongside the legends of Achilles, Gilgamesh, Arjuna, the Buddha, and many others. It examines their origin stories and rites of passage, the monsters, shadow-selves, and familial conflicts they contend with, and the symbols of death and the battle against it that stalk them at every turn. The films deal with timeless human dilemmas and questions, evoking an enduring sense of adventure and wonder common across world mythic traditions.

Religion and Myth in the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Religion and Myth in the Marvel Cinematic Universe
Author: Michael D. Nichols
Publsiher: McFarland
Total Pages: 209
Release: 2021-02-11
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 9781476642086

Download Religion and Myth in the Marvel Cinematic Universe Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

Breaking box office records, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has achieved an unparalleled level of success with fans across the world, raising the films to a higher level of narrative: myth. This is the first book to analyze the Marvel output as modern myth, comparing it to epics, symbols, rituals, and stories from world religious traditions. This book places the exploits of Iron Man, Captain America, Black Panther, and the other stars of the Marvel films alongside the legends of Achilles, Gilgamesh, Arjuna, the Buddha, and many others. It examines their origin stories and rites of passage, the monsters, shadow-selves, and familial conflicts they contend with, and the symbols of death and the battle against it that stalk them at every turn. The films deal with timeless human dilemmas and questions, evoking an enduring sense of adventure and wonder common across world mythic traditions.

Marveling Religion

Marveling Religion
Author: Jennifer Baldwin,Daniel White Hodge
Publsiher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 285
Release: 2022-09-09
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9781793621399

Download Marveling Religion Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

Marveling Religion: Critical Discourses, Religion, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe is an edited volume that explores the intersection of religion and cinema through the lenses of critical discourse. The focus of the shared inquiry are various films comprising the first three phases of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and corresponding Netflix series. The contributors explore various religious themes and how they intersect with culture through the canon on the MCU. The first part focuses on responses to the societal, governmental, and cultural context that solidified with clarity during the 2016 Presidential Election cycle in the United States and in the following administration. Additionally, it provides lenses and resources for engaging in productive public actions. Part two explores cultural resources of sustaining activism and resistance as well as some of the key issues at stake in public action. The third part centers on militarization and resistance to state violence. Taken in concert, these three sections work together to provide frames for understanding while also keeping us engaged in the concrete action to mobilize social change. The overarching aim of the volume is to promote critical discourse regarding the dynamics of activism and political resistance.

The Politics of the Marvel Cinematic Universe

The Politics of the Marvel Cinematic Universe
Author: Nicholas Carnes,Lilly J. Goren
Publsiher: University Press of Kansas
Total Pages: 436
Release: 2022-12-16
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9780700633883

Download The Politics of the Marvel Cinematic Universe Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

The Marvel Cinematic ​Universe (MCU) is the most expansive and widely viewed fictional narrative in the history of cinema. In 2009, Disney purchased Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion, including its subsidiary film production company, Marvel Studios. Since then, the MCU—the collection of multimedia Marvel Studios products that share a single fictional storyline—has grown from two feature films to thirty interconnected movies, nine streaming Disney+ series, a half dozen short films, and more than thirty print titles. By 2022, eight of the twenty-five highest grossing films of all time are MCU movies. The MCU is a deeply political universe. Intentionally or not, the MCU sends fans scores of messages about a wide range of subjects related to government, public policy, and society. Some are overt, like the contentious debate about government and accountability at the heart of Captain America: Civil War. More often, however, the politics of the MCU are subtle, like the changing role of women from supporting characters (like Black Widow in Iron Man 2) to leading heroes (like Black Widow in Black Widow). The MCU is not only a product of contemporary politics, but many of its stories seem to be direct responses to the problems of the day. Racial injustice, environmental catastrophe, and political misinformation are not just contemporary social ills, they are also key thematic elements of recent MCU blockbusters. In The Politics of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, more than twenty-five leading scholars examine these complex themes. Part one explores how political issues are depicted in the origin stories; part two examines how the MCU depicts classic political themes like government and power; and part three explores questions of diversity and representation in the MCU. The volume’s various chapters examine a wide range of topics: Black Panther and the “racial contract,” Captain America and the political philosophy of James Madison, Dr. Strange and colonial imperialism, S.H.I.E.L.D. and civil-military relations, Spider-Man and environmentalism, and Captain Marvel and second-wave feminism. The Politics of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is the first book to look expansively at politics in the MCU and ask the question, “What lessons are this entertainment juggernaut teaching audiences about politics, society, power, gender, and inequality?”

Why Religion is Natural and Science is Not

Why Religion is Natural and Science is Not
Author: Robert N. McCauley
Publsiher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 352
Release: 2013-11
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 9780199341542

Download Why Religion is Natural and Science is Not Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

A comparison of the cognitive foundations of religion and science and an argument that religion is cognitively natural and that science is cognitively unnatural.

Assembling the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Assembling the Marvel Cinematic Universe
Author: Julian C. Chambliss,William L. Svitavsky,Daniel Fandino
Publsiher: McFarland
Total Pages: 263
Release: 2018-02-15
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 9781476664187

Download Assembling the Marvel Cinematic Universe Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

The Marvel Cinematic Universe--comprised of films, broadcast television and streaming series and digital shorts--has generated considerable fan engagement with its emphasis on socially relevant characters and plots. Beyond considerable box office achievements, the success of Marvel's movie studios has opened up dialogue on social, economic and political concerns that challenge established values and beliefs. This collection of new essays examines those controversial themes and the ways they represent, construct and distort American culture.

The Gospel according to Star Wars

The Gospel according to Star Wars
Author: John C. McDowell
Publsiher: Westminster John Knox Press
Total Pages: 233
Release: 2007-03-02
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9781611644258

Download The Gospel according to Star Wars Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

Star Wars is one of the most beloved movie series of all time, and in this book John McDowell explores the many spiritual themes that weave throughout the six films. From the Force to the dark side, the issues discussed in the films have a moral and spiritual complexity that, if paid attention to, can help us better understand our place in the world and our relation to others and to God. George Lucas, the creator of Star Wars, did not intend for his films to be mere entertainment, McDowell argues. Rather, he hoped his films would be used as a vehicle for moral education.

The Myth of the Superhero

The Myth of the Superhero
Author: Marco Arnaudo
Publsiher: JHU Press
Total Pages: 218
Release: 2013-05
Genre: Comics & Graphic Novels
ISBN: 9781421409535

Download The Myth of the Superhero Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

Translated for the first time into English, The Myth of the Superhero looks beyond the cape, the mask, and the superpowers, presenting a serious study of the genre and its place in a broader cultural context.