Women in Marvel Films

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by Miriam Kent

Type: Studies
Subject: Genre > Fantasy
Keywords: women, Marvel, superheroes
Publishing date: 2021
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
Language: English

Relative size

Physical desc.

Hardcover • 256 pages
6 x 9 ¼ inches (15.5 x 23.5 cm)

ISBN

978-1-4744-4882-6

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Book Presentation:
Draws attention to the manifestation of feminist issues within Marvel superhero films
• Reaches to film studies, comics studies, cultural studies and gender studies to make sense of portrayals of feminine identity through a detailed critique of postfeminist culture
• Includes discussion of Marvel films, comics and discursive paratexts to provide evidence for the films’ role within postfeminist culture, which is characterised as taking account of feminism while heralding the idea of empowered femininity
• Highlights the characterisations of women, narratives and cinematic elements such as music and mise-en-scène, questioning how these elements collectively engage with gendered discourses

The concept of identity in superhero narratives has become a burgeoning field in academic studies of this increasingly popular cinematic genre. Women in Marvel Films provides the first rigorous analysis of the portrayals of women, heroic and otherwise, in films based on Marvel comics from the 1980s to the present. It explores the relationships between this cultural phenomenon and wider issues of gender equality, considering the cultural moments in which Marvel films are made and incorporating complex histories of the comic book and Hollywood industries. The book also asks how feminist issues surface within superhero adaptations and how they are dealt with via Hollywood and comic book conventions. Women in Marvel Films shows how the Marvel superhero film taps into political complexities regarding gender and related identity issues, such as women’s roles in society and their relation to men, and provides a fascinating insight into gendered power dynamics in contemporary American popular culture.

About the Author:
Miriam Kent has a PhD in Film Studies with a focus on Marvel superheroes from the University of East Anglia, where she has taught a wide range of Film, Media and Gender Studies courses. She has published on superhero media with an interest in gender, representation and adaptation. Her previous work has appeared in academic journals, including Feminist Media Studies.

Press Reviews:
This is a significant contribution to the growing literature of postfeminist study in superhero comics.– L. Kong, Emeritus, California State University, CHOICE

This book offers its reader diverse theoretical lenses and examples of their applications in the analysis and study of popular cultural artifacts. Women in Marvel Films proposes an analysis of different forms of womanhood, female relationships to their male superhero counterparts, and relevant political contexts.– Enrique Morales-Diaz, Westﬁeld State University, The Journal of Popular Culture

Kent’s Women in Marvel Films illuminates the tensions between feminism and postfeminism in multiple studios’ representations of superheroines, wives, girlfriends, sisters, antiheroines, and villainesses. Its theoretically-rich formal analyses and character analyses make for a comprehensive contribution to film studies, comics studies, and gender studies.– Carolyn Cocca, author of Superwomen: Gender, Power, and Representation

Kent’s book is a welcome addition to gender and comics studies. A thorough and progressive approach to the often overlooked women who populate the Marvel universe. This study deserves a spot on the bookshelves of anyone serious about superheroes.– Jeffrey Allan Brown, Bowling Green State University

See the publisher website: Edinburgh University Press

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