This book is the first of its kind to explore the role of aliens in popular culture from a global and multidisciplinary perspective. Exploring topics such as gender, posthumanity, religion and more, ranging from India to Latin America, Africa to China, the book offers a fresh look at our intriguing fascination with extraterrestrial life.
This book is the first of its kind to explore the role of aliens in popular culture from a global and multidisciplinary perspective. Exploring topics such as gender, posthumanity, religion and more, ranging from India to Latin America, Africa to China, the book offers a fresh look at our intriguing fascination with extraterrestrial life.
This book is the first of its kind to explore the role of aliens in popular culture from a global and multidisciplinary perspective. Space aliens are everywhere: from cinematic franchises, such as Star Wars, to bestselling novels; from religious cults to conspiracy theories; from UFO subcultures to SETI deep-space explorations. But until now, there has never been a comprehensive analysis of the role and significance of alien representations in popular culture across the globe. This book fills this gap. It discusses images of extraterrestrial intelligence in science fiction literature, cinema and video games. It addresses issues such aliens and media, the relationship between aliens and posthumanity, aliens and gender, and aliens in/as religion. Ranging from The War of the Worlds to Star Trek, and from India to Latin America, Africa to China, this collection offers a fresh look at the intriguing cultural phenomenon of our growing fascination with extraterrestrial life.
Contents: Kevin J. Wetmore, Jr: Christus Apollo (Ray Bradbury, [ 1969]
1971) Aliens and Salvation Sandra Aline Wagner: The Sinking City
(Frogwares, 2019) Lovecrafts Aliens and Climate Crisis Jarosaw
Boruszewski: New Cosmogony (Stanisaw Lem, 1979) Lems Alienomorphic
Model of Communication Esteban Vera Campillay: Starcraft Saga (Blizzard,
20102017) The XelNaga and Perfection in Creation Dimitra Nikolaidou:
Project Fractal (Kostas Charitos, 2009) Aliens at the Acropolis Jonathan
Hay: Binti (Nnedi Okorafor, 2015) Africanfuturism and the Meduse Silvia
G. Kurlat Ares: Latin American Science Fiction (Various, 1871present)
Aliens in the Latin American Imagination Debaditya Mukhopadhyay: PK
(Rajkumar Hirani, 2014) Close Encounters with Bigots and Intolerance Carl
Wilson: Half-Life (Valve, 19982020) Aliens in Gaming Shawn Edrei: XCOM:
Chimera Squad (Firaxis, 2020) Roleplaying the Alien Laura Thursby: The
War of the Worlds (Orson Welles, 1940) A Fantastic Alien Invasion Henri
Pitkänen: Solo: A Star Wars Story (Ron Howard, 2018) The Musical Alien
Lyle Rexer: H. R. Giger (19402014) A Fur Teacup with Teeth Fernando
Gabriel Pagnoni Berns and Jorge Traversa: Alien Abduction: Incident in Lake
County (Dean Alioto, 1998) Adaption and the Alien Teresa Cutler- Broyles:
The Orions (Star Trek, 19662020) Slave Girls in Space Natalija Majsova:
Per Aspera Ad Astra (Richard Viktorov, 1980) The Non-Sentimental Female
Alien Shweta Basu: Kirk and Spock (1967present) Slash, Aliens and Desire
Charmaine Tanti: I, Vampire ( Jody Scott, 1984) Lesbians, Vampires and
Aliens Melody Blackmore and Catherine Pugh: Starship Troopers (Paul
Verhoeven, 1997) Militarism and Dehumanisation Anton Karl Kozlovic: The
Day the Earth Stood Still (Robert Wise, 1951) Alienating the Aliens Päivi
Väätänen: The Ballad of Beta- 2 (Samuel R. Delany, 1964) Representations of
Race Tommaso Remia: The Dance of the Changer and the Three (Terry Carr,
1973) Posthuman (Un)translatability Alec Charles: The Doctor (Various,
1963present) Loving the Alien Sergio Fernįndez Martķnez: No Word from
Gurb (Eduardo Mendoza, 1990 [ Trans. 2007]) Laughing with the Alien Joan
Ormrod: The War of the Worlds Adaptations (20132015) Real Aliens and
Post-Truth Anik Sarkar: Save Yourselves! (Alex Huston Fischer and Eleanor
Mitchell, 2020) The Familiar and the (Un)tellurian Other Owen Morawitz:
Arrival (Denis Villeneuve, 2016) Aliens Outside Time Ildikó Limpįr: Chaos
Walking Trilogy (Patrick Ness, 20082010) Rejecting the Anthropocene.
Elana Gomel is an academic, specialising in narratology of speculative fiction, and an award-winning fiction writer. Her academic books include Science Fiction, Alien Encounters, and the Ethics of Posthumanism: Beyond the Golden Rule (2014), The Palgrave Handbook of Global Fantasy (2023), and Serial Killers and Serial Spectators (2024).
Simon Bacon is a writer and film critic based in Pozna, Poland. He has written and edited over thirty books, including Horror: A Companion (2019), Eco-Vampires (2020), The Undead in the 21st Century: A Companion (2022) and The Palgrave Handbook of the Vampire (2024). He is the Series Editor for Genre Fiction and Film Companions and Vampire Studies: New Perspectives on the Undead with Peter Lang.
