Joss Whedon as Shakespearean Moralist: Narrative Ethics of the Bard and the Buffyverse

by J. Douglas Rabb, J. Michael Richardson

Overview

Drawing on the works of Shakespeare and American screenwriter Joss Whedon, this study in narrative ethics contends that Whedon is the Shakespeare of our time. The Bard wrote before the influence of the modern moral philosophers, while Whedon is writing in the postmodern period. It is argued that Whedon's work is more in harmony with the early modern values of Shakespeare than with modern ethics, which trace their origin to 17th and 18th century moral philosophy. This study includes a detailed discussion of representative works of Shakespeare and Whedon, showing how they can and should be read as forms of narrative ethics.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781476617862
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	11/26/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	224
File size:	839 KB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

J. Douglas Rabb is a professor emeritus of philosophy at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, and an executive member of the Centre for Health Care Ethics, also at Lakehead University. J. Michael Richardson is a professor of English at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. A specialist in Early Modern Literature, he has written a number of articles on Shakespeare and popular culture.
J. Douglas Rabb is a professor emeritus of philosophy at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, and an executive member of the Centre for Health Care Ethics, also at Lakehead University.
J. Michael Richardson is a professor of English at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. A specialist in Early Modern Literature he has written a number of articles on Shakespeare and popular culture.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
Foreword by Kim Fedderson
Introduction
One—Joss Whedon, the Shakespeare for Our Time
Two—Shakespeare’s Brain and Whedon’s Brains: Cognitive Theory in Narrative and Ethics
Three—Joss Whedon’s “Big Brain”: The Espenson Authorship Controversy
Four—Shakespeare and Popular Culture: Uses and Echos of the Bard in the Whedonverses and Ours as Well
Five—Persons, Personation and Character Development: The Transformative Nature of Narrative
Six—The Moral Imagination in Shakespeare: ­Pre-Modern and Early Modern Ethics
Seven—The Moral Imagination in Whedon: ­Post-Modern and ­Post-Christian Love Ethics
Eight—Reason and Rules in Ethics: The Parfit Pathology
Conclusion: Narrative Ethics in Action
Works Cited
Index

Editorial Reviews

This book makes a compelling argument that Joss Whedon...is the Shakespeare of our time. They consider representative works from each author and draw important parallels through the narrative ethics. Fans of Whedon and literary scholars will both find this book an informative and interesting read”—ProtoView.

From the Publisher

This book makes a compelling argument that Joss Whedon...is the Shakespeare of our time. They consider representative works from each author and draw important parallels through the narrative ethics. Fans of Whedon and literary scholars will both find this book an informative and interesting read

ProtoView