Neoliberal Aesthetics of Resistance in the Disney Star Wars Films

Rescripting Rebellion

Abigail Reed (Autor)

Buch | Hardcover

154 Seiten

2023
Lexington Books (Verlag)
978-1-7936-4738-2 (ISBN)

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This book explores how Disney’s Star Wars films leverage popular discussions about the representations of marginalized communities in U.S. media to gain political and economic profit. Abigail Reed argues that Disney uses these narratives to support a model of resistance that benefits their position as a global media conglomerate.

From 2015 to 2019, the Walt Disney Corporation has produced five theatrical films in the Star Wars galaxy. These films have been met with mixed reactions from audiences and critics alike and sparked seemingly endless public debate about representations of people of color, women, and queer people in 21st century popular film. This book explores the evolving discourse surrounding Disney’s Star Wars films from a political economic perspective and through a lens focusing on the corporate representation of marginalized communities with an aim to critique neoliberal ethics of resistance against fascist regimes. Through exploring the characters of Saw Gerrera, Finn, Poe Dameron, and L3-37, Abigail Reed argues that Disney’s utilization of diverse identities within the franchise is ultimately regressive. Rather than engaging with marginalized communities’ histories or futures, Reed posits, Disney uses these narratives to serve its private interests as an American global media conglomerate and undermine historically effective models of rebellion against imperialism in favor of a model of governance that centers Whiteness and the interests of the Global North.

Abigail Reed is assistant professor of media studies at the University of Mount Union.

Preface

Introduction

Chapter 1: Diversity and the US Dollar: Selling the Future through Star Wars

Chapter 2: Saw Gerrera, Fear of the Other, and Imperialist Ideologies Embedded in Rogue One

Chapter 3: “We Are the Spark:” A Story of Loss, Corporate Censorship, and Reveling in Radical Queer Politics

Chapter 4: “I’ve Found My True Purpose:” L3-37, Transgressive Bodies, and Liberatory Movements

Conclusion: The Future of Our Galaxy(ies)

Bibliography

About the Author

Erscheinungsdatum	27.11.2023
Verlagsort	Lanham, MD
Sprache	englisch
Maße	159 x 237 mm
Gewicht	413 g
Themenwelt	Kunst / Musik / Theater ► Film / TV
Themenwelt	Sozialwissenschaften ► Kommunikation / Medien ► Medienwissenschaft
ISBN-10	1-7936-4738-0 / 1793647380
ISBN-13	978-1-7936-4738-2 / 9781793647382
Zustand	Neuware