Animals in Narrative Film and Television - by Karin Beeler & Stan Beeler (Paperback)

About the Book

This book explores fictional representations of animals in animated and live-action film and television and examines the way these representations intersect with culture, race, gender, class, disability, and health issues. Contributors analyze the narrative functions of famili...

Book Synopsis

This book explores fictional representations and narrative functions of animal characters in animated and live-action film and television, examining the ways in which these representations intersect with a variety of social issues. Contributors cover a range of animal characters, from heroes to villains, across a variety of screen genres and formats, including anime, comedy, romance, horror, fantasy, and science fiction. Aesthetic features of these works, along with the increased latitude that fictionalized narratives and alternative worlds provide, allow existing social issues to be brought to the forefront in order to effect change in our societies. By incorporating animal figures into media, these screen narratives have gained the ability to critique actions carried out by human beings and explore dimensions of both the human/animal connection and the intersectionality of race, culture, class, gender, and ability, ultimately teaching viewers how to become more human in our interactions with the world around us. Scholars of film studies, media studies, and animal studies will find this book of particular interest.

Review Quotes

""Animals in Narrative Film and Television offers an intersectional exploration of animal representation in film and television that connects race, class, and disability with animal signification. Examining a diversity of visual media, ranging from White Dog, Big Mouth, and Count Duckula to Guardians of the Galaxy, The Boy and the Beast, and The Shape of Water, for instance, this book is diversely theoretical and will be of use to anyone interested in film studies and animal studies broadly, and questions of human and animal oppression, othering, and representation more specifically."" --Monica Mattfeld, University of Northern British Columbia

About the Author

Karin Beeler is professor in the English Department at the University of Northern British Columbia.
Stan Beeler is professor emeritus of English at the University of Northern British Columbia.