Supernatural and Philosophy: Metaphysics and Monsters... for Idjits Author: Visit Amazon's Galen A. Foresman Page | Language: English | ISBN:
1118615956 | Format: PDF
Supernatural and Philosophy: Metaphysics and Monsters... for Idjits Description
From the Back Cover
Can angels be atheists?
Can monsters be moral?
What's the point of Hell?
How is natural different from supernatural?
Is Hell a democracy with warm weather?
Supernatural and Philosophy introduces fans of the show to the big philosophical topics relating to the long-running hit show Supernatural, covering thorny issues in a fun and accessible way. Contributors, themselves philosophical fans of Supernatural, tackle issues ranging from the biological classifications of monsters, to the epistemological problems of ghost hunting, as well as the ultimate questions of life, love, and the moral issues involved in the killing of blood-sucking monsters. Like the great Bobby Singer himself, fans can pore over this tomb, containing essays pertaining to the archaic and monstrous themes of character formation, ethics, and why shows like Supernatural would ever entertain a rational, scientific mind. Even those unfamiliar with the show will find fascinating insights into Heaven, Hell, Angels, Demons, God, Lucifer, and Good and Evil. This unique collection of diverse philosophical essays is written for those who love the self-effacing style of the show's humor, wit, and self-reflection.
About the Author
Galen A. Foresman is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, where he teaches ethics and critical thinking. He is the author of “Why Batman Is Better than Superman” in
Batman and Philosophy (Wiley, 2008) and "What’s Wrong with Camping?" in
Halo and Philosophy (2011).
William Irwin is Professor of Philosophy at King’s College. He originated the philosophy and popular culture genre of books as coeditor of the bestselling The Simpsons and Philosophy and has overseen recent titles including Superman and Philosophy, Black Sabbath and Philosophy, and Spider-Man and Philosophy.
- Series: The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series
- Paperback: 216 pages
- Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell; 1 edition (October 7, 2013)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1118615956
- ISBN-13: 978-1118615959
- Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.4 inches
- Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
It's easy to dismiss genre TV shows as mindless entertainment, but some of the greatest explorations of ideas and of what it means to be human have come through sci-fi and fantasy shows such as Star Trek, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Dexter, The X Files, and others in a similar vein. Perhaps no series has raised more interesting questions than "Supernatural," and this thin volume does a good job of introducing the issues raised (and gesturing toward some philosophical responses).
Chief among the issues "Supernatural" raises is the moral issue of when it's right to kill. Not all monsters are immoral and some humans are monstrous--so how do Sam and Dean decide? The moral landscape of "Supernatural" is fraught, and a few of the book's earlier essays help provide guidance for we, as fans, can decide for ourselves which actions might be justified, and when gray becomes black.
Other issues addressed include the fascinating "theology" of "Supernatural," with a special emphasis on hell. In God's absence, it seems hell is a democracy. What to make of that? Also, what about the Cartesian dualism present in some episodes--what does it mean for us to be not one substance (a physical brain, the activity of which constitutes "mind") versus a mind or spirit that's dwelling within a body. Only dualism can explain the rampant possessions that occur on the show, but that raises some prickly philosophical issues.
In fact, that's what "Supernatural and Philosophy"--much like the other books in this philosophy of pop culture series--is mainly good for.
Supernatural and Philosophy is the latest sally in "The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series." Right off the bat I can say that if you are a fan of the television series Supernatural you're likely to give this book the same 5 out of 5 stars I would give it as a fan. However, I did run several of the essays past a friend who is a fan of pop culture but NOT a fan of the television series and his reaction was more muted.
Given that these are 15 distinct essays by the same number of authors (some co-authors and a duplicate or two) it's no surprise to find varying quality. Overall, the quality is excellent but some essays stand out. For my tastes, the essays that use more examples from the TV show to illustrate the wide ranging philosophical points (e.g., Kant to Marx) were more entertaining than essays with a primary focus on philosophy. The opening essay, "Are Monsters Members of the Moral Community?" by Nathan Stout was one of the better forays. Jillian Canode's "Hunting the American Dream" linking Marxism to the world of Supernatural was one of the (more philosophy)/(less Supernatural) types of essays for me. Again, these are my personal tastes
The strength of this book, and I suspect of the entire "... and Philosophy" series is how well it introduces the reader to the core tenets of different philosophical paradigms. The younger reader should probably read this with Wikipedia or a good dictionary at hand in order to look up terms like "epistemology" and "ontological." The gist is more introduction to the field of philosophy rather than introduction to the series. Most of the essays assume the reader is familiar with the show's characters and plot arcs. In fact, many of the essays refer to Castiel (an angel) familiarly and ONLY as "Cas.
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