Werewolves and Other Shapeshifters in Popular Culture: A Thematic Analysis of Recent Depictions - Paperback

by Kimberley McMahon-Coleman (Author), Roslyn Weaver (Author)

In recent years, shapeshifting characters in literature, film and television have been on the rise. This has followed the increased use of such characters as metaphors, with novelists and critics identifying specific meanings and topics behind them. This book aims to unravel the shapeshifting trope. Rather than pursue a case-based study, the works are grouped around specific themes--adolescence, gender, sexuality, race, disability, addiction, and spirituality--that are explored through the metaphor of shapeshifting.

Because of the transformative possibilities of this metaphor and its flexibility, the shapeshifter has the potential to change how we see our world. With coverage of iconic fantasy texts and a focus on current works, the book engages with the shapeshifting figure in popular culture from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia.

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Author Biography

Kimberley McMahon-Coleman has a PhD in literature from the University of Wollongong and is an associate professor (academic development) at Charles Sturt University in Australia. Her research interests include the Gothic, Indigenous literature, popular culture, and academic language and learning. Roslyn Weaver has a PhD in literature from the University of Wollongong and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in medical humanities at Western Sydney University. Her research interests include apocalypse, popular culture, children's literature, and speculative fiction.