Myth, Media, and Culture in Star Wars: An Anthology

by Douglas Brode (Editor), Leah Deyneka (Editor)

In 1977, Star Wars blazed across the screen to become one of the highest grossing and most beloved movies of all time. It was followed by two sequels and three prequels, all of which became blockbusters. Comic books, novels, graphic novels, and magazines devoted to the films have added to the mythology of George Lucas's creation. Despite the impact of the franchise on popular culture, however, discussion of the films from a scholarly perspective has not kept pace with the films. In Myth, Media, and Culture in Star Wars: An Anthology, Douglas Brode and Leah Deyneka have assembled an intriguing collection of essays addressing the influences that shaped the films, as well as the impact the franchise has had on popular culture. Contributors to this volume discuss the Star Wars universe and what its connection to various cultural touchstones--from fairy tales and Joseph Campbell to Disneyland and Marvel comics--mean to viewers. Essays examine the films in the franchise as well as incarnations of the Star Wars universe in video games, comic books, and television programs, including the films' influence on new generations of filmmakers. A companion volume to Sex, Politics, and Culture in Star Wars, Myth, Media, and Culture in Star Wars is a diverse collection of criticism that investigates the dynamic force that Star Wars has become in popular culture, from every imaginable angle.

Genres: Star Wars, Science Fiction

206 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2012

Reviews

[Isiel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Looking at the chapter titles, I was so excited for this book. Finally, one anthology that would analyze the inspirations and impacts of Star Wars from a variety of lenses. Unfortunately, because it is an anthology, some chapters are more effectively written than others. To add on, there just isn't a lot of new information or world-shattering insight here. If you are new to the concepts it might be helpful as a way to get started, but most chapters are simplified and not made for deep studies.

Another major issue is that even though this book came out in 2012, which doesn't seem that long ago, the momentum of technology, fandom, and especially Star Wars canon exploded since then and some analysis are just too outdated to be as relevant to the discussion today as they were then. For example, the chapter about TV series really only had the Clone Wars and an older Ewok show to talk about. Those analysis are still useful, but without discussing more recent additions the overall effect rings a bit hallow.

That being said, I enjoyed the chapters about the influence of Akira Kurosawa and Media Convergence & Participatory Culture. Personally, I haven't seen any of Kirosawa's films, so hearing about how much was borrowed in both plot and style was really interesting. The chapter about fandom showed a lot of respect to fandom spaces and had some great commentary on how DIY culture and evolving technology supported an already existing fandom to reach global audiences.

The two chapters I felt most let down by were the ones about fairy tales and Anakin as a tragic hero. These were two areas I've been interested in going deeper with, but both had some issues. The fairy tale chapter used an old Russian criteria to show what makes a fairy tale a fairy tale, but there is so much crossover with the monomyth that, as the author suggests, it basically covers all stories. However, not all stories are fairy tales. It is a specific genre with a unique style and structure that wasn't really captured by the criteria presented. You are better off just Googling the elements of fairy tales and working from there. As for the chapter on Anakin's fall, it had some information about the structural elements from the Greek tragedies, but it abandoned that discussion quickly to just analyze how Anakin fell via his characterization which is all pretty basic.

Overall: Check out the chapter list. If you are super new to most of these concepts and interested in getting an introduction, then this book is for you. If you are looking for a deep dive about these topics, look elsewhere. There are a ton of amazing Star Wars reference books out there that go the distance.