Superheroes, Communication, and Culture
Popular Culture Perspectives on the Marvel Cinematic Universe
Superheroes, Communication, and Culture
Popular Culture Perspectives on the Marvel Cinematic Universe
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Description
This edited volume builds on existing superhero and comic studies research by analyzing and emphasizing the interrelation of the texts that comprise the Marvel Cinematic Universe through a combination of communication studies, media studies, and cultural studies approaches.
The popularity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has never been stronger. As each franchise phase is announced and released, the fan and cultural responses more broadly demonstrate the power that a popular culture artifact and phenomenon can have on audiences and societies alike. This collection brings together scholars from popular culture, communication, and associated disciplines in one space to explore aspects of the MCU that are, sometimes, overlooked. The contributors to this volume explore a diverse variety of texts in the MCU, offering critical interrogations including feminist critiques, commentaries on race and stereotyping, and examinations of the political economy of superhero cinema, among other perspectives. This collection marks an opening salvo for scholars who view the MCU as fertile ground for finding communication perspectives in popular culture.
From the use of various symbols both feared and coveted by many within the MCU worlds to the creation of entire civilizations to act as cultural critique, these chapters ask the reader to take a moment to reflect on and consider what might be uncovered and understood through the criticism of these incredibly popular and relevant pop culture texts.
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Adam W. Tyma (University of Nebraska Omaha, USA), Matthew R. Meier (West Chester University, USA), and Dana Schowalter (Western Oregon University, USA)
Part I: Political Economy and Politics
1. #WheresBlackWidow: Hashtag Activism, Paratexts, and Reluctant Investments in Profitable Women Superheroes
Dana Schowalter
2. Logan, Situated Ideological Allegory, and the American Dream/Nightmare
Talya Slaw (University of Mississippi, USA) and Jacob Justice (University of Mississippi, USA)
Part II: Gender Studies and Feminisms
3. “Unusual Voting Activity” or the Hermeneutics and Aesthetics of Misogyny in the Review-Bombing of She-Hulk
Daniel Horvath (California State University, Stanislaus, USA)
4. Clearing Her Ledger: Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow and Transcending the Male Gaze
Katelyn Lambert (University of Central Florida, USA)
5. “I have nothing to prove to you”: Audience Interpretations of Feminism and Nostalgia in Captain Marvel
Michaela D.E. Meyer (Christopher Newport University, USA)
Part III: Race, Ethnicity, and Identity
6. From Aztlan to Talokan: Namor as Living Memory
Gabriel Cruz (North Carolina Central University Durham, USA)
7. “Just 'cause you carry that shield, it doesn't mean you're Captain America” - Carrying on Steve's Legacy
Elizabeth Shiller (Georgia Southwestern State University, USA)
8. Strong Asian Women: Resisting Stereotypes and Redefining Femininity in Marvel's Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Stephanie Young (University of Southern Indiana, USA)
Part IV: Symbols and Signs
9. Marvel's Monstrosity: Deadpool and the Delight of White Violence
Matthew R. Meier
10. The Grief that Bewitches Us: Understanding Wanda Maximoff as a Metaphor for Collective Trauma and Its Implications on Cinematic Representations
Erika Thomas
11. “What does that shield mean?” Understanding Captain America's Shield as a Complex Symbolic and Discursive Construct Throughout the MCU, Specifically Falcon and The Winter Soldier
Adam W. Tyma
About the Contributors
Index
Product details
| Published | Jun 11 2026 |
|---|---|
| Format | Ebook (Epub & Mobi) |
| Edition | 1st |
| Pages | 256 |
| ISBN | 9781978759633 |
| Imprint | Bloomsbury Academic |
| Series | Communication Perspectives in Popular Culture |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
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