- STAR TREK BOOK GUIDE -
Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussion
Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussion
The World of Star Trek
Author(s): David Gerrold
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1973
Condition: Good
Printing: 3rd
ISBN: 0312944632
--Summary--
Here are the worlds of Star Trek
Gene Roddenberry's brilliant conception - the first viable science fiction world designed for a TV series.
THE SHOW ITSELF, and the people who created it - the writers, the stars, the technicians.
THE FANS - the world the show created - and how they kept STAR TREK alive in the face of network opposition.
With sixty-four pages of pictures from the episodes themselves, and with original photos by Stan Burns?
Notes: None.
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The World of Star Trek
Author(s): David Gerrold
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1973
Condition: Very Good
Printing: 10th
ISBN: 0312944632
--Summary--
There has never been anything quite like Star Trek and the phenomenon goes on?
First a television show that captured the imaginations of millions and millions of viewers in the three seasons it was on the air ? then a cult phenomenon that survived through years of syndication and spawned a generation of avid "Trekkies" ? and now a major motion picture.
Here in the inside story of how it all began:
* Gene Roddenberry's dream - the first viable science-fiction world designed for TV ? and he made it work!
* The Star Trek Family - stories and anecdotes about the people who made the Enterprise fly ? plus an episode-by-episode listing of the original writers and stars.
* The Star Trek Phenomenon - facts, fans, and a fabulous campaign to save the show the network tried to kill.
Plus 64 pages filled with lots of fabulous photographs of the stars and great scenes from many of the original episodes.
Notes: Original Edition
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Letters to Star Trek
Author(s): Susan Sackett
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1977
Condition: Very Good
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0345255224
--Summary--
Star Trek
--The Inside Scoop--
In this exclusive book Gene Roddenberry -- often referred to as the Great Bird of the Galaxy -- answers his fan mail and shares with you the best of the thousands and thousands of letters he and all the gang have received since Star Trek went on the air.
Have you wondered...
What's the latest on the Star Trek movie?
Where you can get a genuine pair of Spock ears?
How to write to all the stars?
Whatever happened to Grace Lee Whitney?
What does NASA think about Star Trek?
Are they really teaching Star Trek in College?
What does Gene Roddenberry think about the future?
Who, What, Where, When, Why -- and How Come?
Everything you have ever wanted to know about Star Trek is revealed in this information-packed book!
Notes: None.
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Meaning in Star Trek
Author(s): Karin Blair
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1977
Condition: Good
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0890120102
--Summary--
Why did Star Trek spawn an entire subculture of "trekkies" with their own conventions, publications and lifestyle? Why now, years after the series was produced, do the reruns continue to enchant a new and different generation? Karin Blair explores our inner space for the answers and returns from the journey with fresh and original insights.
Using specific episodes as examples, she shows the personal relevancy Star Trek has for us, how Spock, Kirk, McCoy and the others reflect our fears, dreams and aspirations. She calls Star Trek a modern myth and demonstrates why we are all travelers aboard the Enterprise, aliens in time and space, seeking a new land within and outside ourselves in a troubled world.
Notes: Paperback edition - No drawings
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Meaning in Star Trek
Author(s): Karin Blair
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1977
Condition: Very Good
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0890120102
--Summary--
Star Trek is more than gadget-oriented science fiction. In this original and readable book Karin Blair shows how the starship Enterprise explores not simply outer space but also the inner reaches of the human psyche; she examines the why of the show's broad popular appeal. Its 79 episodes dramatize basic human patterns of action and belief that Blair traces through the relations between and within the characters.
The continuing family that Gene Roddenberry created on board the Enterprise embodies conflicts that are part of each one of us. For example, Mr. Spock, the half-human, half-Vulcan, embodies an obscure alien presence comparable to our own unconscious minds. But Spock's perpetual antagonist, Dr. McCoy, and Captain Kirk, who knows how to get the best from both, are necessary contributors to successful adventuring into the galaxy or into ourselves.
In story after story Star Trek explores the basic polarities that affect every human life; life and death, good and evil, age and youth, man and woman. Karin Blair sees the tension between masculine and feminine as particularly important, not only in the show but also in human consciousness now. Her analysis of Spock in these terms reveals the significance of his strong appeal to female viewers.
This book will delight and intrigue not only "trekkies" but also everyone who wants to explore what it means to be "human" in this day and age, in the futures we can imagine, or at any time in the vast enterprise we call human history. Myths are often the key to understanding the deepest parts of ourselves, and Star Trek, through Karin Blair's skillful treatment, now reveals the depths viewers always sensed were there.
Notes: Hard Cover Edition with illustrations by Vincent Cahill
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Star Trek: Good News in Modern Images
Author(s): Betsy Caprio
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1978
Condition: Very Good
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0836234006
--Summary--
In this important study, religion and science fiction meet - in the best tradition of both. Students and teachers of human values, as well as the legion of Star Trek fans, will find this workbook study an exciting, invaluable guide through the entrancing world of Star Trek. The enduring TV series has long been regarded as a communicator of significant values to viewers - especially young people - and Betsy Caprio, the author of Experiments in Prayer and Experiments in Growth, captures the essence of positive, hopeful vision of the future depicted in the story lines of one of the most popular TV series.
For use in both formal and informal study of recent cultural phenomenon of Star Trek, Caprio communicates the recurring and important Christian values inherent to the series' seventy-nine episodes. Her study helps to explain - to the admirers of Star Trek and the uninitiated - the last and growing appeal of the show. An examination of other science-fiction works, including Star Wars, shows the much of science fiction is made more comprehensible within the framework for study she provides in this book.
This is an impressive, engaging book, illustrated and indexed, that offers a refreshingly different viewpoint, one that reiterates the vision of magnitude, hope, and spiritual union that sustains Star Trek.
"... a new book with additional power for the into-it 'Star' buff -- or everything you have to know to form your own opinion.... [Betsy Caprio's] book is impressive, engaging and offers a refreshingly different religious viewpoint."
- St. Francis Shops Footnotes, Edina, Minnesota
"This thoughtful and inspiring book proves that within many 'pop culture' television programs there is a wealth of uplifting, meaningful content -- valuable lessons in living."
- Bert Briller, Executive Editor, Television Information Office
Notes: None.
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On The Good Ship Enterprise: My 15 Years With Star Trek
Author(s): Bjo Trimble
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1983
Condition: Good
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0898652537
--Summary--
The Erma Bombeck of Sci-Fi!
The uninhibited adventures of the woman who saved Star Trek
When Bjo Trimble began the letter campaign that resulted in Star Trek's unprecedented renewal after the network had already decided to cancel the show, she never dreamed her action would lead to a position as "fan liaison" for both the television and motion picture versions.
Answering mail, on the set, shepherding the stars to conventions, fielding questions from the media, traveling across the globe to represent Star Trek, her adventures and misadventures are side-splitting and heart-tugging by turns.
Beginning with her first contact with the producer at a science fiction convention shortly before the program's premiere, and ending with the success of Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan and the plans for a third picture, she tells the whole hilarious story of her fifteen year voyage, boldly going where no fan had gone before.
Aboard the good ship Enterprise.
"Bjo is just as much fun in print as she is in person. The only problem with her writing is that there isn't enough of it. More! More!"
David Gerrold
Author The World of Star Trek
Notes: None.
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Empire, Aliens and Conquest
Author(s): Jay Goulding
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1985
Condition: Very Good
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0969114117
--Summary--
A critique of American ideology in Star Trek and other science fiction adventures.
On land, on sea and now in space, the United States in its tactics and goals seems as ruthless and instrumental as the Soviet Union. The powerlessness of everyday individuals comes to the forefront when we recognize how little impact peace protest has on warrior nations. In the 1960's, the American power wielders feared war protesters who rejected the frontier spirit and its consequences, especially in the Third World. At a time when the U.S. had acquired a questionable world profile, television shows like Star Trek emerged to resurrect the American Dream, to give a disenchanted American populus something to hope for, a new religion to grasp onto and worship, a new frontier to explore, one far from the problems of the Twentieth Century. But what is the morality of shows like Star Trek? What do we find beneath the surface glimmer of the brave characters? What is the politics of the universe that they live in? Is science fiction a mere journey into the fantasy of the future or does it subtly reflect the presuppositions of American culture and politics? Are the prejudices and contradictions of that society mirrored in television? The first and foremost 'strange new world' that Trekkers ought to explore is their own -- the one conspicuously absent from the television series. Can we discover other forms of relations outside of war and destruction? Are our dreams to be banalized with a future that looks like the mystical star-spangled days of the wild West? The thrust of Empire, Aliens and Conquest is to invite readers to reflect on how political values portray themselves in popular culture.
Notes: On a personal note, this is one of the few books that took me years to finally locate.
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Star Trek: An Annotated Guide?
Author(s): Susan R. Gibberman
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1991
Condition: Very Good
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0899505473
--Summary--
to Resources on the Development, the Phenomenon, the People, the Television Series, the Films, the Novels and the Recordings
Notes: Text book
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The Unauthorized History of Trek
Author(s): James Van Hise
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1991
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st PB
ISBN: 0061054372
--Summary--
Beam up for:
* The operation that almost cost Spock his ears
* The woman who wouldn't stay green
* The fortune-teller who predicted McCoy's success
* The Leonard "Nimsy" Christmas parade
* Harlan Ellison's letter writing campaign
* Attack of the Nielsens!
* The spacecraft design the U.S. Navy stole
... and much, much more!
Here are the stories behind the stories, the little-known facts and legendary incidents that made Star Trek the most successful, most innovative, most enduring, most influential, and most fiercely beloved SF show to ever appear on television. From Roddenberry's first pilot to the megahit movies and first generation of spinoffs, The Unauthorized History of Trek is one of the most inspiring and fascinating stories in entertainment history.
Plus
* A season-by-season episode checklist
* The animated voyages
* The Next Generation
* The silver screen
Notes: None.
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Enterprising Women: Television Fandom and the Creation of Popular Myth
Author(s): Camille Bacon-Smyth
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1992
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0812213793
--Summary--
Enterprising Women is a study of the worldwide community of fans of Star Trek and other genre television series who create and distribute fiction and art based on their favorite series. This community includes people from all walks of life -- housewives, librarians, secretaries, and professors of medieval literature. Ninety percent of its members are women. They take settings, plots, and characters from Star Trek, Blake's 7, Miami Vice, and other science fiction and action-adventure series and modify the settings, rework the plots, create new characters, and invent new interactions among old characters.
The fiction and art that result from this re-creation are published in magazines called "fanzines" and sold through an intricate network of conventions, word of mouth, cross-advertising, and catalogs. All of the community's publications are underground and are not sold for profit. No one in the community makes money from her writing, drawing, editing, or distributing of fan art and fiction.
Camille Bacon-Smith asks the question: Why do members of this community -- who have jobs and families to take care of -- spend time, energy, and money creating and sharing pictures and stories about worlds they have seen only on television? Using a theoretical framework drawn from ethnolinguistics, mass communications studies, literary theory, the sociology of play, and feminist studies, and calling upon knowledge gained from years of participant observation in the fan community, the author shows us how members of the community use their fiction and art to help them cope with real-life problems and to find support and comfort in community. While the results are often surprising, sometimes, disconcerting, they are always a tribute to the struggle of the artist in all of us to be seen, to be heard, and to matter in our community.
Enterprising Women is valuable not only for what it reveals about the fan community but, equally important, for what it tells us about how audiences receive and use mass media entertainment. It will be a unique resource for students and scholars of literature, American studies, women's studies, and popular culture.
Notes: None.
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Textual Poachers: Television Fans and Participatory Culture
Author(s): Henry Jenkins
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1992
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0415905729
--Summary--
"Get a life," William Shatner told Star Trek fans. Yet, as Textual Poachers argues, fans already have a "life," a complex subculture which draws its resources from commercial culture while also reworking them to serve alternative interests. Rejecting stereotypes of fans as cultural dupes, social misfits, and mindless consumers, Jenkins represents media fans as active producers and skilled manipulators of program meanings, as nomadic poachers constructing their own culture from borrowed materials, as an alternative social community defined through its cultural preferences and consumption practices.
Written from an insider's perspective and providing vivd examples from fan artifacts, Textual Poachers offers an ethnographic account of the media fan community, its interpretive strategies, its social institutions and cultural practices, and its troubled relationship to the mass media and consumer capitalism. Drawing on the work of Michel de Certeau, Jenkins shows how fans of Star Trek, Blake's 7, The Professionals, Beauty and the Beast, Starsky and Hutch, Alien Nation, Twin Peaks and other popular programs exploit these cultural materials as the basis for their stories, songs, videos, and social interactions.
Addressing both academics and fans, Jenkins builds a powerful case for the richness of fan culture as a popular response to the mass media and as a challenge to the producers' attempts to regulate textual meanings. Textual Poachers guides readers through difficult questions about popular consumptions, genre, gender, sexuality, and interpretation, documenting practices and processes which test and challenge basic assumptions of contemporary media theory.
Notes: None.
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Confessions of a Trekoholic: A New Look at The Next Generation
Author(s): Hilary Palencar
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1996
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0809510014
--Summary--
When Next Generation premiered as a syndicated television program in the fall of 1987, it represented a new departure for Gene Roddenberry's Trek universe. Set in the year 2364 (Stardate 41153.7), ninety-eight years after the beginning of the original series, the second TV outing starred Shakespearean actor Patrick Stewart as Captain Jean-Luc Picard, Jonathan Frakes as Executive Officer William T. Riker, Brent Spiner as the android Second Officer Data, LeVar Burton as Engineer Geordi LaForge, Marina Sirtis as Betazoid Counselor Deanna Troi, Gates McFadden as Chief Medical Officer Dr. Beverly Crusher, Wil Wheaton as Beverly's son, science whiz Wesley Crusher, Denise Crosby as Security Officer Tasha Yar, and Michael Dorn as Klingon Flight Control Officer (later Security Officer) Worf. The U.S.S. Enterprise-D was significantly faster and larger in size, and featured more than twice the crew complement of (and many more gadgets than) the first starship of that name.
But there was also a major change in attitude and ambience from the original Trek, perhaps an agenda as well, as the new production boldly ventured into politically correct places where no man had gone before. Hilary Palencar casts a critical eye at TNG, examines what it is really saying to the modern TV viewer, and shows how easy it is for the average watcher to get drawn into the new Trek's very attractive vision of one possible (but highly improbable) future of WASPmankind. Complete with General Index, Title Index, and Character Index.
Notes: None.
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Enterprise Zones: Critical Positions on Star Trek
Author(s): Taylor Harrison, Sarah Projansky, Kent A. Ono, and Elyce Rae Helford, editors
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1996
Condition: Very Good
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0813328993
--Summary--
"Star Trek is a genuine cultural phenomenon, and this volume at last gives it the searching critical look it deserves. Assembling a stunning array of terrestrial intelligence, Enterprise Zones manages a mission near impossible -- to be serious yet funny, diverse yet coherent, suspicious yet loving. An absolutely essential text for fans and for courses in science fiction and American culture."
- Janice Rushing, University of Arkansas
"This stellar collection is the first of its kind to explore the Star Trek phenomenon with such depth and breadth. The essays attest to the vitality and diversity of cultural studies as a site for exciting new voices. Enterprise Zones is indispensable to anyone concerned with the impact of futuristic projections on the political present."
- Ramona Liera-Schwichtenberg, Wichita State University
"Critical essays focused on subjectivities, cultural change, representations of power, and pain-pleasure engage readers of Star Trek in fresh and invigorating ways. This anthology is on the front edge of media criticism."
- Bruce Gronbeck, University of Iowa
Can you imagine a world without Star Trek -- without warp drive, phasers, photon torpedoes, tricorders, communicators, and transporters? After six Hollywood movies and twenty-five years of nonstop television presence, Star Trek is, indeed, a pervasive cultural phenomenon. Scholars, students, and most of all trekkies: Read on, dig in, delight.
Notes: None
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NASA/TREK: Popular Science and Sex in America
Author(s): Constance Penley
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1997
Condition: Good
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0860916170
--Summary--
Spock to Kirk: 'Please, Captain, not in front of the Klingons.'
This wry and highly readable investigation of the role of space travel in popular imagination looks at the way NASA has openly borrowed from the TV show Star Trek to reinforce its public standing. It also celebrates the work of a group of the show's fans who rewrite its storylines in porno-romance fanzines. Constance Penley advocates that scientific experimentation be accompanied by social and sexual experimentation, and devoted to exploring inner as well as outer space.
'Going into space with NASA/TREK is a good read and a good ride into uncharted regions of technoculture. In Penley's hands, popular science is a place to launch an inquiry into moral, cultural and political stakes in a world "where no man has gone before".'
--Donna Haraway
'NASA/TREK is happily both enjoyable and insightful, and explores some intricate correspondences between science and sex. Among other things it offers a new and persuasive analysis of a populist subgenre: "slash" fiction.'
--Samuel R. Delany
Notes: None.
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Star Trek in Italy
Author(s): Daniela Benelli
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1997
Condition: Very Good
Printing: 1st
ISBN: N/A
--Summary--
None
Notes: Written in both Italian and English
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Star Trek: In Myth and Legend
Author(s): Thomas Richards
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1997
Condition: Very Good
Printing: 2nd
ISBN: 0752816454
--Summary--
Where does Star Trek come from? How does it go about creating such a coherent and convincing world? What was it that Gene Roddenberry, the legendary creator of the series, brought to the programme that was so unique?
Star Trek is the most popular science fiction series ever created. The original series broadcast in the 19060s was followed by eight feature films and three highly successful series - The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine and Voyager.
This book will become the Trekkers' bible as it illustrates why Star Trek above all other TV programmes over thirty years has captured the imagination of hundreds of millions of people worldwide.
Notes: United Kingdom paperback version of "The Meaning in Star Trek". Also contains photos.
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The Meaning of Star Trek
Author(s): Thomas Richards
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1997
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0385484399
--Summary--
Where does Star Trek come from? Why is it so popular? How does it go about creating a coherent world? Literary critics may take literature seriously, but they often look down on popular forms such as television shows. I feel differently. I think the meaning of a series can best be captured by looking at how it successfully creates a coherent universe.
Like any great work of art or literature, the Star Trek universe has an integrity and a resonance all its own, a completeness unrivaled by any other kind of science fiction, whether movie, television show, or novel. The unique character of the series, taken not as a loosely connected group of stories but as a viable whole, is the subject of this book.
Notes: None.
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Deep Space and Sacred Time: Star Trek in the American Mythos
Author(s): Jon Wagner and Jan Lundeen
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1998
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0275962253
--Summary--
What could possibly account for the scope and longevity of the Star Trek phenomenon? With legions of impassioned fans, and a life span of 30 years and counting, the Star Trek television and film corpus has made Gene Roddenberry's creation nothing less than an American mythology. Deep Space and Sacred Time examines the many ways Star Trek has served as a mythic reference point for American society - and suggests that an understanding of this might help us to see ourselves more clearly as a culture. Moreover, this thoughtful and thought-provoking work asserts that Star Trek offers its audience a sense of hope and, in the setting of an orderly cosmos, the possibility for empowerment.
Notes: None.
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Future Perfect: How Star Trek Conquered Planet Earth
Author(s): Jeff Greenwald
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1998
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st PB
ISBN: 0140277986
--Summary--
Take a journey behind the scenes (and under the skin) of the worldwide Star Trek phenomenon.
Here is a Trek book like no other: an insightful and often hilarious look at the mythmaking machinery behind the planet's most enduring TV show. Best-selling travel writer Jeff Greenwald sets out to discover how Star Trek - launched in 1966 as a "Wagon Train to the Stars" - has become a global myth. His travels take him from an Indian bazaar to a Japanese spa; from a Klingon wedding in Germany to a Venetian Trekker feast. Along the way, he corners Leonard Nimoy, intrudes upon Kurt Vonnegut, and visits NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where the next generation of aerospace wizards are making their Trek-inspired dreams come true. He even has an audience with the Dalai Lama, who shares his surprising views on space travel, aliens, and the Internet.
Future Perfect also journeys into the minds of Star Trek's creators. Granted sweeping access to the soundstages of Voyager and First Contact, Greenwald conducts lively interviews with stars like Patrick Stewart, Kate Mulgrew, and Michael Dorn - and with the writers and producers who keep Gene Roddenberry's vision alive.
Future Perfect is great reading for anyone interested in how American pop culture has taken over the world. For Star Trek fans, it's indispensable.
"If you're wondering how Star Trek affects the lives of millions of people, a very good place to start would be Jeff Greenwald's highly entertaining Future Perfect."
-The Washington Post Book World
"It takes a lot of attitude--real-life, boldly-going attitude-to produce a book like this . . . [it's a book] you're going to have to have."
-San Jose Mercury News
Notes: None.
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Multicultural Communication and Popular Culture: Racial and Ethnic Images in Star Trek
Author(s): Marquita L. Byrd
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1998
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0070119244
--Summary--
"Lively, scholarly, substantive and unique... the fact that the book contains the author's own case study examples of Star Trek and culture further enriches the... discussion."
--Dorothy Williamson-Ige, Chair
--Communication Studies, Indiana University Northwest
"Byrd addresses the relationships among stereotypes, self-identity, and images in popular culture. The text is an excellent choice for use in the classroom."
--Anntarie Sims, Chair
--Communication and Theatre Arts, The College of New Jersey
"Byrd is a Trekker and her familiarity with the intimacies of the TV program enabled her to present her intellectual concepts from the... grass-roots level. Her enthusiasm is hard to disguise and it is wonderfully infectious."
--Philip Lynch, Editor in Chief
--Woman in the Moon Publications
"Byrd is... the scholar to know and read on the matter of racial and ethnic images in Trek mythology. The work simply has not been done before."
--Diane Bogus, Professor of American Literature
--DeAnza College
Notes: None
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Star Trek and History: Race-ing Toward a White Future
Author(s): Daniel Leonard Bernardi
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1998
Condition: Mint
Printing: 2nd
ISBN: 0813524660
--Summary--
"Bernardi boldly goes where no scholar has gone before and discovers racial anxiety at the center of the Star Trek story. This careful reading of commercial culture's quintessential mega-text provides invaluable insight into how mass media productions help shape us into the people we are."
-- George Lipsitz, author of Time Passages
"Bernardi's thoughtful and provocative analysis of race in Star Trek is wholly original; it challenges viewers to see the series in a new light, and challenges its creators to be more mindful of the implicit messages in their work."
-- Rene Echevarria, co-supervising producer, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
"I would have sworn that there was little new any scholar could say about Star Trek. I was wrong. Bernardi opens up a rich new set of issues for scholarly examination, centering around the contradictory expression of race within the series and the fan culture that surrounds us. His analysis is bold, provocative, and challenging, yet consistently fair-minded. He combines a fan's detailed knowledge of the program's universe with the theoretical sophistication necessary to make this book a cutting-edge contribution to the cultural studies of race."
-- Henry Jenkins, author of Textual Poachers: Television Fans and Participatory Culture
Star Trek and History examines the function of race in Star Trek. In particular, it explores the ways in which the meaning of race in the science fiction series has been facilitated and constrained by creative and network decision-making, by genre, by intertextuality, and by the audience. The author interprets how the changing social and political movements of the times have influenced the production and meaning of Trek texts and the ways in which the ongoing series negotiated and reflected these turbulent histories. Most significantly, he tells us why it is important for readers to better understand the articulation of race in this enduring icon of American popular culture.
Notes: None.
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Star Trek On the Brain: Alien Minds, Human Minds
Author(s): Robert Sekuler and Randolph Blake
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1998
Condition: Very Good
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0716732793
--Summary--
It's the twenty-third century, and something has gone terribly wrong. A transporter mishap has cleaved Captain Kirk in two, leaving the U.S.S. Enterprise in the unsteady hands of both the rash and impulsive Kirk I and the meek and indecisive Kirk II. In neurological terms, the accident has damaged the Captain's prefrontal cortex, a part of the brain that stores memories crucial to decision making. ("The Enemy Within" from the original Star Trek series)
Such is the stuff of Robert Sekuler and Randolph Blake's splicing of Star Trek and up-to-date research in psychology and neuroscience in Star Trek on the Brain. The authors' continuing mission: to boldly lead an expedition through the brain and the mind, using anecdotes from Star Trek movies and episodes of the original Star Trek series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager. Witness:
- Data, an android, wonders why the smell of perfume is a sexual stimulant for humans. The authors tell us it's because the smell-sensing part of the brain has the power to excite the hypothalamus, a part of the brain that affects sexual and aggressive behavior. ("Angel One" from Star Trek: The Next Generation)
- The Aquitarians implant an electronic device in the brains of their prisoners that jolts them into senseless fits of rage. The device, nicknamed "the clamp." provokes aggression in the prisoners by stimulating the hypothalamus. ("The Chute" from Star Trek: Voyager)
- "It's the lobes," says Nog, a Ferengi, explaining the aural acuity of his immense ears. In fact, it is the lobes -- the lobes of the cerebrum in Nog's brain (and ours) where sounds are analyzed. ("Darkness and Light" from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)
Notes: None.
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The Double Vision of Star Trek: Half Humans, Evil Twins, and Science Fiction
Author(s): Mike Hertenstein
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1998
Condition: Very Good
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0940895420
--Summary--
Star Trek's undiscovered country
From the half-human Spock, to the "half-Borg" Seven of Nine, Star Trek is riven by inner conflicts -- often unacknowledged. But it is only by examining these contradictions and paradoxes -- the "doubleness" of Trek -- that we can understand this popular TV/film series. Here's a guided romp through Trek's alternative universes -- individual episodes and films, the people behind Trek, and the unexpected implications of Trek's "double vision."
Time to remodulate the Heisenberg Compensator!
Trek is as unpredictable as anything Dr. Heisenberg ever tried to measure:
The classic Trek conflict pits "logic" versus "emotion": but on which side of the debate does Trek finally come down?
Gene Roddenberry's vision of the future promotes tolerance for all species, right? Try telling that to the Borg.
The Prime Directive is about protecting cultural freedom -- but by restricting the culture of those at whom it is directed!
Which is finally "The Cage" for Trek: fantasy, or reality?
Trek is always asking "What does it mean to be human?" Does Trek have any answers to its own questions?
This book draws back the curtain to show what goes on behind Star Trek's boldly-going. A fascinating read for any discerning fan.
- Phil Farrand, author of The Nitpicker's Guides to Star Trek and The X-Files
Trekkers, SF fans, and students of pop culture will be intrigued by this exploration of the mythic, philosophic and generic dimensions of Trek.
- William D. Romanowski, author of Pop Culture Wars: Religion and the Role of Entertainment in American Life
Mike Hertenstein has tackled a closely-meshed topic and teased it out.
- Tom Howard, author of C.S. Lewis: Man of Letter
Notes: None.
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Traveling at Warp 7: A Search for Star Trek
Author(s): Jim Duriga
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1998
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 1889991023
--Summary--
from publisher's website
Traveling at Warp 7: A Search for Star Trek by Jim Duriga traces one fan's fascination with the world of Trek; it includes information about the shows, failed efforts, the movies, and a 1983 interview with actor James Doohan (Scotty).
Notes: Third Edition
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Race in Space: The Representation of Ethnicity in Star Trek and Star Trek: The Next Generation
Author(s): Micheal C. Pounds
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1999
Condition: Very Good
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0810833220
--Summary--
None.
Notes: An academic book that focuses on racial and ethnic situations as they were presented - or reflected - in Star Trek and Star Trek: The Next Generation
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Sexual Generations: Star Trek: The Next Generation and Gender
Author(s): Robin Roberts
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©1999
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0252068106
--Summary--
Boldly going where no one has gone before, Robin Roberts forges intriguing links between feminist politics and theory and the second Star Trek series, Star Trek: The Next Generation.
This lively discussion demonstrates how science fiction's ability to make the familiar strange allows Star Trek to expose and comment on entrenched attitudes toward gender roles and feminist issues. By having aliens or sexually neutral beings enact female dominance or passivity, experience pregnancy, maternity, or abortion, or suffer rape or domestic violence, Star Trek provides viewers with an antidote to cultural biases that may be recognized or subconscious. Through the displacements of science fiction, Star Trek: The Next Generation reveals double standards, destructive behavior, and culturally sanctified excuses for sexual inequality and also suggests resolutions and forms of resistance that may be overlooked because of conditioned bias.
Roberts maintains that the relevance of Star Trek: The Next Generation to feminist issues accounts as no other factor can for the program's huge following of female fans. The incisive and innovative readings in Sexual Generations show how th final frontier can clarify pressing questions of our own space and time.
"Roberts is a superb explicator of Star Trek: The Next Generation, offering stunning analyses of the figures of the female ruler, the perfect female mate, the female alien as a reworking of the story of the tragic mulatto, and the antiromance perspective of the rape episodes." -- Jane Donawerth, author of Frankenstein's Daughters: Women Writing Science Fiction
"On the most ambitious levels Roberts is arguing for a truly 'high art' forged out of gender theory and the highly popular Star Trek episodes. But it is not only high art she is talking about; it is the cultural history of our century. Thus she is able to talk believably about space as a female enterprise a hundred years after Frederick Jackson Turner talked about the frontier in terms of trade and economics." -- Donald Hassler, author of Comic Tones in Science Fiction
Notes: None.
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Narratives from the Final Frontier: A Postcolonial Reading of the Original Star Trek Series
Author(s): Volker Gentejohann
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©2000
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 3631367791
--Summary--
Narratives links the currently most popular Literary/Cultural Theory with one of the most successful television productions of all times. The brief opening chapter gives a very concise introduction to the central concepts of postcolonial theory and the methodological background of this subversive reading of Star Trek. A mythology results, which poses the question: does popular culture rest on the same hegemonic discoursive practices as the elitist canon? The book yields compelling insights about the ideological deep-structure of modern mass media by reading the original Star Trek series against the grain instead of taking (post)modern-style entertainment at face value. The blending of Star Trek's narratives and Western historical, political and social reality results in a unique view of the potential for controversy in the opposition of individual perspectives and the claim of ideological value-systems to universal truth(s).
Notes: None.
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Negative Ecstasy: The Star Trek Seductions and Other Mass Deceptions
Author(s): A.H. Itwaru
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©2000
Condition: Mint
Printing: 3rd
ISBN: 1896887015
--Summary--
The unbearable hedonistic delirium of unsated desire in the mass production of consumption as dissatisfaction... The inverted scream in the unrelenting inauthentication of Being... The eye which sees only as directed and assumes sight... The search for joy in the emptiness of consumer pleasure... The disembodied melody which reaches out into the lonely night of technological seduction... Rage turned into a scientific pattern of repressed anger... Loneliness in the dread of being eternally lost... The search for self which negates the self in which the self nevertheless continues... The jubilant dance of deception.
Compelling, incisive analyses of the production of thought and the incarceration of the Subject in the cultural imperialism of the technocapitalist mass media and consciousness industry.
This book is a must for those who are interested in looking beyond the seductive dazzle of superficiality in mass mediated images of the self.
Notes: None.
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Star Trek: Parallel Narratives
Author(s): Chris Gregory
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©2000
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0312225830
--Summary--
Since 1966 Star Trek has grown into a unique multimedia phenomenon, encompassing an ever-growing number of television series and big-budget films, and its concepts and catch-phrases have passed into general currency. At the same time it has always displayed a social conscience and its stories have frequently held up a mirror to many of the key concerns of modern society. This book traces the evolution of Star Trek from its earliest days, examining the role of its creator Gene Roddenberry and his various successors in the formulation of a unique dramatic universe which, as Chris Gregory argues here, can be said to have developed into a modern mythological system.
Star Trek: Parallel Narratives also examines the underlying psychological, social and political themes in Star Trek and evaluates the way in which highly active fan organizations have made it into a worldwide cult. Much emphasis is placed on the contrast between the sophistication of contemporary Trek and the relative naivety of the original series, and how this reflects on social and ideological changes in both the mass media and the mass audience since the 1960s.
Notes: None.
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Teaching Toward the 24th Century: Star Trek As Social Curriculum
Author(s): Karen Anijar
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©2000
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 081532524X
--Summary--
From the Introduction by Joe Kincheloe:
"The amazing fan reaction/production that Star Trek has elicited in light of the texts of the various incarnations of the TV shows and movies will keep cultural studies scholars, sociologists, media analysts, and educators busy for decades to come. Anijar brings a subtle and critical eye to these often bizarre dynamics, capturing with her unique 'take' profound insights into the cultural pedagogical and social aspects of the spectacle."
From the Afterword by Peter McLaren:
"Anijar's book stands as a landmark investigation of a popular cultural phenomenon that lies at the very center of the structural unconscious of the United States. Her striking and eerie accounts of the world of Trekdom are of profound significance to educators and cultural workers."
"Peter McLaren meets Hunter Thompson -- a brilliant book."
- Thomas Barone, Arizone State University
"Two thumbs up, Karen. You have created the latest masterpiece in cultural studies. I cannot wait for the sequel. Roger Ebert and I are so very proud."
- John A. Weaver, University of Akron
"Karen Anijar brilliantly presents a glimpse into the heart of the ideological in education. Narratives from Trekkers as teachers describe a Trekview/Trekconsciousness that causes one to pause. No longer will we ever be able to look at Captain Kirk and Spock as just space explorers seeking a better universe. Powerful reading for those who dare to venture where no Trekker has dared to go!"
- Toni C. Humber, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
Notes: None.
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The Ethics of Star Trek
Author(s): Judith Barad, Ph.D. with Ed Robertson
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©2000
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0060933267
--Summary--
What are the ethics of Star Trek?
* Why is good stronger than evil?
* If the Prime Directive is so inviolable, why does Kirk always seem to break it?
* Would Nietzsche have made a good starship captain?
* What's more important, the intentions behind our actions or the results we get?
* Does absolute power really corrupt absolutely? What would you do with the power of Q?
* How would Kant's insistence on autonomous altruism have affected the Federation's dealings with the Borg?
* Are ration beings the only life-forms entitled to our respect?
* What would it mean if, deep down, everyone really were a Ferengi?
Using episodes from all four Star Trek series, as well as examples from Plato, Aristotle, Sartre, and other great philosophers of the past, The Ethics of Star Trek explores the answers to these and other important ethical questions.
Notes: None.
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Star Trek: The Human Frontier
Author(s): Michele Barrett and Duncan Barrett
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©2001
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0415929822
--Summary--
"As we stand on the threshold of the age of human cloning, the leading question asked by this engaging book - What is human? - could hardly be more timely. The Barretts offer persuasive answers in their thorough analysis of a media phenomenon that has touched virtually everyone who lives in a technologically advanced society.."
?Andrew Ross, New York University
"A book that is a delight to read. If this is what intergenerational authorship can accomplish, we should all start writing with our kids.."
?Lawrence Grossberg, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Michèle and Duncan Barrett are mother and son - she a distinguished social theorist now working in literary and cultural studies, he a writer still in his teens. Together they take Star Trek - the TV series, films, and related projects - and explore it for what it tells us (and asks) about being human. From the progressive politics that underpinned the original program to the declining faith in rationalism that haunts Deep Space Nine and Voyager, the Star Trek story has grappled with powerful philosophical and social issues.
And throughout its thirty-year history, Star Trek has explored its themes through the metaphors of Western maritime exploration. Yet unlike the voyagers of earlier centuries, its crews have sailed not by sea but by galaxy. But in search of what? As Michèle and Duncan Barrett persuasively demonstrate here, the continuing voyage of Star Trek is a quest not for new lands but for new answers:what does it mean to be human?
Witten for both the true Trekker and the complete novice, Star Trek:The Human Frontier is that rare work of cultural studies, informed by the knowledge of literature, social thought, and popular culture.
Notes: None.
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What is it about Star Trek?
Author(s): Russell Hany
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©2001
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0741406721
--Summary--
This is an information-packed book detailing why people watch Star Trek (and television in general). Many different areas of Star Trek and general television viewing experiences are discussed. These areas include why people watch when they are in different moods or with different people, what they think they gain from watching, and a determination of what they really do gain from their viewing experiences. Personal and scientific data is evaluated and conclusions are drawn as to "what it is about Star Trek" that makes people watch it.
Plus, there are lots of neat scientific terms scattered throughout.
Notes: None.
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Star Trek: Visions of Law and Justice
Author(s): Robert Chairs, JD, PhD and Bradley Chilton, PhD, JD, MLS
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©2003
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 0966808029
--Summary--
...from Adios Press website...
This academic work brings together original and previously published articles from law and criminal justice professors from around the country to analyze the appeal of Star Trek and its impact on our society from philosophical, sociological, pedagogical and legal viewpoints. Star Trek Visions of Law and Justice is a useful and provocative teaching tool, not only for students of law and criminal justice but also for anyone else interested in learning more about our legal system.
Respected law and Criminal Justice professors from around the U.S. gather together in Star Trek Visions of Law and Justice to tackle the 40-year phenomenon of the Star Trek universe. From an academic viewpoint, these authors apply the laws, morals, ethics and views of Star Trek to our concepts of law and justice, the way we should and should not interpret the Constitution, and the equality of various members within our society.
These well-researched articles are not only fascinating from the legal perspective, but are also absorbing for the non-academic reader as they focus on issues that all Americans should be interested in as members of a larger society.
Notes: None.
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Star Trek: Technologies of Disappearance
Author(s): Alan N. Shapiro
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©2004
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 3930064162
--Summary--
Our society dreams of making Star Trek's technologies real. University scientists, computer technologists and science fiction media fans strive to bring to fruition:
· the transporter with quantum entanglement
· interstellar space travel with faster-than-light speed
· time travel with fabricated wormholes
· the Holodeck as the Holy Grail of virtual reality
· universal communication with the Klingon Language
· cyborgs and androids with artificial intelligence
· contact with aliens as the future that must take place
But does Star Trek's worldview coincide with the unbridled high-tech enthusiasm of recent years? Or is there a tension between the show's originality and the Borg-like assimilation of its creativity by the Star Trek industry? Focusing on the stories themselves, the author reveals the basic principles behind Star Trek that contest the ideology of mainstream technoscience, consumer culture, and liberal humanism promoted by Paramount Pictures.
Bringing together the passion of a true fan and an intellectual reflection on science, technology and media culture, Star Trek: Technologies of Disappearance explains the real reasons for Star Trek?s global mass appeal for the very first time. The encounter between thought and a popular subject mutually transforms both, and brings about genuine movement in ideas.
Notes: None.
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Artificial Life Possibilities : A Star Trek Perspective
Author(s): Penny Baille-de Byl
Book Series: Analysis, Criticism & Series Discussions
Book Number:
Copyright: ©2006
Condition: Mint
Printing: 1st
ISBN: 1584504145
--Summary--
The Star Trek series has inspired not only armchair fans, but also the researchers who are trying to better the human race, developing the devices of the future, and struggling to conquer space travel. The Star Trek series was also the inspiration for this book, which examines the artificial intelligences portrayed in the shows.
The question we?ll be asking throughout this book is, ?How do we get from where we are now to the point where we are able to create truly exceptional artificial beings such as Holodeck characters, Lieutenant Commander Data, and the Emergency Medical Hologram?? In order to answer this, we?ll examine where we are right now and extrapolate where we are heading. Throughout the book a passion for Star Trek is integrated with academic research from the AI, A-Life, and Robotics domains, which are presented in an easy to understand way?bypassing the technobabble and mind-blowing mathematics.
The book examines the characteristics and capabilities of Star Trek?s artificial life forms and compares them with current technologies in an attempt to predict if we?ll ever create such advanced beings. It is written to provide both the serious Trekker and the occasional voyeur with a handbook of the current techniques and devices available in the fields of artificial intelligence, robotics, and artificial life. It examines the development of artificial life forms such as Data and the EMH from the bottom up, including their physical creation programming, and metaphysical aspects such as personality and emotions to determine if such beings might some day be a reality.
If you have ever wanted to know what a positronic brain is or how to write a personality subroutine then this is the book for you!
Notes: None
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