Age of the Geek

This collection examines the nerd and/or geek stereotype in popular culture today. Utilizing the mediafilm, TV, YouTube, Twitter, fictionthat often defines daily lives, the contributors interrogate what it means to be labeled a nerd or geek. While the nerd/geek that is so easily recognized now is assuredly a twenty-first century construct, an examination of the terms' history brings a greater understanding of their evolution. From sports to slasher films, Age of the Geek establishes a dialogue with texts as varied as the depictions of nerd or geek stereotypes.

One of the first multidisciplinary edited volumes to work to synthesize a theory of geek and nerd identification in contemporary American culture Interrogates the conflicting positions of seeming acceptance of geek and nerd brands and self-identification while marginalization of those within these groups remain marginalized Combines theoretically and empirically-based work in a clearly-connected fashion Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras

Autorentext

Kathryn E. Lane is Associate Professor and Chair in the Department of English at Northwestern Oklahoma State University, USA. Lane founded the Geek and Popular Culture area at the Southwest Popular/American Culture Association Conference in 2012. She has published an article on BBC's series Sherlock, presented on The Big Bang Theory, Scorpion, and Blindspot.

Inhalt

Chapter 1: How Was the Nerd or Geek Born?.- Chapter 2: A Nerd, A Geek, and a Hipster Walk Into a Bar.- Chapter 3: Mediagasms, Ironic Nerds, and Mainstream Geeks: A Multi-Methodological Ideographic Cluster Analysis of and on Twitter.- Chapter 4: Changing Faces: Exploring Depictions of Geeks in Various Texts.- Chapter 5: Geek Metafiction: Nerds, Footnotes, and Intertextuality.- Chapter 6: Ich Bin Ein Nerd!: Geek Identity in Insider and Outsider Media.- Chapter 7: Geek Is the New Jock: The Relationship Between Geek Culture and Sports.- Chapter 8: Geeking Out and Hulking Out: Towards an Understanding of Marvel Fan Communities.- Chapter 9: How Is It Okay to be a Black Nerd?.- Chapter 10: That Geek Look: Beauty and the Female Geek Body.- Chapter 11: Modern Nerd: Alex Dunphy and Growing Up Geeky in Modern Family.- Chapter 12: From Zero to Hero and Back Again: Nerd Nobodies, Magic Makeovers, and the Power of the American Dream in Four Teen Films.- Chapter 13: The Geek as Rake: Roving Masculinity in Contemporary Film.- Chapter 14: The Horror of the Geek: The Nerd Archetype in Slasher Film.- Chapter 15: Survival of the Smartest?.