PIS and postmodernism, social studies & literature

[Burn]

I just wondered, as I am in the process of writing the paper for my degree, if anyone might be interested in reading and commenting on some of it?

Title's "Mutant body identity and minority politics in Marvel Comics’ X-Men". Yes, it deals with superhero comicbooks. You can laugh now. This is exactly the reason why I thought of posting it here at PIS because comics are still widely regarded as not being worthy of serious or even academic attention, with few exceptions like books and articles by McCloud, Klock, Bukatman or Creekmur. Therefore, in my opinion, writing about it constitutes a punk-ish act.

Anyway, here's the current index, still subject to further change:

1. Introduction
2. Defining the mutant body
2.1. A short definition of mutation (any biologists around? could use some input here)
2.2. Parallels to other deviant bodies
2.2.1. More than human: the Cyborg
2.2.2. Less than human: the Freak
2.3. General features the mutant body
2.4. Different kinds of mutation
2.4.1. The Hardbody
2.4.2. The Animal
2.4.3. The Burst-Out
2.4.4. The Swift
2.4.5. The Mindplayer
2.4.6. The Changeling
3. Mutants as a minority
3.1. History of the mutant(s)
3.2. Elements of real-life minorities
3.3. The motif of persecution in X-Men
3.4. Images of inferiority and superiority in X-Men
4. Summary & opinion

If anyones interested at all or has questions, just reply, any help is appreciated. I could also post the chapters as I write them, but (knowing the majority of people around here comes from a linguistic background) if there's no demand, no harm done.

[gautama]

I wouldn't mind reading section 3.2. In fact, speaking of political minorites and mainstream non-thinkers, I was just sitting around brainstorming ways in which one can convince a “swing voter” how shallow they are. The more I think about it, nothing I say will make sense and the result will probably just hurt their feelings. Perhaps I should just decide whether to hold in my shits for the rest of my life or just tighten a C-clamp to my temples for the next 14 years. I guarantee I could contribute to society 6 times more than a swing voter even if I chose gin for the next 3 decades.

email me at [e-mail]

[caithalia]

I would love to read this! And I can probably do some quick "research" into various definitions of mutation...like everything else scientific, everyone has a different definition. Off the top of my head, E.O. Wilson and/or Wendell Berry could provide some interesting insights, depending on which side of the humanistic/scientific viewpoint you come down on. (They're also just fun to read.) Anyway, I love this idea.

Gwynne

[Burn]

God I totally forgot I had posted this here...

I am almost done right now, have to hand the thing in in 2 weeks.
OK, an update, if people are still interested:

In my paper I interpret the mutant body as a fusion of the body of a circus freak and a cyborg and discuss whether it qualifies as post-human. Also, I try to show that the stories and characters of the X-Men comic series are a reflection of deeply rooted cultural and social wishes and fears, by providing a sort of taxonomy of superhero categories in which I approach them from a cultural and literary point of view. Then I'm moving on to show which social implications arise because of this and analyze mutants as a marked minority, point out elements of real minorities as well as images of persecution and inferiority/superiority thoughts. Literature used includes Hayles, Haraway, Garland, Mannix, Lacan, Freud, Deleuze, Bukatman and other theories as well as references to classic literature such as Ovid, Homer and various other old cultural and mythological texts.

I can make a PDF available when I'm done. If anyone's interested in reading a preliminary version, I could still use some input on a coupla things. Just reply to this post with your email address and I'll send you the link...