Joss Whedon, Anarchist?: A Reading of the Oeuvre

 Joss Whedon has created numerous TV series, movies, comics and one sing-along-blog, all of which focus on societal problems in the metaphorical guise of monsters-of-the-week and over-arching big-bads. The present work examines structural violence through interdimensional law firm Wolfram & Hart’s legal representation of evil. We explore the limits of consent through the Rossum Corporation’s coercion and manipulation. We rehearse the struggle to find meaningful freedom from the crew of Serenity. This book traces a theme of anarchist theory through the multiple strings of the Whedonverse--all of his works show how ordinary heroes can unite for the love of humanity to save the world from hierarchy and paternalism.

James Rocha is an assistant professor of philosophy at California’s Fresno State. He has published on ethics, political philosophy, philosophy of law, and pop culture, including articles on Firefly, The Wire, Psych, Arrested Development, and Curb Your Enthusiasm. Mona Rocha is an instructor of classics and history at Fresno State. She has published on women’s history, feminist theory, and pop culture, including articles on Buffy, Sherlock Holmes, Dungeons & Dragons, and Veronica Mars. Sherry Ginn is a retired educator currently living in North Carolina. She has authored books examining female characters on science fiction television series as well as the multiple television worlds of Joss Whedon. Edited collections have examined sex in science fiction, time travel, the apocalypse, and the award-winning series Farscape, Doctor Who, and Fringe.