The Legacy of 19th Century Popular Freak Show Discourse in the 21st Century X-Men Films
Main Article Content
Keywords
freak, X-Men, disability
Abstract
This essay seeks to tease out the narrative similarities found in nineteenth-century freak show literature and in the X-Men films of the twenty-first century. Both of these forms of popular entertainment emphasize the precarious position of people with extraordinary bodies in their contemporary societies.
References
Albrecht, G. L., Seelman, K. D., & Bury, M. (2001). Introduction: The formation of Disability Studies. In Handbook of Disability Studies (pp. 1–8). Thousand Oaks ; London: Sage.
Bogdan, R. (1988). Freak show: Presenting human oddities for amusement and profit. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Bogdan, R. (1996). The social construction of freaks. In R. Garland Thomson (Ed.), Freakery: Cultural spectacles of the extraordinary body (pp. 23–37). New York: New York University Press.
Durbach, N. (2010). Spectacle of deformity: Freak shows and modern British culture. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Freaks of Nature: IV. The man monkey and others. (1894, December 1). Illustrated Chips, p. 6.
Freaks of Nature: VII. Peter the wild boy. (1894, December 29). Illustrated Chips, p. 3.
Garland Thomson, R. (Ed.). (1996). Freakery: Cultural spectacles of the extraordinary body. New York: New York University Press.
Goddard, A. (1898, February). “Even as you and I.” At home with the Barnum freaks. English Illustrated Magazine, 173, 493–496.
Man about town. (1899, January 14). The County Gentleman, Sporting Gazette and Agricultural Journal, p. 41.
McAllister, M., Gordon, I., & Jancovich, M. (2006). Block buster art house: Meets superhero comic, or meets graphic novel?: The contradictory relationship between film and comic art. Journal of Popular Film and Television, 34(3), 108–115.
Mitchell, D. T., & Snyder, S. L. (2001). Representation and its discontents: The uneasy home of disability in literature and film. In G. L. Albrecht, K. D. Seelman, & M. Bury (Eds.), Handbook of Disability Studies (pp. 195–218). Thousand Oaks ; London: Sage.
Pettit, F. (2012). The afterlife of freak shows. In J. Kember, J. Plunkett, & J. A. Sullivan (Eds.), Popular exhibitions, science and showmanship, 1840-1910 (pp. 61–78). London: Pickering & Chatto.
Pettit, F. Y. (2012). Freaks in late nineteenth-century British media and medicine. [Unpublished thesis]. University of Exeter, Exeter.
Shuler Donner, L., Winter, R., Arad, A. (Producers), & Ratner, B. (Director) (2006). X-Men: The Last Stand. [Motion Picture]. United States: Twentieth Century Fox.
Shuler Donner, L., Winter, R., Jackman, H., Palermo, J. (Producers), & Hood, G. (Director).
(2009). X-Men Origins: Wolverine. [Motion Picture]. United States: Twentieth Century Fox.
Shuler Donner, L., Winter, R., (Producers), & Singer, B. (Director). (2000). X-Men. [Motion Picture]. United States: Twentieth Century Fox.
Shuler Donner, L., Winter, R., (Producers), & Singer, B. (Director). (2003). X2. [Motion Picture]. United States: Twentieth Century Fox.
Shuler Donner, L., Singer, B., Kinberg, S., Goodman, G. (Producers), & Vaughn, M. (Director). (2011). X-Men: First Class. [Motion Picture]. United States: Twentieth Century Fox.
Stephens, E. (2005). Twenty-first century freak show: Recent transformations in the exhibition
of non-normative bodies. Disability Studies Quarterly, 25(3), online journal. Retrieved from http://www.dsq-sds.org/article/view/580/757
Taylor, A. (2007). ‘He’s gotta be strong, and he’s gotta be fast, and he’s gotta be larger than life’: Investigating the engendered superhero body. The Journal of Popular Culture, 40(2), 344–360.
Toulmin, V. (2006). “Curios things in curios places”: Temporary exhibition venues in the
Victorian and Edwardian entertainment environment. Early Popular Visual Culture, 4(2), 113–37. doi:10.1080/17460650600793185
Tromp, M., & Valerius, K. (2008). Introduction: Toward situating the Victorian freak. In M. Tromp (Ed.), Victorian freaks: The social context of freakery in Britain (pp. 1–18). Columbus: Ohio State Univ. Press.
Turner, D. M. (2006). Introduction: Approaching anomalous bodies. In D. M. Turner & K. Stagg (Eds.), Social histories of disability and deformity: Bodies, images and experiences (pp. 1–16). London: Routledge.
Weltzien, F. (2005). Masque-ulinities: Changing dress as a display of masculinity in the superhero genre. Fashion Theory, 9(2), 229–250.
Bogdan, R. (1988). Freak show: Presenting human oddities for amusement and profit. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Bogdan, R. (1996). The social construction of freaks. In R. Garland Thomson (Ed.), Freakery: Cultural spectacles of the extraordinary body (pp. 23–37). New York: New York University Press.
Durbach, N. (2010). Spectacle of deformity: Freak shows and modern British culture. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Freaks of Nature: IV. The man monkey and others. (1894, December 1). Illustrated Chips, p. 6.
Freaks of Nature: VII. Peter the wild boy. (1894, December 29). Illustrated Chips, p. 3.
Garland Thomson, R. (Ed.). (1996). Freakery: Cultural spectacles of the extraordinary body. New York: New York University Press.
Goddard, A. (1898, February). “Even as you and I.” At home with the Barnum freaks. English Illustrated Magazine, 173, 493–496.
Man about town. (1899, January 14). The County Gentleman, Sporting Gazette and Agricultural Journal, p. 41.
McAllister, M., Gordon, I., & Jancovich, M. (2006). Block buster art house: Meets superhero comic, or meets graphic novel?: The contradictory relationship between film and comic art. Journal of Popular Film and Television, 34(3), 108–115.
Mitchell, D. T., & Snyder, S. L. (2001). Representation and its discontents: The uneasy home of disability in literature and film. In G. L. Albrecht, K. D. Seelman, & M. Bury (Eds.), Handbook of Disability Studies (pp. 195–218). Thousand Oaks ; London: Sage.
Pettit, F. (2012). The afterlife of freak shows. In J. Kember, J. Plunkett, & J. A. Sullivan (Eds.), Popular exhibitions, science and showmanship, 1840-1910 (pp. 61–78). London: Pickering & Chatto.
Pettit, F. Y. (2012). Freaks in late nineteenth-century British media and medicine. [Unpublished thesis]. University of Exeter, Exeter.
Shuler Donner, L., Winter, R., Arad, A. (Producers), & Ratner, B. (Director) (2006). X-Men: The Last Stand. [Motion Picture]. United States: Twentieth Century Fox.
Shuler Donner, L., Winter, R., Jackman, H., Palermo, J. (Producers), & Hood, G. (Director).
(2009). X-Men Origins: Wolverine. [Motion Picture]. United States: Twentieth Century Fox.
Shuler Donner, L., Winter, R., (Producers), & Singer, B. (Director). (2000). X-Men. [Motion Picture]. United States: Twentieth Century Fox.
Shuler Donner, L., Winter, R., (Producers), & Singer, B. (Director). (2003). X2. [Motion Picture]. United States: Twentieth Century Fox.
Shuler Donner, L., Singer, B., Kinberg, S., Goodman, G. (Producers), & Vaughn, M. (Director). (2011). X-Men: First Class. [Motion Picture]. United States: Twentieth Century Fox.
Stephens, E. (2005). Twenty-first century freak show: Recent transformations in the exhibition
of non-normative bodies. Disability Studies Quarterly, 25(3), online journal. Retrieved from http://www.dsq-sds.org/article/view/580/757
Taylor, A. (2007). ‘He’s gotta be strong, and he’s gotta be fast, and he’s gotta be larger than life’: Investigating the engendered superhero body. The Journal of Popular Culture, 40(2), 344–360.
Toulmin, V. (2006). “Curios things in curios places”: Temporary exhibition venues in the
Victorian and Edwardian entertainment environment. Early Popular Visual Culture, 4(2), 113–37. doi:10.1080/17460650600793185
Tromp, M., & Valerius, K. (2008). Introduction: Toward situating the Victorian freak. In M. Tromp (Ed.), Victorian freaks: The social context of freakery in Britain (pp. 1–18). Columbus: Ohio State Univ. Press.
Turner, D. M. (2006). Introduction: Approaching anomalous bodies. In D. M. Turner & K. Stagg (Eds.), Social histories of disability and deformity: Bodies, images and experiences (pp. 1–16). London: Routledge.
Weltzien, F. (2005). Masque-ulinities: Changing dress as a display of masculinity in the superhero genre. Fashion Theory, 9(2), 229–250.
Article Sidebar
Published
Aug 18, 2014
Article Details
Issue
Section
Forums
RDS Journal is an open-access journal, create a free account to read full articles and to submit a proposal. For visual arts and multimedia, submission will be considered evidence that you are offering RDS the right to display your work without penalty, compensation or royalties.
Author Biography
Fiona Pettit, Exeter University, United Kingdom
Fionna Pettit, PhD was awarded her PhD in English from the University of Exeter. Her research explores the relationship between popular culture and medicine, evident in representations and exhibitions of the body.