A galaxy of things the power of puppets and masks in Star Wars and Beyond / Colette Searls.
| Author/creator | Searls, Colette |
| Format | Electronic |
| Publication Info | London ; New York, NY : Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2023. |
| Description | 1 online resource |
| Supplemental Content | Full text available from eBooks on EBSCOhost |
| Subjects |
| Contents | The things in the galaxy -- Distance, distillation, and duality -- Powerful, puppetry is: How two Yodas make meaning -- I find your lack of face disturbing: the mask performance of Darth Vader (and friends) -- Climbing out of the Sarlaac Pitt: the problematic side of material character powers -- Epilogue -- Star wars live-action guide. |
| Abstract | "A Galaxy of Things explores the ways in which all puppets, masks, makeup-prosthetic figures are "material characters," and uses Star Wars creatures, droids, and helmeted-characters to illustrate what makes the good ones not only compelling, but meaningful. The book begins with author Colette Searls' Star Wars thing aesthetic, described through a release-order overview of what creatures, droids and masked characters have brought to 45+ years of live-action Star Wars. Building on theories from the burgeoning field of puppetry and material performance, it sees these "material characters" as a group and describes three specific powers that they share - distance, distillation, and duality - using the ubiquitously recognizable Star Wars characters to illustrate them. The book describes Distance, Distillation, and Duality as material character powers, using characters like C-3PO and Jabba the Hutt to illustrate how all three work to generate meaning. An in-depth exploration of the original Empire Strikes Back Yoda and "Baby" Yoda (Grogu) reveals how these two puppets use those powers to transform their human companions: Luke Skywalker, and then Din Djarin. Searls' provides an in-depth analysis of Darth Vader's mask trajectory across three trilogies (1977 - 2019), revealing its contribution as a "performing thing." Finally, the book presents problematic uses of material character powers by critiquing droids in service, and the historical use of racial stereotypes in characters like Jar Jar Binks, before offering a hopeful analysis of how early 2020s live-action Star Wars began centering the non-, semi-, and concealed human in redemptive ways. This is an accessible exploration for students and scholars of theatre, film, media studies and popular culture who want to better understand puppets, masks, and makeup-prosthetic characters. Its terms and concepts will be useful to scholarly explorations of non-, semi-, and concealed human portrayals for a range of other fields, including posthumanism, object-oriented ontology, ethnic studies, and material culture"-- Provided by publisher. |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| Access restriction | Available only to authorized users. |
| Technical details | Mode of access: World Wide Web |
| Source of description | Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher. |
| Issued in other form | Print version: Searls, Colette. Galaxy of things London ; New York, NY : Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2023 9780367684433 |
| Genre/form | Electronic books. |
| LCCN | 2022060863 |
| ISBN | 9781003137559 (ebook) |
| ISBN | (hardback) |
| ISBN | (paperback) |
Availability
| Library | Location | Call Number | Status | Item Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electronic Resources | Access Content Online | ✔ Available |