True Blood and Philosophy: We Wanna Think Bad Things with You - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0470597720 ISBN 13: 9780470597729

Publisher: Wiley, 2010

Synopsis

The first look at the philosophical issues behind Charlaine Harris's New York Times bestsellers The Southern Vampire Mysteries and the True Blood television series

Teeming with complex, mythical characters in the shape of vampires, telepaths, shapeshifters, and the like, True Blood, the popular HBO series adapted from Charlaine Harris's bestselling The Southern Vampire Mysteries, has a rich collection of themes to explore, from sex and romance to bigotry and violence to death and immortality. The goings-on in the mythical town of Bon Temps, Louisiana, where vampires satiate their blood lust and openly commingle with ordinary humans, present no shortages of juicy metaphysical morsels to sink your teeth into.

Now True Blood and Philosophy calls on the minds of some of history's great thinkers to perform some philosophical bloodletting on such topics as Sookie and the metaphysics of mindreading; Maryann and sacrificial religion; werewolves, shapeshifters and personal identity; vampire politics, evil, desire, and much more.

• The first book to explore the philosophical issues and themes behind the True Blood novels and television series
• Adds a new dimension to your understanding of True Blood characters and themes
• The perfect companion to the start of the third season on HBO and the release of the second season on DVD

Smart and entertaining, True Blood and Philosophy provides food—or blood—for thought, and a fun, new way to look at the series.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

BLACKWELL PHILOSOPHY AND POP CULTURE SERIES

This book has not been approved, licensed, or sponsored by any entity or person involved in creating or producing the Southern Vampire Mysteries, True Blood, the novels, or TV show.

Does God hate fangs?

• Is Sam still Sam when he turns into a collie?

• Is coming out of the coffin the same as coming out of the closet?

• Are all vampires created evil?

Vampires, werewolves, shapeshifters, fairies, telepaths—True Blood has it all. In a world where supernatural creatures coexist with human beings, Sookie Stackhouse and Bill Compton wrestle with powerful desires while facing complex issues concerning sex, romance, bigotry, violence, death, and immortality. Now, True Blood and Philosophy calls on the minds of some of history's great thinkers to perform some philosophical bloodletting on this thought-provoking series. From the metaphysics of mind reading to Maryann Forrester's cult of Dionysus, from vampire politics to the nature of personal identity, and from contemporary feminism to the rights of nonhuman species, True Blood and Philosophy mines the thinking of philosophers such as Plato, Aristotle, Thomas Aquinas, John Locke, Immanuel Kant, Friedrich Nietzsche, and John Rawls to enlighten us on the intriguing themes that surround this supernatural world. You'll find no shortage of juicy metaphysical morsels to sink your teeth into!

To learn more about the Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture series, visit www.andphilosophy.com

About the Author:

GEORGE A. DUNN is a lecturer at the University of Indianapolis and Ningbo Institute of Technology, Zhejiang University, China. He contributed to Battlestar Galactica and Philosophy, X-Men and Philosophy, Terminator and Philosophy, Twilight and Philosophy, Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy, Iron Man and Philosophy, and Mad Men and Philosophy.

REBECCA HOUSEL, a former professor of writing and popular culture, is now an author and editor serving on editorial advisory boards for the Journal of Popular Culture and the Journal of American Culture. She coedited Twilight and Philosophy and X-Men and Philosophy.

WILLIAM IRWIN is a professor of philosophy at King's College in Pennsylvania. He originated the philosophy and popular culture genre of books as coeditor of the bestselling The Simpsons and Philosophy and has overseen recent titles, including Batman and Philosophy, House and Philosophy, and Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy.

About this edition

• Publisher: Wiley
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0470597720
• ISBN 13: 9780470597729
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 256
• Editor: William Irwin, George A. Dunn, Rebecca Housel