Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Buffy and the Heroine's Journey by Valerie Estelle Frankel

Buffy and the Heroine's Journey by Valerie Estelle Frankel
2012, McFarland and Co.

Synopsis: The worlds of Percy Jackson, Harry Potter, and other modern epics feature the Chosen One--an adolescent boy who defeats the Dark Lord and battles the sorrows of the world. Television's Buffy the Vampire Slayer represents a different kind of epic--the heroine's journey, not the hero's. This provocative study explores how Buffy blends 1990s girl power and the path of the warrior woman with the oldest of mythic traditions. It chronicles her descent into death and subsequent return like the great goddesses of antiquity. As she sacrifices her life for the helpless, Buffy experiences the classic heroine's quest, ascending to protector and queen in this timeless metaphor for growing into adulthood.

Why read: Received from LibraryThing Early Reviewers

What impressed me: Nothing.

What disappointed me: I don't know what I expected going into this book, but whatever it was, I didn't get it. Calling this book dry is generous. I love Buffy. All aspects of Buffy. But somewhere in comparing Buffy's life to that of the pattern of the heroine's journey in myth, all that was Buffy was lost and all that remained was academic theory. Gone was the wit that drove the series and with it my ability to read the book without falling asleep. While I believe the author had good intentions and a wealth of knowledge, she failed to grasp the true appeal of Buffy - our ability to relate to her.

Recommended: Absolutely not.

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