The Monstrous Fantastic Conference Paper Abstracts - International ...

Reading Between the Times: A Critical Analysis of the Revision History of The Time MachineAustin SirkinGeorgia State UniversityThe Time Machine was H.G. Wells’ first major work and, as such, had a much different creation story than his later works, on which Wells spentvery little time revising and editing before publishing, and only continued -- or some would argue began -- the editing process after publication.Yet on his first novel, The Time Machine, Wells refined and edited his story over the course of seven years, starting from the serializedpublication of The Chronic Argonauts in 1888 until the 1895 publication in the New Review, from which point on it remained largelyunchanged. Since this first novel went through an uncharacteristic number of published revisions (seven, to be precise, two of which have beenlost) it is important to discern what those changes are, and to use those changes as a lens to examine not just existing scholarship of The TimeMachine, but of Wells as a writer. What changed in the revisions, why Wells changed his editing habits and which changes are truly importantwill all be discussed in this paper.115. (FTV/SF) The Monster in Men: Memory, Culture, and Identity in Doctor Who OakChair: Mike MarraIndependent ScholarA Good Man in a Questionable Empire: Doctor Who and the Anglo-American ExperienceJulian ChamblissRollins CollegeThe resurrection of Doctor Who in 2005 returned the longest running science fiction program in history to international television audience. Alegacy program revamped in form, but not substance, the modern Doctor Who continues a tradition of cultural education that promotes apositive postcolonial standing for the United Kingdom. Critics and fans alike recognize Doctor Who’s essentially British perspective and perhapsmore than any other program created in the last fifty years, Doctor Who provides the framework for audiences outside the country tounderstand British socio-political agency. Airing in the United States since the 1970s, Doctor Who acts as a signifier of British identity to a U.S.audience that challenges assumption about power, identity, and agency. By examining the recent revival of Doctor Who within the context ofthe show’s long history, a socio-historical contextualisation demonstrates how Doctor Who negotiates shifting global realities for domestic andforeign audiences.Are Monsters Real? Men from the Military and Men in Rubber SuitsNicolas PillaiUniversity of WarwickThe Barry Letts-produced era of Doctor Who (1970-74) is commonly regarded as the most politically committed of the show’s history, using theDoctor’s exile on Earth to address contemporary social and environmental concerns. James Chapman has suggested that, in this period, ‘DoctorWho was at its most critical of British society’. In this paper I ask how the series articulated political thought through an archetypal figure of thesci-fi genre: the monster. By looking at moments from The Silurians and The Green Death, I argue that, in this period of the show’s history,monsters invoke the programme’s new commitment to the problems of Earth. In each story, monsters emerge from the soil, warning againsthuman exploitation of the planet’s resources. I suggest three categories to explore: (1) the articulate monster [the Silurians], (2) the mutemenace [giant maggots], and (3) the technological threat [deranged computer B.O.S.S.]. In contrast, I posit the representatives of government –men from the Ministry who evince the programme’s deep suspicion of bureaucracy and militarism. Such figures reveal the monstrous qualitiesin human behaviour and I conclude by reflecting on the traits and representational meanings of monsters in this era of Doctor Who. How doesone spot a monster, and what does it mean when we see one?Time Monsters and Space Museums: Teaching History and Science through the Fantastic in Doctor WhoTom StewardBournemouth UniversityDoctor Who (BBC, 1963- ) was originally conceived in part as a television programme that would teach young people about history and science.It was developed in the context of a broadcasting institution that included education in its remit. The series is regarded to have largely failed inits pedagogic purpose, said to have been identifiable only in exceptional sub-sections of its 58-year run such as the period-set historical storiesmade between 1963 and 1967 or the ‘hard’ mathematics serials made in 1981-82. In these cases, the assumption is that a movement awayfrom fantasy and monsters towards facts and information made the programme educational. Furthermore, the BBC’s educational emphasis hasbeen questioned, with historians noting a decline in the formal teaching aspects of its television output after the 1960s and arguing that earlyBBC television was more popular culture-oriented than previously thought. This paper argues that Doctor Who became more educational andbetter at teaching when delivered through fantasy and science-fiction, and that the figure of the ‘monster’ was a pivotal learning resource. Itlooks across a range of fantasy and genre-based historical serials thought to be corruptions of the historical story, examining how theyincreased the pedagogical content of the series by adding science-fiction tropes and popular cultural references. It surveys several space-setand time-travel narratives, suggesting how the impact of scientific theory increases power when couched in the language of scientificimpossibility rather than a lecture but also how the series kept its exploration of science within an academic context. It draws attention to theuses of monsters as devices for discussing historical and/or scientific issues such as war, totalitarianism, disease and mutation. Doctor Who’scommitment to education through fantasy storytelling and monstrous imagery will be used to further argue for teaching impacts in popularcultural genres.