The fourth day of my trip to the PCA/ACA conference proved to be as intellectually stimulating as the last, and it began with a fun discussion of cannibals! Here’s the recap, followed by more additions to the reading list:
–The panel on cannibals in horror literature and film was somewhat disturbing. One of the panelists spent a considerable amount of time talking about rather controversial films about cannibals from the 60s and so on. Disturbing? Yes. Interesting? Very. There was also some discussion of the evolution of vampires in popular cultural consciousness and other fun things like that.
–One of the panels I attended actually involved the discussion of three novels I read for the same science fiction course back when I was an undergrad (Black No More by George Schuyler, Brown Girl in the Ring by Nalo Hopkinson, and Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler). All the papers presented had a lot to say, but I think the most interesting was the one on Butler’s novel, which talked about the different representations of community in Butler’s post-apocalyptic Earth.
–The most shocking experience was having someone discuss a paper on Pokemon in such a manner that I can honestly say I was completely mind-effed. Think of it this way. Take the Master/Slave dialectic and apply it to Pokemon. Exactly. I recall groaning out loud when I saw that that paper was on a panel I wanted to go to, but looking back I can honestly say I was pleasantly surprised!
Reading/Watching List:
–Vampire in Brooklyn
–The Historian
–Der Vampir
–The Giaour
–The Vampyre
–The Mysterious Stranger
–Cannibal Holocaust
–I Am Legend
–Let the Right One In (book)
–Otherness by David Brin
–Black Empire by George Schuyler
–Phillip Wegner on writing the Republic
–“The Other Question” by Homi K. Bhabha
–Buffy (series)
There you have it!
