Jim Henson and Philosophy
Imagination and the Magic of Mayhem
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- USD 18.99
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- USD 18.99
Descripción editorial
Jim Henson’s creations have inspired generations with characters that are among the world’s most recognizable cultural icons. From Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy and their Muppet friends to the legendary Sesame Street and Children’s Television Workshop, Henson revolutionized children’s educational entertainment. Combining live action and puppeteering into fantastical narratives like The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth, as well as the whimsical Fraggle Rock and The Storyteller, Henson transformed imagination into reality, weaving together powerful philosophical messages on identity, community, diversity, love, death, and friendship. Henson never shied away from exploring deep questions, nor did he underestimate the ability of children (or adults) to grapple with profound philosophical questions. Jim Henson and Philosophy explores the entertaining and educational world of the genius’s creations, revealing what it is about Henson’s world that has touched us so deeply and improved our lives in such meaningful ways.
Contributions by: Lauren Ashwell, Kimberly Baltzer-Jaray, David R. Burns, Samantha Brennan, Amanda Cawston, Brooke Covington, Christopher M. Culp, Ryan Cox, Natalie M. Fletcher, Victoria Hubbell, Dena Hurst, Christopher Ketcham, S. Evan Kreider, Shaun Leonard, Jennifer Marra, Michael J. Muniz, Laurel Ralston, Rhona Trauvitch, and Sheryl Tuttle Ross
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This collection of philosophical essays about Jim Henson is as entertaining and enlightening as the best episodes of the Muppet Show. Academics Dale and Foy feel that "if the belief that ideas can change the world is what makes a person a philosopher, then Jim Henson has to be counted as one of the great philosophers of our time." By exploring the entertaining, educational, and "profound" world of Henson's creations in television and film, the essays, by a range of noted scholars, also examine the many ways in which puppets "are distinctively philosophical beings." Essays include Henson's social and philosophical lessons ("Who Are the People in Your Neighborhood?: The Importance of Community on Sesame Street" by Foy), knowledge and logic ("Finding Fallacies Funny: How Sesame Street's Playing with Mistakes in Reasoning Makes Learning Fun" by Sheryl Tuttle Ross), ethical themes (Natalie M. Fletcher's "My (Un)Fair Lady: Power, Fairness and Moral Imagination in Labyrinth"), and his approach to the meaning of existence ("The Passion, Will, and Freedom of Kermit, Miss Piggy, and Animal" by Shaun Leonard). One of the best essays and one that embodies the book's combination of insight, intelligence, and fun concerns Samantha Brennan's "Miss Piggy's Feminism: Redefining Human Relationships through Martial Arts," which shows how Miss Piggy was a third-wave feminist in second-wave times, "a body-confident role model for women and swine of all shapes and sizes."
