The '80s Resurrected: Essays on the Decade in Popular Culture Then and Now - Softcover

Randy Laist (editor)

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1476686513 ISBN 13: 9781476686516

Publisher: McFarland, 2022

Synopsis

The 1980s is remembered as a time of big hair, synthetic music, and microwave cookery. It is also remembered as the heyday of conservative politics, socioeconomic inequality, and moral panics. It is dichotomously remembered as either a nostalgic age of innocence or a regressive moral wasteland, depending on who you ask, and when. But, most of all, it is remembered. In retro fashion trends, in '80s-based film and television narratives, and through countless rebooted movies, video games, superheroes, and even political slogans imploring us to Make America Great Again (Again).

More than merely a historical period, "the '80s" has grown into a contested myth, ever-evolving through the critical and expressive lens of popular culture. This book explores the many shapes the '80s mythos has taken across a diverse array of media. Essays examine television series such as Stranger Things, Cobra Kai, and POSE, films such as Dallas Buyers Club, Summer of '84, and Chocolate Babies, as well as video games, pop music, and toys. Collectively, these essays explore how representations of the 1980s influence the way we think about our past, our present, and our future.

About this title

About the Author

Randy Laist is a professor of English at Goodwin University and the University of Bridgeport. He has authored and edited several books on literature, popular culture, and pedagogy. He lives in New Haven, Connecticut.

Edition details

• Publisher: McFarland
• Publication date: 2022
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1476686513
• ISBN 13: 9781476686516
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 277