Seers, Witches and Psychics on Screen

Karin Beeler is the English department chair at the University of Northern British Columbia in Canada. She has published in various areas of film and television studies, including screen culture for children.

“accessible and readable for researchers and undergraduates alike”—Critical Studies in Television.

• Table of ContentsAcknowledgments      Introduction      Part 1. Postfeminist Cassandras: Seers, “Witches” and Women Who Know the FutureONE. Cheerleader/Seer: The Hybrid Visions of Cordelia Chase in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel      TWO. The Transformation of River Tam: Psychic Warrior, Female Prodigy and Anti-Hero in Firefly and Serenity      THREE. Phoebe and the Power of Sight: The Witch as Seer in Charmed      FOUR. Visions of the “Mad” Outsider in Hex: Cassandra, Witches and Lesbian Appetite      FIVE. Postfeminist Savior: Seeing the Future and Reliving the Day in Tru Calling      Part 2. Joan of Arc in Contemporary Television: Images of a Reluctant SeerSIX. Teen Visions of God: Postfeminist Heroism and Genre Crossing in Joan of Arcadia      SEVEN. Joan of Arc in Niagara Falls: Signs of a Seer and Cross-Cultural Contact in Wonderfalls      Part 3. Investigating the Dead: Mediums and Psychic DetectivesEIGHT. Psychic Women, “Dead” Men and the Search for Truth: Cross-Gender Communication in Ghost, The Gift and Premonition      NINE. Rescue Mediums and Psychic Investigators: Television for Women and Paranormal Programming      TEN. Resisting the Myth of the Bad Mother: Psychic Visions and Maternal Anxiety in NBC’s Medium      ELEVEN. Looking for Closure: Investigating Mothers, Daughters and Disease in Ghost Whisperer      TWELVE. A Medium’s Visions of a Third Space: Finding Family in the U.K. Series Afterlife      Conclusion      Chapter Notes      Bibliography      Index