Times of Horror, Magic, and the Reproductive Body in Popular Culture

This collection explores the intersection of magic, reproduction, and horror in contemporary culture, examining how these elements reflect and critique societal anxieties during a time of unprecedented challenges to reproductive rights, scientific advances in reproduction, and rising magical thinking in our post-pandemic world.
Addressing horror in popular culture, this volume investigates how bodies become sites of cultural contradiction, where ancient myths meet modern technologies, and where social power structures manifest through narratives of purity, contamination, and transformation. This book brings together diverse perspectives from biology, film studies, literary history, ethnology, and queer studies. Key features include analysis of horror across global cultures, from Anglo-American film to Indian cinema and East Asian popular culture; exploration of reproductive themes in young adult literature and superhero narratives; and examination of how magical thinking intersects with modern reproductive technologies. This volume's creative structure, organised around temporal categories, allows readers to trace the importance of these themes from ancient stories through to contemporary issues and future speculations, while highlighting the persistent role of magic in shaping cultural narratives about reproduction.
This collection will appeal to scholars and graduate students interested in gender studies, film studies, cultural studies, and reproductive rights, as well as researchers working at the intersection of horror and society. It offers valuable insights for academics studying contemporary media, feminist theory, and the sociology of reproduction, while remaining accessible to informed readers seeking to understand how horror reflects and shapes cultural attitudes toward reproduction. The interdisciplinary approach makes it particularly valuable for those seeking to understand the complex relationships between magical thinking, reproductive rights, and popular culture in our rapidly changing world.