John Shelton Lawrence
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

John Shelton Lawrence is an emeritus professor of philosophy at
Morningside College Morningside University is a private university affiliated with the United Methodist Church and located in Sioux City, Iowa. Founded in 1894 by the Methodist Episcopal Church, Morningside University has 21 buildings on a campus in Sioux City (ar ...
in
Sioux City Sioux City () is a city in Woodbury and Plymouth counties in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 85,797 in the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest city in Iowa. The bulk of the city is in Woodbury County, ...
,
Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...
, United States. His initial major publication, '' The American Monomyth'', written with Robert Jewett, was published in 1977.


Career

The major contribution of ''The American Monomyth'' is a re-thinking of
Joseph Campbell Joseph John Campbell (March 26, 1904 – October 30, 1987) was an American writer. He was a professor of literature at Sarah Lawrence College who worked in comparative mythology and comparative religion. His work covers many aspects of the ...
's famous classical
monomyth In narratology and comparative mythology, the hero's journey, or the monomyth, is the common template of stories that involve a hero who goes on an adventure, is victorious in a decisive crisis, and comes home changed or transformed. Earlie ...
from his 1949 book ''The Hero With a Thousand Faces''. Campbell's monomyth described a universal narrative of the myth of the hero's journey which he claimed had disappeared in contemporary culture. Lawrence and Jewett described an American evolution of this mythological structure that reflected a deep antipathy to democratic institutions through the violent actions of a hero who remains separate from the community. This pattern varies significantly from Campbell's, that emphasizes the hero's return to the community with some kind of significant aid ("the boon") and a willingness to accept public leadership as a member of that community. Responding to the ''
Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...
'' fan movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s, they predicted the rise of entertainment-based systems of religious belief – a reality that became even more evident with the ''
Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...
'' phenomenon. Lawrence and Jewett have since further expanded these initial ideas in two more books: ''
The Myth of the American Superhero ''The Myth of the American Superhero'' is a scholarly non-fiction book by Robert Jewett and John Shelton Lawrence. It describes the idealized, fantasy violence so distinctive of American pop culture. The authors propose that the American heroic i ...
'' (2002), which extends the analysis of the American Monomyth of American mass culture into areas such as videogames, and ''Captain America and the Crusade Against Evil: The Dilemma of Zealous Nationalism'' (2003), (with Jewett listed as first author) which traces the history of holy wars and uses the American Monomyth concept to understand the American reaction after the events of September 11, 2001. The three books work together to suggest a mythological analysis of American culture in ways that account for religion, political history, mass (or popular) culture and are well regarded both in the United States and in Europe where they are read as a means of understanding American foreign policy. In collaborating with Matthew Wilhelm Kapell, Lawrence has explored the idea of the "mythic franchise," the core mythic story that is licensed for a myriad of commercial entertainment venues. In Matthew Kapell and William G. Doty's '' Jacking In to the Matrix Franchise: Cultural Reception and Interpretation'' (2005), he explores the kind of fascism that is symbolically conveyed by heroic figures such as
Luke Skywalker Luke Skywalker is a fictional character and the protagonist of the original film trilogy of the ''Star Wars'' franchise created by George Lucas. Portrayed by Mark Hamill, Luke first appeared in ''Star Wars'' (1977), and he returned in ''The ...
of ''
Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...
'' (1977) and Neo in ''
The Matrix ''The Matrix'' is a 1999 science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis. It is the first installment in ''The Matrix'' film series, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, and Joe Pantolia ...
'' series. Matthew Kapell and Lawrence's co-edited book, '' Finding the Force of the Star Wars Franchise: Fans, Merchandise, and Critics'' (2006), examines the myths, the stereotypes, sexualities, the toys, and the critical response to the two ''Star Wars'' trilogies.
George Lucas George Walton Lucas Jr. (born May 14, 1944) is an American filmmaker. Lucas is best known for creating the ''Star Wars'' and ''Indiana Jones'' franchises and founding Lucasfilm, LucasArts, Industrial Light & Magic and THX. He served as chairm ...
credited that ''Star Wars'' was influenced by John Shelton Lawrence's saga. Stephen and Robin Larsen, Joseph Campbell: A Fire in the Mind. 2002, p. 541. Lawrence has provided essays and filmographies for the Film and History League's publications ''Hollywood's White House: The American Presidency in Film and History'' (2003); there he suggests that Hollywood has begun to represent the president as a physical superhero in such films as ''
Independence Day An independence day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or more rarely after the end of a military occupation. Man ...
'' (1996) and ''
Air Force One Air Force One is the official air traffic control designated call sign for a United States Air Force aircraft carrying the president of the United States. In common parlance, the term is used to denote U.S. Air Force aircraft modified and used ...
'' (1997); in ''Hollywood's West: The American Frontier in Film Television and History'' (2005), he analyzes
The Lone Ranger The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked former Texas Ranger who fought outlaws in the American Old West with his Native American friend Tonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture. He first appeared in 1933 in ...
as a juvenile franchise that has affected adult culture; in ''Landscape of Hollywood Westerns: Ecocriticism in an American Film Genre'' (2006), he has traced the little recognized subgenre of the Ecowestern. In collaboration with Morningside College professor Marty Knepper, Lawrence published The Book of Iowa Films in June 2014. The book is the only comprehensive history and discussion of over 400 Iowa movies from 1918 through 2013, including both Hollywood films and independent films. He is also known for work on scholarly-related issues in copyright through his edited volume (w. Bernard Timberg) ''Fair Use and Free Inquiry'' (1980, 1989) and the ethics of computer media for academic use and has written ''The Electronic Scholar: A Guide to Academic Microcomputing'', published in 1984, which suggests many of the ethical issues that would arise with the advent of the Internet.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lawrence, John Shelton American non-fiction writers Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Morningside University people