Print List Price:	$38.95
Kindle Price:	$35.95 Save $3.00 (8%)
Sold by:	Amazon.com Services LLC

Read with our free app

You've subscribed to ! We will preorder your items within 24 hours of when they become available. When new books are released, we'll charge your default payment method for the lowest price available during the pre-order period.

Update your device or payment method, cancel individual pre-orders or your subscription at
Your Memberships & Subscriptions

There was an error. We were unable to process your subscription due to an error. Please refresh and try again.

Follow the author

Noah Berlatsky

Follow

Wonder Woman: New edition with full color illustrations (Comics Culture) Kindle Edition

by Noah Berlatsky (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

23

Part of: Comics Culture (6 books)

See all formats and editions

William Marston was an unusual man—a psychologist, a soft-porn pulp novelist, more than a bit of a carny, and the (self-declared) inventor of the lie detector. He was also the creator of Wonder Woman, the comic that he used to express two of his greatest passions: feminism and women in bondage.

Comics expert Noah Berlatsky takes us on a wild ride through the Wonder Woman comics of the 1940s, vividly illustrating how Marston’s many quirks and contradictions, along with the odd disproportionate composition created by illustrator Harry Peter, produced a comic that was radically ahead of its time in terms of its bold presentation of female power and sexuality. Himself a committed polyamorist, Marston created a universe that was friendly to queer sexualities and lifestyles, from kink to lesbianism to cross-dressing. Written with a deep affection for the fantastically pulpy elements of the early Wonder Woman comics, from invisible jets to giant multi-lunged space kangaroos, the book also reveals how the comic addressed serious, even taboo issues like rape and incest.

Wonder Woman: Bondage and Feminism in the Marston/Peter Comics 1941-1948 reveals how illustrator and writer came together to create a unique, visionary work of art, filled with bizarre ambition, revolutionary fervor, and love, far different from the action hero symbol of the feminist movement many of us recall from television.

Part of series

Comics Culture
Print length

265 pages
Language

English
Sticky notes

On Kindle Scribe
Publisher

Rutgers University Press
Publication date

May 31, 2017
Reading age

16 years and up
File size

15314 KB
Page Flip

Enabled
Word Wise

Enabled
Enhanced typesetting

Enabled
See all details

Due to its large file size, this book may take longer to download

Report an issue with this product or seller

Next 4 for you in this series See full series

Total Price: $139.85

By clicking on the above button, you agree to Amazon's Kindle Store Terms of Use

Noah Berlatsky
1
Kindle Edition
1 offer from $9.99
Noah Berlatsky
19
Kindle Edition
1 offer from $3.99
Noah Berlatsky
12
Kindle Edition
1 offer from $3.99
Noah Berlatsky
31
Kindle Edition
1 offer from $4.99
Noah Berlatsky
25
Kindle Edition
1 offer from $4.99
Noah Berlatsky
Kindle Edition
1 offer from $3.99

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Zounds! Who knew the wonders of Wonder Woman's sadomasochistic complexities? If you only know the TV show, get ready for the ropes and lassoes and chains of the 40's comics as examined by Noah Berlatsky. Be sure to buy the e-book to see the original images in glorious color!"--Linda Williams "UC Berkeley "

"Zounds! Who knew the wonders of wonder woman's sadomasochistic complexities. If you only know the tv show, get ready for the ropes and lassoes and chains of the 40's comics as examined by Noah Berlatsky. If only the images were in color to match the liveliness of the topic."--Linda Williams"UC Berkeley" (09/16/2014)

""Wonder Woman" [is] engaging and entertaining."--Sean Kleefeld "FreakSugar "

"In this smart and engaging book, Noah Berlatsky reveals how psychology, polyamory, bondage, feminism, and queer identities inspired comic books' most enduring superheroine. A fascinating read for anyone interested in comics, pop culture, or gender politics!"--Julia Serano "Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity "

"Filled with engaging close readings of various Wonder Woman texts, "Wonder Woman" fills an important gap in superhero comics studies."--Angela Ndalianis"editor of The Contemporary Comic Book Superhero" (03/11/2014)

"Berlatsky does a dazzling and remarkably accessible reading of the 1940s Wonder Woman comics against some of the heavyweights of modern feminist theory--Judith Butler, Luce Irigaray, Shulamith Firestone, Julia Kristeva, Susan Brownmiller."--Joan Hilty "Wellesley Centers for Women, Women's Review of Books "

"Berlatsky can always be counted on to show us new facets of what he examines, in fact, to show that the facets are part of a whole shape heretofore unperceived."--Carla Speed McNeil "writer/artist of Finder "

"Engaging and entertaining."--Sean Kleefeld "FreakSugar "

About the Author

NOAH BERLATSKY is the editor of the comics and culture blog The Hooded Utilitarian. He has written on gender, comics, and culture for many publications, including Slate, Public Books, The Chicago Reader, Reason, The Comics Journal, The Baffler, and The Atlantic.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0721LWVVM
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Rutgers University Press; New edition (May 31, 2017)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 31, 2017
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 15314 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 265 pages
Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 0813564190

Best Sellers Rank: #2,421,730 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #89 in Women's Literature Criticism (Kindle Store)
- #292 in Comics & Graphic Novels Literary Criticism
- #299 in Women's Literature Criticism (Books)

Customer Reviews:
23

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Videos

Help others learn more about this product by uploading a video!

Upload your video

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Noah Berlatsky

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Noah Berlatsky writes for the Guardian, Playboy, Quartz, the New Republic, and other venues. He is creating ebooks about vampires, superheroes, and maybe someday about vampire superheroes, who knows? You can support his patreon here:

https://www.patreon.com/noahberlatsky

Customer reviews

3.8 out of 5

23 global ratings

How customer reviews and ratings work

Sort reviews by

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

David Fisher

Queer, feminist utopia in Wonder Woman.

Reviewed in the United States on February 6, 2015

Verified Purchase

A wonderful thought provoking book about the queer, feminist, bondage that is the center of a utopian view espoused by William Marston in the early Wonder Woman comics. Backed up with close reading of the comics and discussion of Marston's other writings and connected to modern theoretical underpinnings in a careful and thoughtful way. Should make any fan of comics or feminism or queer theory/activism eager to look back at these old comics. And makes these old super hero comics seem far more thoughtful, off beat and literary than most recent "art" comics.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

RDD

Thought-Provoking, but Some Conclusions Unsupported

Reviewed in the United States on June 11, 2017

Verified Purchase

In "Wonder Woman: Bondage and Feminism in the Marston/Peter Comics, 1941-1948", Noah Berlatsky argues, “'Wonder Woman', the original comic, was much more interesting, beautiful, and worthwhile than Wonder Woman the popular icon” (pg. 187). He draws upon queer theory, performance theory, and gender theory in his analysis with comparisons to other examples of media targeted to women, such as "Twilight" and gothic literature. Bertlasky focuses specifically on the comics written by Wonder Woman creator William Moulton Marston and illustrator Harry G. Peter. While many modern interpretations of the original comics attempt to downplay or explain away the themes of bondage and lesbianism, Berlatsky argues, “To ignore the bondage in Marston and Peter then, is to miss the comic’s appeal not only to men but to women – and is also to ignore an important part of the feminist message” (pg. 23). The stories offer a parallel to women’s own sense of metaphorical bondage in a patriarchal society while offering a message of hope through Wonder Woman’s escapes. Discussing themes of lesbianism in Marston’s work, Berlatsky argues, “I do not see how it is possible to see the lesbian romance and lesbian play in 'Wonder Woman' as anything but intentional” (pg. 153). Further, Berlatsky continues, “Marston…included lesbianism in both his academic work and in his fiction. He saw lesbianism as normal, healthy, and even ideal” (pg. 149). He draws comparisons to Marston’s living arrangement with Elizabeth Holloway and Olive Byrne, arguing based on the appearance of these themes in Marston’s work that Holloway and Byrne were lovers. Jill Lepore, in her book "The Secret History of Wonder Woman", examined the same living situation without coming to that conclusion based on the extant evidence. Bertlasky, while conceding “to some degree those questions are unanswerable,” insists that his assumption is correct (pg. 151). While it would be interesting if it were, he argues without evidence beyond his literary interpretation. I fundamentally disagree with Berlatsky’s conclusion that the iterations of Wonder Woman following Marston and Peter’s run is superfluous. While some of the storylines and interpretations were undoubtedly weak or flawed, each successive generation of readers and writers reworked the character to meet the demands of their time, much like the Greek myths on which Marston and Peter drew for the character. His goal that his book will encourage others to read Marston and Peter’s comics to discover a “work created in the spirit of feminism, of peace, of queerness, and of love” is noble, some of his conclusions could use more evidence (pg. 215).

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

GX

A great next step in the discourse surrounded Wonder Woman.

Reviewed in the United States on January 8, 2015

What's particularly rewarding about Noah Berlatsky's book is that Wonder Woman is not narrowed to her superficial mainstream image. Our basic understanding of the icon is expanded to embrace her idiosyncratic, complex, and often surprising roots and what they mean for the character during her debut and today. It's a great reminder that superheroes aren't just the basic, oft-repeated stories of origins, darkness, and quips, but also a foundation for provocative and compelling explorations of identity.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

HBean

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United States on March 2, 2016

Verified Purchase

Interesting and informative

Reviewed in the United States on July 30, 2019

Garbage.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Charissa

Thought provoking material

Reviewed in the United States on June 17, 2017

Verified Purchase

This book is definitely interesting and a good read. The author provides arguments on all sides of each of the topics discussed and they are typically thought-provoking, interesting points that are made. That being said, it seems that the author often draws lines that aren't really there, particularly when discussing imagery from the original comics. There were several times that I found myself staring at an image for several minutes trying to see what the author was describing. Overall, it's a good book and a nut read for avid Wonder Woman fans.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Peter R. Sattler

The Even *Stranger* History and Ideas of Wonder Woman

Reviewed in the United States on December 12, 2014

I first read this book in manuscript while preparing to teach a course on superheroes and was a fan from the first pages. I didn’t realize, however, exactly how much I appreciated Noah Belatsky’s exploration of Wonder Woman until I read Jill Lepore’s recent “secret history” of the character and her creators.

Like Lepore, Berlatsky explores how these early superhero comics are connected to the broader histories of feminism, pacifism, and sexuality. Unlike the longer history, though, Berlatsky does not just reduce Marston and Wonder Woman to expressions of larger historical or cultural discourses. Berlatsky, as a writer and a thinker, is strongly committed to exploring what makes the Marston/Peter “Wonder Woman” comic books unique, idiosyncratic, experimental, and strange – that is, what turns them into expressions of unconventional and truly queer genius.

Berlatsky digs deep into Marston’s playful and playfully odd visions of bondage and freedom, submission and power, feminism and gender and love – linking all his claims to the way that these ideas take shape in particular Wonder Woman stories (and not just in the comics’ cultural or psychological context). He them takes all these ideas and plays with them himself, connecting Marston’s ideas and obsessions to Freud and Lacan, Eve Sedgwick and Judith Butler, Stan Lee and Stephanie Meyer.

As these last names indicate, Berlatsky’s own argument and his use of these other writers and thinkers is playful and suggestive – and sometimes even as funny and weird as the Wonder Woman comics he analyzes. This is not a by-the-numbers application of Theory X to Book Y to get Result Z. Instead, it is a series of strong close reading, linked to one another by occasionally wild but always potent digressions, each of which makes you think about Wonder Woman, the Amazons of Paradise Island, and the heroine’s potent Lasso of Truth in unexpected ways.

One warning: while Berlatsky’s book is generously illustrated, his extended readings of particular Wonder Woman stories will make you want to see the originals in full form (if only to answer the question, “Wait! Did they really show that?!”). Pick up inexpensive copies of the “Wonder Woman Chronicles” or the more pricey “Wonder Woman Archives.” Does Wonder Woman deserve that much space on your bookshelf? Does it merit a focused and far-reaching re-reading? Berlatsky shows us that the answer is, “By Hera, Yes!”

Buy for others

Buying and sending eBooks to others

Image Unavailable

Follow the author

Wonder Woman: New edition with full color illustrations (Comics Culture) Kindle Edition

Popular titles by this author

Editorial Reviews

Review

About the Author

Product details

Videos

About the author

Noah Berlatsky

Customer reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.