Charmed academia is a subset of the academic field of cultural studies. It explores issues related to gender as expressed through the content of the television program Charmed and, to a lesser extent, its novel spin-off series. Such work is concerned with the scholarly study and exploration of the television series that takes place in the fictional Charmed Universe.
Contents
Development as academic field
Since its inception, Charmed has interested the scholars of popular culture, especially those of cult television, including some of the most successful in their field. The series has been studied and analysed by various writers, leading to the publication of several literary guides and essays which have investigated Charmed from a variety of perspectives, ranging from psychological and philosophical (in terms of morality, the supernatural and mythology), to the social implications of the series, including feminism, sexuality, the show's casting, and its effect on viewers. One guide, Investigating Charmed: The Magic Power of TV, explained its aims of following the "groundbreaking series" as investigating a franchise which has "established a continuing global presence as the very essence of cult TV". Another writer, Jennifer Crusie Smith (editor of Totally Charmed: Demons, Whitelighters and the Power of Three), explains that attention to Charmed is not limited to the view points of academic publications and that "beyond these writers, many more voices weigh in, from the breathless adoration of the Internet fan boards to the [television] critic". Notably, Charmed has been used as the subject of university research papers, especially in conjunction with television and media studies, or the study of feminism in popular culture. One example is M. D. Meyer's essay, "The process of developmental empowerment in Charmed: Implications of a television narrative on third-wave feminism, witchcraft, and disempowerment.", which resulted with her being awarded a Certificate in Women’s Studies from Ohio University in 2004. Another instance includes Maria D. DeRose's dissertation for a Doctor of Philosophy degree at Bowling Green State University, entitled "Searching for Wonder Women: Examining Women's Non-Violent Power in Feminist Science Fiction", which explores the role of violence in feminist science fiction, with one case study into "The Transformative, Transgressive Heroic Women of Charmed".
Ruth Glick, in her Charmed academic essay, "A Stake in the Future", describes the series as "big bucks entertainment. But it's also more - a cultural icon with a welcome message about modern society". In her essay, Glick explores the series as evidence for Charmed's success as popular media through which modern society's attempts at female empowerment are realised and how effectively the series is able to combat the negative stereotypes of the role of women and witchcraft from the Middle Ages to the modern day.
Published works
Published works regarding Charmed, both guide books and scholarly essay collections, include:
Areas of study
Charmed academia includes studies of Charmed in relation to: