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Doctor Who and Race was an anthology of essays edited by Lindy Orthia concerning the history of Doctor Who's engagement with racial issues, in casting, as well as other issues such as colonialism, imperialism, and xenophobia. The essays drew from a mix of backgrounds, some of which were academics, some of which having written for the franchise itself, and some of which being normal fans, and had a mix of views on the treatment of these issues within the context of the show, from positive to neutral, to negative. The anthology was later noted as "one of the largest and most wide-ranging essay volumes published on Doctor Who" in DWMSE 47.
Doctor Who is the longest running science fiction television series in the world and is regularly watched by millions of people across the globe. While its scores of fans adore the show with cult-like devotion, the fan-contributors to this book argue that there is an uncharted dimension to Doctor Who. Bringing together diverse perspectives on race and its representation in Doctor Who, this anthology offers new understandings of the cultural significance of race in the programme – how the show’s representations of racial diversity, colonialism, nationalism and racism affect our daily lives and change the way we relate to each other.
An accessible introduction to critical race theory, postcolonial studies and other race-related academic fields, the 23 contributors deftly combine examples of the popular cultural icon and personal reflections to provide an analysis that is at once approachable but also filled with the intellectual rigor of academic critique.
The Doctor, his companions and race[[edit] | [edit source]]
| Title |
Author |
Summary of abstract
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| The white Doctor
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Fire Fly
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Examines the characterization of the title character, specifically the Tenth incarnation, and argues that although it appears inclusive, it "is informed by ideologies that continue to subjugate people of colour."
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| Too brown for a fair praise: The depiction of racial prejudice as cultural heritage in Doctor Who
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Iona Yeager
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Examines how Martha Jones is treated by the stories The Shakespeare Code and Human Nature, and how non racially diverse production teams dismiss the experiences of People of Color in historical drama.
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| Conscious colour-blindness, unconscious racism in Doctor Who companions
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Linnea Dodson
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In spite of the BBC claiming to be colour blind in casting Doctor Who, it is claimed that there are vestiges of unconscious racism in how the Doctor treats some of his companions.
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| Doctor Who, cricket and race: The Peter Davison years
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Amit Gupta
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The Fifth incarnation of the Doctor wore a cricketing costume. This essay discusses the racial implications of the costume, given the role of cricket in the British Empire.
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| Humanity as a white metaphor
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Quiana Howard and Stacey Smith?
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The Doctor’s is compared to Uncle Remus and Uncle Tom: "forming a bond with those who would otherwise seek to destroy him and his kind". It is then argued that by co-opting the outsider as a means to prop itself up, the current power structure insulates itself from critique.
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| "You can’t just change what I look like without consulting me!": The shifting racial identity of the Doctor
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Mike Hernandez
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This essay considers the tension between The Doctor's tense relationship with his own people, the lack of diversity in the role, and him becoming the last of his kind, getting to decide for himself what it means to be a Time Lord and how this reflects on British identity.
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Diversity and representation in casting and characterization[[edit] | [edit source]]
| Title |
Author |
Summary of abstract
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| No room for old-fashioned cats: Davies era Who and interracial romance
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Emily Asher-Perrin
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This essay looks at the interracial romances since the revival between the two showrunners.
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| When white boys write black: Race and class in the Davies and Moffat eras
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Rosanne Welch
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This essay discusses the different ways the two showrunners handle writing race.
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| Baby steps: A modest solution to Asian under-representation in Doctor Who
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Stephanie Guerdan
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This analyzes asian representation in Doctor Who, as well as gives modest suggestions as to how to increase it.
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| That was then, this is now: How my perceptions have changed
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George Ivanoff
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This essay explores the changing perceptions of a fan with regards to two stories, The Mutants and The Talons of Weng-Chiang in regards to race - how as a child and as an adult their perspectives differ.
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| "One of us is yellow": Doctor Fu Manchu and The Talons of Weng-Chiang
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Kate Orman
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A deep analysis of British Sinophobia and The Talons of Weng-Chiang.
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Colonialism, imperialism, slavery and the diaspora[[edit] | [edit source]]
| Title |
Author |
Summary of abstract
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| Inventing America: The Aztecs in context
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Leslie McMurtry
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Analyzing how the understanding of the natives expressed in The Aztecs by Barbara comes from biased, warped sources, and how these have constructed a false history.
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| The Ood as a slave race: Colonial continuity in the Second Great and Bountiful Human Empire
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Erica Foss
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Comparing the practices of the Second Great and Bountiful Human Empire towards the Ood with how people act today, and how it provides a warning sign as to a possible path we might turn down.
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| Doctor Who and the critique of western imperialism
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John Vohlidka
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In the 1970s, Britain was unsure of its place as a post imperial power. This turbulence was reflected in the British science fiction series Doctor Who. This essay explores how four particular stories from the series – Colony in Space, The Mutants, The Face of Evil and The Power of Kroll – reflect on this.
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| Through coloured eyes: An alternative viewing of postcolonial transition
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Vanessa de Kauwe
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Offers a postcolonial reading of The Ark, drawing on the work of Fanon, Nayar and Bhabha.
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Xenophobia, nationalism and national identities[[edit] | [edit source]]
| Title |
Author |
Summary of abstract
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| The allegory of allegory: Race, racism and the summer of 2011
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Alec Charles
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Examines the 2011 seasons of Doctor Who and Torchwood "in the context of a series of urban riots which spread across the United Kingdom in summer 2011". And how all three of these things re-examined race in terms of not genetics, but cultural heritage.
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| Doctor Who and the racial state: Fighting National Socialism across time and space
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Richard Scully
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Analyzes the common parallel between the Daleks and the Nazis. This essay "seeks to clarify to what extent this is true", and to determine whether this symbolism has been used to actually deal with racial issues, or instead as a shorthand for evil. Touches on similar themes to Jubilee.
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| Religion, racism and the Church of England in Doctor Who
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Marcus Harmes
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The notion that Doctor Who is inherently English is often repeated consistently, but this essay analyzes what exactly that can mean. It offers analysis of three serials which engage with the Church of England – The Dæmons (1971), Ghost Light (1989) and The Curse of Fenric (1989) – arguing that between them the idea that 'Englishness' is a defining characteristic of the show is far from clear.
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| The Doctor is in (the Antipodes): Doctor Who short fiction and Australian national identity
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Catriona Mills
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This essay explores the ways in which Australian fans use Doctor Who short fiction to question the construction of Australian national identity. By dropping the Doctor into significant crisis points in Australian history these authors raise difficult questions about the role that race plays in ‘Australianness’. Tegan Jovanka was an iconic (white) Australian companion of the Fifth Doctor.
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| Title |
Author |
Summary of abstract
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| "They hate each other’s chromosomes": Eugenics and the shifting racial identity of the Daleks
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Kristine Larsen
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Comparing the eugenics experimentation of the Daleks, to that has been perpetrated by humans "in the pursuit of 'racial purity'".
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| Mapping the boundaries of race in The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood
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Rachel Morgain
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Ever since their introduction, the Silurians have dealt with questions have how humans or specifically the British can deal with 'outsiders'. This essay examines how these issues are handled by the 2010 serial The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood
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| Savages, science, stagism and the naturalized ascendancy of the Not-We in Doctor Who
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Lindy Orthia
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Doctor Who props up the "global ascendancy" of the West and the mythos of scientific enlightenment, argues this essay, coupling this with the idea that there is a developmental continuum between "primitive" and "advanced" cultures, which reifies European superiority.
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