Special Session

Ecocriticism and Science / Cultural Studies

Mary Cummins (University of California - Riverside)
mary@****.com (Log-in to reveal)

This session seeks critical explorations of any themes in Martha Wells’ Murderbot universe, as well as meta-analysis of the fan culture related to the series and its remarkable popular appeal. Papers can address one book or short story in the series or the series as a whole. Papers might address themes including (but by no means limited to) humanity, posthumanity, and personhood, gender and sexuality, race and identity, neurodivergence, introversion, media consumption, ethics and morality, autonomy, labor, corporate exploitation, colonialism and resource extraction, etc. Connections or contrasts might also be drawn between The Murderbot Diaries and the work of other authors of the past or present. Papers might also address fan communities related to the series and the question of what accounts for its wide and intense appeal among readers. Also welcome would be papers introducing strategies for teaching The Murderbot Diaries, especially All Systems Red.

Since the publication of All Systems Red in 2017, Martha Wells’ The Murderbot Diaries series has come to include seven books, three related short stories, and an upcoming Apple TV+ adaptation starring Alexander Skarsgard. The series has won four Hugo Awards, two Nebulas, and four Locus Awards, with Wells often turning down subsequent award nominations.

This session seeks critical explorations of any themes in Wells’ Murderbot universe, as well as meta-analysis of the fan culture related to the series and its remarkable popular appeal. Papers can address one book or short story in the series or the series as a whole. Papers might address themes including (but by no means limited to) humanity, posthumanity, and personhood, gender and sexuality, race and identity, neurodivergence, introversion, media consumption, ethics and morality, autonomy, labor, corporate exploitation, colonialism and resource extraction, etc. Connections or contrasts might also be drawn between The Murderbot Diaries and the work of other authors of the past or present. Papers might also address fan communities related to the series and the question of what accounts for its wide and intense appeal among readers. Also welcome would be papers introducing strategies for teaching The Murderbot Diaries, especially All Systems Red, to students.