Searching the Soul of Ally McBeal

Elwood Watson is a professor of History and African American Studies at East Tennessee State University in Johnson City, Tennessee.

• Table of ContentsPreface      Introduction      1. Ally McBeal as a Site of Postmodern Bodily Boundaries and Struggles Over Cultural Interpretation: The Hysteric as a Site of Feminist Resistance      2. A Truth Universally (Un)Acknowledged: Ally McBeal, Bridget Jones’s Diary and the Conflict between Romantic Love and Feminism      3. Cultural Occupancy, Television Reception, and MultipleIdentifications in Ally McBeal      4. The Comic and Burlesque: A Frame Analysis of Post-Feminist Values and Female Professionalism in Ally McBeal      5. Ally McBeal and the Death of Feminism      6. Female Representation and the “Postfeminist” Challenge      7. In Ms. McBeal’s Defense: Assessing Ally McBeal as a Feminist Text      8. Worshipping at the Altar of Barry White: Ally McBeal and Racial and Sexual Politics in Crisis      9. The Angler, Fish, and Fishisms: Universal Themes and Contemporary Issues in a Popular Television Series      10. It’s More Than Just Another Silly Love Song: Ally McBeal Brings the Hollywood Musical to Television      11. Segments in an Endless Flow: Narrative Gaps and Partial Closure in Ally McBeal      About the Contributors      Index