Abstract
Apocalypses become common season conclusions in Joss Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer series. Much of the series involves gradual revelations to the human characters about powerful evil supernatural figures whose interventions in human affairs signal a cataclysmic rupture in history. Against such threats stand a supernaturally appointed savior of humanity and a small group of human followers. Increasing violence and chaos lead to a decisive confrontation between two groups representing good and evil, the salvation of humans, the restoration of the world, and the renewal of hope for the future. The series' ongoing reliance on and attention to end-time scenarios provokes questions about how apocalypse is employed in Buffy. On a narrative level, apocalyptic scenarios are useful ways to add gravity to storylines and season arcs, even if they are often treated comically. Yet despite the humor, apocalypse in the series is used to engage with more serious issues. In this paper I aim to trace some of the ways in which Buffy negotiates the Christian and secular territories of apocalypse, which reflects to some extent how contemporary popular culture is engaging with apocalyptic and religious themes. Beyond the recurring apocalyptic scenarios found in the season conclusions, however, Buffy employs apocalypse as a means to explore teenage life and the process of maturity, where crises and disasters are just as often of friendships and romances and mundane realities of daily life than they are of supernatural battles against evil demonic forces.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Joss Whedon and Religion: Essays on an Angry Atheist’s Explorations of the Sacred |
| Editors | Anthony R. Mills, John W. Morehead, J. Ryan Parker |
| Place of Publication | U.S.A. |
| Publisher | McFarland |
| Pages | 67-82 |
| Number of pages | 16 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9780786472901 |
| Publication status | Published - 2013 |