Autonomy and bioethics in fan responses to Orphan Black
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 20403141 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Ayden Eilmus (0000-0003-0146-4678, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, USA; Vanderbilt University, USA), Avery Bradley (0000-0002-3065-0675), Jay Clayton (0000-0002-3569-4853, Vanderbilt University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2024 |
| Volume | 33 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 174-188 |
| Publication date | 2024-02-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Public Understanding of Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0963-6625 • E-ISSN: 1361-6609 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/09636625231187321 |
| PMID | 37586019 |
| OpenAlex | W4385724371 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 16 |
Viewers’ responses to Orphan Black (2013–2017), a popular, genetics-themed sci-fi television series, reveal much about public understanding of the ethical challenges associated with genetic science. In this article, we assess how fans of Orphan Black process the bioethical themes that are prominent in the show through an analysis of 182 viewer-created blog posts. Using a mixed methods approach, our findings reveal that Orphan Black ’s fans distill the essence of the show down to its characters’ fight for autonomy. Furthermore, fan blogs reveal two notable pathways through which this bioethical principle is explored: gender and reproduction. Viewers draw striking connections between the moral problems they observe on screen in Orphan Black and those they see in the real world—both today and in a possible future—particularly as those problems affect women. While existing scholarship acknowledges these themes in the show itself, our approach demonstrates science fiction fans’ active participation in meaning-making and bioethical reasoning and offers a novel approach to studying fan-generated content for public understanding of science research
Autonomy · Bioethics · Epistemology · Political science · Scholarship · Sociology · Climate Change Communication and Perception · Law · Media Influence and Health · Philosophy · Science Education and Perceptions
Principles of Clinical Ethics and Their Application to Practice
Title unavailable
Testing Women, Testing the Fetus
The roles of rhetoric in the public understanding of science
Genetics in Film and TV, 1912-2020
Queer Kinship
Antirationalist critique or fifth column of scientism? Challenges from Doctor Who to the mad scientist trope
Introduction
Scientists on the Set
Genetics, cyberspace and bioethics
Science in Society
The Declaration of Helsinki through a feminist lens
The power and politics of blogs
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |