Anagrams of Desire
Encyclopedia
Anagrams of Desire is an academic text book about Angela Carter
's media writings. Written by Charlotte Crofts and published by Manchester University Press in 2003, the full title is Anagrams of Desire: Angela Carter's Writing for Radio, Film and Television.
The book examines Carter's five radio plays, her two film adaptations, The Company of Wolves
(1984) and The Magic Toyshop
(1987) and discusses the critically neglected television documentary The Holy Family Album
(1991) and the BBC 2
Omnibus
documentary about Carter: Angela Carter's Curious Room (1992). The book concludes with a brief discussion of Carter's unrealised dramatic writings, a libretto of Virginia Woolf
's Orlando
, a stage adaptation of Frank Wedekind
's Lulu plays (Erdgeist
et al.) and an unproduced screenplay entitled The Christchurch Murders, based on the Parker-Hulme New Zealand
murders, the same incident which influenced Peter Jackson
's film Heavenly Creatures
.
According to Michael Pye of The Scotsman Crofts has "an excellent idea - a strong case for Carter’s less-discussed, less-remembered writing, especially her radio plays - and who writes good, sharp prose when she gets a chance, and who is full of proper doubts about the bigger, more flatulent generalisations that pass nowadays for "theory"."
According to Liz Milner "Croft's book is of limited appeal to a general reader and is best suited to academics interested in Media Studies and Feminism."
The title refers to a line from Carter's short story "The Merchant of Shadows", which concerns film-making and film-makers.
Angela Carter
Angela Carter was an English novelist and journalist, known for her feminist, magical realism, and picaresque works...
's media writings. Written by Charlotte Crofts and published by Manchester University Press in 2003, the full title is Anagrams of Desire: Angela Carter's Writing for Radio, Film and Television.
The book examines Carter's five radio plays, her two film adaptations, The Company of Wolves
The Company of Wolves
The Company of Wolves is a 1984 gothic fantasy-horror film directed by Neil Jordan, and starring Sarah Patterson and Angela Lansbury.The film is based on the werewolf story of the same name in Angela Carter's short story collection The Bloody Chamber...
(1984) and The Magic Toyshop
The Magic Toyshop
The Magic Toyshop is a British novel by Angela Carter. It follows the development of the heroine, Melanie, as she becomes aware of herself, her environment, and her own sexuality.- Plot Summary :...
(1987) and discusses the critically neglected television documentary The Holy Family Album
The Holy Family Album
The Holy Family Album is a television documentary written and narrated by Angela Carter. It was directed by JoAnn Kaplan and produced by John Ellis at Large Door Productions, London, UK...
(1991) and the BBC 2
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
Omnibus
Omnibus (TV series)
Omnibus was an arts-based BBC television documentary series, broadcast on BBC1 in the United Kingdom. It ran from 1967 until 2003, usually being transmitted on Sunday evenings....
documentary about Carter: Angela Carter's Curious Room (1992). The book concludes with a brief discussion of Carter's unrealised dramatic writings, a libretto of Virginia Woolf
Virginia Woolf
Adeline Virginia Woolf was an English author, essayist, publisher, and writer of short stories, regarded as one of the foremost modernist literary figures of the twentieth century....
's Orlando
Orlando: A Biography
Orlando: A Biography is an influential novel by Virginia Woolf, first published on 11 October 1928. A semi-biographical novel based in part on the life of Woolf's lover Vita Sackville-West, it is generally considered one of Woolf's most accessible novels...
, a stage adaptation of Frank Wedekind
Frank Wedekind
Benjamin Franklin Wedekind , usually known as Frank Wedekind, was a German playwright...
's Lulu plays (Erdgeist
Earth Spirit (play)
Earth Spirit is a play by the German dramatist Frank Wedekind. It forms the first part of his pairing of 'Lulu' plays , both of which depict a society "riven by the demands of lust and greed". In German folklore an erdgeist is a gnome, first described in Goethe's Faust...
et al.) and an unproduced screenplay entitled The Christchurch Murders, based on the Parker-Hulme New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
murders, the same incident which influenced Peter Jackson
Peter Jackson
Sir Peter Robert Jackson, KNZM is a New Zealand film director, producer, actor, and screenwriter, known for his The Lord of the Rings film trilogy , adapted from the novel by J. R. R...
's film Heavenly Creatures
Heavenly Creatures
Heavenly Creatures is a 1994 film directed by Peter Jackson, from a screenplay he co-wrote with his wife Fran Walsh, about the notorious 1954 Parker-Hulme murder case in Christchurch, New Zealand. Filmed on location in Christchurch, it features Melanie Lynskey and Kate Winslet in their screen debuts...
.
According to Michael Pye of The Scotsman Crofts has "an excellent idea - a strong case for Carter’s less-discussed, less-remembered writing, especially her radio plays - and who writes good, sharp prose when she gets a chance, and who is full of proper doubts about the bigger, more flatulent generalisations that pass nowadays for "theory"."
According to Liz Milner "Croft's book is of limited appeal to a general reader and is best suited to academics interested in Media Studies and Feminism."
The title refers to a line from Carter's short story "The Merchant of Shadows", which concerns film-making and film-makers.