Paranoia, the bomb, and 1950s science fiction films

the long version

"Paranoia, the Bomb, and 1950s Science Fiction Films argues that 1950s sf films open a window on the cultural paranoia that characterized 1950s America, a phenomenon largely triggered by the discovery and use of nuclear weapons during World War II. This study uses psychoanalytic theory to articulate a precise definition of paranoia. The various monsters that people 1950s sf - giant insects, prehistoric creatures, mutants, uncanny doubles, to name a few - serve as metaphorical embodiments of a varied and complex cultural paranoia."--BOOK JACKET. "Hendershot provides both theoretical discussion of paranoia and close readings of sf films in order to construct her argument, elucidating the various metaphors used by these films to convey a paranoiac view of a society forever altered by the atomic bomb."--BOOK JACKET.