With diverse contributions from scholars in English literature, psychology, and film and television studies, this collection of essays contextualizes Fringe as a postmodern investigation into what makes us human, and as an examination of how technology invariably transforms our humanity. The essays provide a provocative meditation on how a stellar example of science fiction television comments on the state of personal identity in a 21st century society dependent on technology that both enlivens and threatens the individual.

In compiling this collection, the editors sought material as multifaceted as the series itself, devoting sections to specific areas of interest explored by both the writers of Fringe and the writers of the essays: humanity, duality, genre, and viewership. Taken together, the section headings serve as a map to the many thematic readings the editors and contributors apply to Fringe.