“For the First Time in My Life, I Don’t Know What to Believe”: Conspiracy and Gender in The X-Files

Abstract

The X-Files, from its representation of monsters, aliens, and the government, to its engagement with gender roles, has been thoroughly analysed by scholars and fans alike in the past thirty years. This study aims to tie two elements of the show together: conspiracy theories and gender. Examining the early mythopoeia of the series, I argue that creating conspiracy theories might be read as a primarily masculine prerogative on the show, and that Dana Scully is not fully empowered to join her partner in conspiracy theorizing due to her position as a woman at the FBI.