Monster Theory

I am generally not a big fan of hardcore academic theory, but this collection of essays edited by Jeffrey Jerome Cohen gave me a steady stream of "aha!" moments when I first read it about twenty years ago.

I struggled a bit with some of the jargon here, not to mention the fact that it only deals with monsters in the Western tradition, but I know of no better book for helping readers understand why humans create (and need) monsters, what roles monsters play in affirming (and undermining) social norms, and what the study of monsters can reveal about the… show more.

There aren’t many discussions in my field that don’t at least nod to, if not begin with, Cohen’s contribution, "Monster Culture". Cohen lays out a way to think about monsters as embodiments of culture that has been invaluable to their study, a way to “mine” monsters for the cultural “gold” from which they are made. While the field has expanded since Cohen, it should be the starting point for anyone seriously interested in monstrosity. There are also stand-out chapters on a variety of topics, from Frankenstein and Jurassic Park to Beowulf and the perception of medieval Muslim monstrosity.