Monster Culture Seven Theses

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Monster Culture Seven Theses

Monster Culture (Seven Theses) by Cohen analyzes how monsters can be connected to different cultures from which they are invented. He looks at monsters as a representation of the cultures, which they represent. He notes that an effective way of reading cultures is by observing the monsters represented by them. When differences occur and anxiety heightens in the community, that is when monsters emerge (Cohen 7). The monster embodies difference, and these differences may be ideological, sexual, or racial. Though there are fictitious beings, they always represent something in all cultures and have a significant meaning. The essay looks at the different descriptions of monsters and what these descriptions represent.

The reading looks at Cohen’s quest to understand the validity of monsters in various stories, and furthermore, if they do exist, he looks to understand what they may represent. The monster theory by Cohen is an in-depth look into how and why monsters exist and how this is applicable to different cultures (Brown). Through his analysis, he brings up a discussion concerning the monsters that occur in cultures and what they represent in the particular cultures. It is an investigation as to the significance of the monsters and what they represent. The book looks at monsters and how they evolved over time. He shows that monsters are a creation of man and that since man made monsters they can vanish.Therefore, the book looks to show the reader how different monsters occur and what they mean to different societies.

Cohen describes monsters in different aspects and these are concerned with appearances, their character, and what themes they represent. Monsters are representations and symbolic forms of different cultures and they often appear because of the certain attitude or feeling that occurs during that particular era.Therefore, it is believed that monsters are actually an embodiment of a particular era and represent the cultural occurrences of that particular time. Another important point is that the monsters are never caught and they often return to terrorize in the particular area (Cohen 12).They may change their appearance or habits, but they always return. Many times monsters do not die despite several attempts to kill them. In addition, when the monster is killed, there is an eerie reminder of its existence left which leaves much doubt as to whether the monster actually died. Monsters can also not be classified to a specific classification of animals or people. They are a different and unique entity which have their own unique features.

Therefore, it is not easy classifying monsters because they have unpredictable and unimaginable characteristics and often one is different from the other. The monsters always hold different beliefs from the local people and they represent things that are seen as different in the society culturally, socially, economically and in other ways. They often believe the opposite of what the other people believe and they represent the ideological differences in the society (Brown).They are often the normal range of thought and act as a different thought mechanism apart from the usual way of thinking that human beings and the rest of society follow. One major characteristic of monsters is that they usually represent warnings of unknown things to come, such as ideas of danger. They represent the certain ideas that human beings are scared of addressing, yet they exist in the society. These are thoughts that humans are not meant to thing about or imagine due to the horror involved in such thoughts.

Monsters represent various topics that stand for our ideas or hidden desires, which are usually explicit or taboo in the modern society. These may be strange or incomprehensible such as gender roles, sex, aggression, or domination. They usually take the role of things, which we do not claim to be normal, or those patterns that we may find strange. They enable us to play certain roles that we should not normally take or permit such as witches or demons (Ryan 131).The give us much thought as to why we create or allow such things and often make us to reflect on the very things that we as human beings find ourselves criticizing. Such occurrences may lead people to think about the role that monsters play among human beings. Monsters are creations from our sub conscience and represent the very things that human beings think about unconsciously.

Cohen believes that monsters embody certain occurrences in the society and all represent the challenges that these problems bring. One example of a monster that brings out this theory is Grendel.As a monster, there is no clear and solid description of Grendel, and there are many scary accounts of the terrors that he did in the community. Cohen believes that the monsters represent the particular culture that they come from. The monster Grendel has a certain role to play in that community and has historical significance as well. Cohen believes that the body of the monster has great cultural significance and usually comes into life during these cultural moments (Howard). Grendel is a territorial creature and bears significance to the local community in terms of cultural and social symbolism. Grendel seems to be a creature that stands for a social issue that the Danes experienced at that particular moment and represented these beliefs. The fear of Grendel represents certain social fears that the Danish people faced at that particular time and it shows how the community reacted to this occurrence at that particular time in history. Grendel seems to be an avenue through which the issues facing the Danish society were brought out at that particular moment.Therefore, Grendel as a monster from Denmark has a huge significance in Danish events at that period.

Another monster that is fictional and has cultural significance is Pokémon, which represents a monster world in children fantasy. The designers of the game world made sure that the players find themselves in a monster-filled world where the players can control the monsters that they choose and bid them to do tasks of their bidding and therefore these individual who usually crave Pokémon usually have a craving for these ideologies. The Pokémon designers are responsible for ensuring that the games match the ideals of those who crave and desire the creations that include various monsters (Cohen 21).The Pokémon game series has managed to develop with times but it still includes the various monster themes. The game allows players to play as evil, aggressive, and dominating characters. Cohen believes that the monster’s body is a cultural body and in the game Pokémon, the player of the game is able to bring out the character of different monsters and then personalize them into the ideals of those who are playing the game. Cohen believes that the monster always escapes and Pokémon is always brought back into the world.

The monster can never be eliminated and therefore it is important to understand that Cohen uses this to bring out his theme that monsters are disturbing hybrids who oppose any systematic structures. The player is expected to use Pokémon with all the features he possesses and then exploit the strengths of the monsters in order to conquer. The monsters are created using the process of fragmentation as well as recombination in the various elements and such an interpretation can reveal that the Pokémon monsters can represent various marginalized groups in the society. There are different forms of monsters and Spiritomb represents the personification of mischief as well as evil deeds in the society (Brown).The Pokémon are a wide variety of creatures and these represent various aspects of the society as these creatures represent evil, aggression as well as domination which are all human vices in the society. The same creatures who cause terror in them also represent the various fantasies  that human beings possesss.Pokemon allows the player to escape reality and feature in a game world where they can use powers for evil or for good at their own discretion.

The focus of this research is in helping the reader understand Cohen’s views on monsters and what they represent. He believes that monsters are a representation of the cultural and social views of a particular area and therefore they reveal what the area is experiencing at that particular moment (Ryan 14).They are an actual representation of the various though patterns in a particular area and at a certain time. Through his research, Cohen is able to reveal the relevance that monsters play in the community as well as the role that they have, in being a physical representation of the hidden thoughts that people have. The examples of Pokémon and Grendel help one to understand how monsters can be a form of representation of a culture or a people and represent a particular event occurring in the society.

Works Cited

Brown, Shane. “Review of Monster Culture in the 21St Century: A Reader”. cinej 3.2 (2014): 259. Web.

Cohen, Jeffrey Jerome. Monster Theory. (2012)Print.

Howard, Kelsey. “Monster Theory Seven Theses”. Kelsey Howard. N.p. 2012. Web. 20 Apr. 2016.

Ryan, J. S. “<I>Monster Theory: Reading Culture</I> (Review)”. Parergon 16.1 (2014): 130-133. Web.