Kayleigh Artise

English 1101/ Redding

Composition 2
28 June 2016
Monsters Portrayal in American Society
The difficulty in using the word monster lies not in the multitude of definitions,
but rather the multiple interpretations. The vagueness of the word monster allows
manipulations to describe nearly anything; the monsters that children turn themselves
into on Halloween, the sex offender that serves life in prison, the proverbial monster
truck, and even certain wild animals. Why We Crave Horror Movies by Stephen King
and Monsters and the Moral Imagination by Stephen T. Asma show different examples
of American societys need for monsters. Although Kings and Asmas essays both
describe the necessity of monsters in American Culture, the difference lies in the way
audience members and the participants in American culture perceive the portrayal and
depiction of monsters. This perception bears exploration because of the portrayal of
monsters and their role of representing fears and finding the monster inside of us all.
American Culture has many complicating aspects; Americans compartmentalize
and deal with these complex aspects through deconstructing the idea of monsters and
their symbolization. King equates professional football and its rise to become the
common pastime of watching physical aggregation and combat, to that of horror films
and how they have become the modern lynching (17). In the past, social gatherings
centered on lynching someone but now people gather to watch men tackle each other for
sport. Peoples brains contain many compartments, one of which stores thoughts that
American cultural deems inappropriate. Watching horror movies allows expression of the
inappropriate thoughts in this compartment, which, in turn, allows for the continuation of
acting like a normal being. According to Asma, the increasing popularity of horror

movies is due to social anxiety, specifically in the post 9/11 decade. Just like the horrific
events of 9/11, Asma also describes monsters by saying; things dont strike fear in our
hearts unless our hearts are already seriously committed to something (66). Due to these
acts, America as a nation enacts security upgrades to give the people a better sense of
security. American media branded the terrorists involved in the heinous acts of 9/11
monsters. The use of this title allowed Americans to dehumanize these terrorists in order
to be able to effectively cope with the event. This is yet another compartment in peoples
brains that contains more complex events and situations to comprehend. In placing this
fear in different compartments, it allows people to overcome this idea of fear.
Although horror movies and the portrayal of monsters can be exaggerated, they
are necessary. King says, The mythic horror movie like the sick joke, has a dirty job to
do. It deliberately appeals to all that is the worst in us (18). That being said, Americans
go to horror movies to have fun or to show friends they are not afraid of the unknown.
Horror movies allow people to live situations that they would not want to find themselves
in and then, in turn, think of the ways that they would defuse the situation if found amidst
the situation in reality. Asma makes a point that monsters serve a liberal lesson of
tolerance, in which we must learn to overcome our tendencies to always have a scapegoat
to evade the title of monster (61). Just like the panic that 9/11 caused days, months, and
even years after the tragedy, panic is the undeads greatest ally (Asma 63). Asma means
the word monster can apply to practically anything and serves the purpose of striking
panic and fear. With this panic, people live with a constant sense of paranoia that causes
them to fear the unknown. However, being able to put a face or a name to this panic
allows the paranoia to become manageable. Though monsters are present in the media,
they are also present in people.

According to King, one of the scariest concepts of monsters is that they are inside
of us all. The main theme in Kings Why We Crave Horror Movies says that behind
every smiling or not smiling face, a little monster lies in us all, and because of this savage
inner personality we must find a way to reestablish our feelings of normality (16). The
ability to watch horror movies allow the little monster in us all to be free when the time is
appropriate so that we can then act as normal beings in everyday social settings. Almost
as if people are schizophrenic, in a sense, and watching horror movies bring out an
alternative personality so that we may suppress that personality at a later time. Asma also
believes that everyone contains a Mr. Hyde (62). If everyone truly contains a Mr. Hyde
then they would not just seem like a monster, they would be one. Most people would
agree that serial killers are monsters, but our childlike fascination lies with the realism of
serial killers and our potential vulnerability to sadistic violence (Asma 62). Some people
are able to suppress the monster inside; however, others are not able to. This means that
not only is there a monster inside that person, but that that person is also a monster.
One of the difficulties in hiding the inner monster sprouts from a disability
hindering the person from being able to contain their monster. According to King, we
are all mentally ill, he furthers his point by stating, If we are all insane, then sanity
becomes a matter of degree (17). King then brings about the clinical side of illness and
that existing outside of an asylum does not exclude someone from the identifier of crazy
but rather brings about their social awkwardness or aloneness. Even though we are not all
in an asylum under medication and constant care, releasing our inner demons helps to
stay sane. The use of monster stories shows us various vulnerabilities and their different
cures (Asma 65). When told that the concept of monsters no longer poses use in the
modern world, Asma states, The monster concept is still extremely useful, and its a

permanent player in the moral imagination because human vulnerability is permanent

(65). The monster in the closet story represents the monster inside of a person. People
teach children nothing resides inside the closet but in reality the child projects the idea of
a monster into the closet. Just like people teach adults to see the best in someone when a
monster lurks inside.
Monsters play different roles based on the way their creator portrays them. With
King and Asmas belief that a monster exists inside of us all, these creators assume the
responsibility of showing the American population different ways to cope and suppress
these monsters. The portrayal of these different monsters and what a monster is, is to
shape the population's mind into knowing what is bad and what is good. The importance
of knowing that monsters are portrayed differently for varying situations allows the
American population to know ways to defeat the monsters inside or that not all monsters
are real. Sometimes the main reason a monster is created is to strike fear into the minds of
the American population so that the population will blindly fear or follow a certain group
of people.

Works Cited
Asma, Stephen T. Monsters and Moral Imagination. Monsters: A Bedford Spotlight
Reader. Ed. Andrew J. Hoffman. New York: Bedford/St. Martins 2016. 61-66.
Print.
King, Stephen. Why We Crave Horror Movies. Monsters: A Bedford Spotlight Reader.
Ed.Andrew J. Hoffman. New York: Bedford/St. Martins, 2016. 16-19. Print.