I was pretty fascinated through this whole book. 20% 1945-1960 2.) As W. Scott Poole's text will serve as the conceptual framework for the course, this assignment seeks to promote regular critical engagement with the text. When meeting the natives, he saw their way of life as barbaric and uncivilized. The author explores American History and how people's fears and reactions to changes in society both affected and were affected by monsters in print and film. Poole agrees telling us early and often You are the main character in this terror-filled little tale (xviii). 1 (1998): 90-102. Simplistic and not incredibly thoughtful, but useful for my purposes, Reviewed in the United States on November 25, 2012. Want 100 or more? Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. "The American past reads like something of a horror movie, maybe even a low-budget slasher. For me, there are intertwined. Twelve Important Theology Books of 2020!!! Poole states that, in actuality, that the Europeans saw the natives. Sex and violence are the recurring themes of the book, but Poole always provides context for why they recur so often. for a customized plan. Just about all the scarey things that crawl into popular media hail from the leaf-littered shadowy forests that haunt the American mind. His footnotes have left me with a massive pile Poole walks readers through the American history of monsters, matching horror trends to American epochs, where it turns out our sociopolitical climate influences the monsters we laud and follow in fiction, film, and the media. Its cohesive, cursory, and has a smattering of typos. Monster is a 1999 young adult novel by Walter Dean Myers. He wrote in his journal This book is a wonderful introduction to American history through the lens of monsters. But Africans were still human and had their morals, yet the Europeans saw them as a type of monster during the slave trade era. that Poole have used to describe the events of . A must read for fans of horror and monsters! Get Annual Plans at a discount when you buy 2 or more! Poole has set the bar ridiculously high for any future research exploring the locus of historical and cultural studies, particularly as it pertains to the horrific. Monsters In America challenges, enlightens, and, quite honestly, frightens in its prescient view of American history, as well as the seeming ubiquity of the monsters of our past and probable future. Monsters are not just fears of the individual psyche, historian Scott Poole explains, but are concoctions of the public imagination, reactions to cultural influences, social change, and historical events. by Michelle | Nov 30, 2011 | Books Read in 2011, P Author | 0 comments, Title: Monsters in America: Our Historical Obsession with the Hideous and the Haunting, Monsters are not just fears of the individual psyche, historian Scott Poole explains, but are concoctions of the public imagination, reactions to cultural influences, social change, and historical events. Reviewed in the United States on April 15, 2012. Both belief about the supernatural and the supernatural itself creates creatures which slither into our thinking-being-behaving. Monsters in America: but on the whole, an engaging and thought provoking read. In a nutshell, monsters for Poole are metaphors / stand-ins for whoever is loathed or feared in a certain historical context. Dont have an account? Anne Bradstreet Poems Five of our Favorites by the Puritan Poet! But too often he ascribes American injustices with little more than a metaphorical connection to monster movies. I had to read this for a class (one I wasn't too stoked about, if I'm being honest) and went into it with a pretty closed mind. In his comments on the 1931 "Frankenstein" W. Scott Poole, relates that the idea of the "abnormal brain" that Fritz grabs for Henry Frankenstein being the cause of the monster's murderous mentality being a reflection of the "scientific rascism" of the day. Scott - For All Who Hunger - Feature Review, Mattix & Thomas, Eds - Christian Poetry in America Since, Copyright 2023 The Englewood Review of Books. The author radically departs from the notion that monsters are a metaphor for our fears through the ages. If specters of the past still haunt our present, they may yet invade our future. Victor sees the monster's point of view and agrees to create a mate for the monster. Steve Harmon, a Black sixteen-year-old, sits in his jail cell and writes in his notebook. W. Scott Poole is Professor of History at the College of Charleston, where he teaches courses on monsters, pop culture, and American history. Penn State folklorist Bill Ellis called the book "required reading for . Vampira) to explore the history of American sexuality, gender relations and the rebirth of the horror film in post-WW2 America. The man immediately begins screaming about something hidden in the mist that is attacking and killing people. Monsters in America is lively and entertaining throughout. Honoring authors by not reading other reviews ahead of time, I anticipated simple engagement with monstrous intrigue of the horrendous and hideous. Through the two and a half weeks I took with this book, I have been citing it in conversation. Now and Always,The Trusted Content Your Research Requires, Now and Always, The Trusted Content Your Research Requires, Built on the Johns Hopkins University Campus. Monsters arrived in 2011and now they are back. For him, this place is the opposite of realhe has to do everything in front of strangers. uniquely brings together history and culture studies to expose the dark obsessions that have helped create our national identity. For the next 7 days, you'll have access to awesome PLUS stuff like AP English test prep, No Fear Shakespeare translations and audio, a note-taking tool, personalized dashboard, & much more! James King has his own lawyer, Asa Briggs. Reviewed in the United States on October 14, 2012. These summaries should not exceed one page in length. I seem to be having bad luck with books lately, but the writing style just didnt connect with me. Its a story that begins with the history of the dark lady of late night horror and branches out into a discussion of the Beats, Bebop Jazz, the birth of rock and roll and the social protest movements of the 1960s. Monster presents through the obvious things, for example, krakens or werewolves. SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4.99/month or $24.99/year as selected above. Thoughts on books, family, and life in one impressive package. )1980-present and discuss ways in which the monsters of the era are the products of historical change, conflict and context. Its not a salacious book, either. Frontier wilderness beasts, Freddie Krueger, witches of Salem, alien invasions, and freak show oddities are some of the monstrous creatures. Monsters refuse to be cordoned off in only one nationality, ethnicity, religion, or political mindset. TO CANCEL YOUR SUBSCRIPTION AND AVOID BEING CHARGED, YOU MUST CANCEL BEFORE THE END OF THE FREE TRIAL PERIOD. Youve successfully purchased a group discount. Briggs makes the first closing argument in the case. Howard Thurman Books An Introductory Reading Guide. Mary Oliver Essays 10 Prose Selections to Read for Free Online! You'll be billed after your free trial ends. A monster, in most cases, is something that challenges human morality or customs, or rather, a single group of people's moralities. 20% His new book, forthcoming this fall and available for pre-order, is _Wasteland: The Great War and the Roots of Modern Horror_. Salem witches, frontier wilderness beasts, freak show oddities, alien invasions, Freddie Krueger. Chapters three and four in my copy of the book, for instance, are littered with questions: How did we get here? This is a logical leap! and What??! FABULOUS! Our Historical Obsession with the Hideous and the Haunting. March 4, 2023, SNPLUSROCKS20 creating and saving your own notes as you read. You can view our. Discount, Discount Code Edna St. Vincent Millay Five of our Favorite Poems ! Solely focused on the horrors, readers would think that no Christian or church stood against the aberration of Scriptural teaching; but such was the case with missionaries and abolitionists. Call me crazy, but I don't think a historian's role ought to be the reaffirmation of modern feelings of superiority over everyone else who has ever lived. Pooles book becomes a tired screed against those whose political-social viewpoints are antithetic to his own. In 2009, Poole published _Satan in America: The Devil We Know__ (Rowman and Littlefield), a cultural history of the image of Satan in American religion, history and popular culture. He is the author of several books, including a biography of H.P Lovecraft, which became a Bram Stoker award finalist, and. If you, like me, are both a person that loves old monster movies and cares about history, you'll find this book to be a fun read. I hoped to expand my interaction in the genre, albeit from an American point of view. By the end of the book, Poole cautions that Americas monsters arent going away anytime soon. While some may believe that there was no conflict between the settlers and the natives, and that, they just coexisted peacefully. While I appreciate and agree with his argument that monsters are "real" because their effects on history / on people's lives have been real, I dislike his assumption that people in the past were the obvious victims of prejudice and misplaced fear and that they were not insightful or intelligent enough to realize what they were truly afraid of. Poole does justice to judgment; the focus of some horror films. Mark Eckel is Dean of Undergraduate Studies and Professor of Old Testament at Crossroads Bible College. He wonders what OBrien saw. But then, I dislike any historical book that loses its sense of historical relativity as well as any book about phenomena that automatically assumes a phenomenon is false and therefore ripe for being disproved and easily rationalized away. Learn more how customers reviews work on Amazon, Baylor University Press (January 15, 2014). I have an affiliate relationship with several bookstores, including Powells Books and IndieBound. In fact, perhaps our own beliefs about monsters and their intractable nature help to produce the monsters we fear the most., I've had a question for a long time. incredibly rewarding and fulfilling reading. Monsters in America has without a doubt earned a spot on my favorite books of 2011. Name: Kim Hoan Tran Dr. Che 07/08/2019 Summary Paper Summary of Monstrous Beginning In Monster in America written by W. Scott Poole, especially the chapter called "Monstrous Beginnings". The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. From Victorian-era mad scientists to modern-day serial killers. The defense rests after Sawickis testimony. An unexpected guilty pleasure! Monsters, he says, are "cultural constructions of the terrible that define what it is we subconsciously fear and what it is we're told to hate or love.". InMonsters in America,Scott Poole asks these thought-provoking questions while traveling through American history following the evolution of the monster over time. In a nutshell, monsters for Poole are metaphors / stand-ins for whoever is loathed or feared in a certain historical context. In Monsters in America, Scott Poole expertly weaves together folklore, media studies, and some of the more disturbing moments in American history to remind us of the vital roles monsters play in our culture. Conflicting anxieties about race, class, gender, sexuality, religious beliefs, science, and politics manifest as haunting beings among the populace. Not only do they continue to live in our midst, but, as historian Scott Poole shows, these monsters are an important part of our pasta hideous obsession America cannot seem to escape. The pages are littered with characterizations which demonize only a conservative set of ideas. Some of his writings can be accessed at www.warpandwoof.org. Steve is about to stand trial for felony homicide. to start your free trial of SparkNotes Plus. Here's where you'll find important quotesfrom Monsterand explanations of them. The little monsters who come to our doors for candy at Halloween are small reminders of our large problem. Youve successfully purchased a group discount. From our colonial past to the present, the monster in all its various forms has been a staple of American culture. Which one would you like to know more about and why? ! His transitions from movie metaphors to American social ills are often strained if not unconvincing. session with vampires and zombies, Poole plots America's past through its fears in this intriguing sociocultural history. Poole's connection of the monster to American history is a kind of Creature Features meets American cultural history. Not only that, but Sandra Petrocelli, the State prosecutor, is a very good lawyer. Wright Books An Introductory Reading Guide to The Theologians Work, Joy Harjo Poems Five of the Best Poems by the US Poet Laureate, John ODonohue Poems Four of our Favorites. for a group?