Cohen’s “Monster Theory” talks about how monsters were created by mankind for multiple reasons. Among them, being able to demonize what would be considered unacceptable and to point out flaws in people or the systems they have created. A quote from the reading I think perfectly sums up what I mean.
“The monster signifies something other than itself.”
Now of course, times change. The same problems monster are used criticize are not always the same problems that exist later in life. The author addresses this by saying
“No monster tastes death but once.”
What the author is trying to say is that monsters always come back and are changed in a way to represent modern problems and viewed through a modern lens.
There is a book that came out in 1955 called “body snatchers.” The book is about aliens that come to earth, and kidnap humans, and replace them with aliens that have all the same memories as the one replaced. These human copies only live to five years. Eventually the whole planet is replaced and the aliens move on. This is supposed to be a take on human behavorior. Its the idea the aliens arent repulsive. They are only doing what humans themselves do. They use up resources, wipe out indigenous populations, and destroy ecosystems. Like Cohen states, the aliens represent something other than themselves. In this case, the aliens are representing human behavior in a way that really hits home given the state of climate change and its cause.
Madison SNHU Blog 