Graduation Term
2023
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Department of English
Committee Chair
Katherine Ellison
Abstract
Monster texts have been studied through a variety of lenses—postcolonial, feminist, etc.—but I argue the most effective way to study monster texts is through a monster studies lens. This lens, which includes both monster culture and monster theory, allows for a more robust understanding of the text, notably how and why cultures and cultural texts produce and employ monsters and how those monsters and monster texts affect the cultures who consume them. Using a monster studies approach to monster texts enables monsters to do more, especially when teaching. Teaching with monster studies can foster, in students, empathy and even advocacy for marginalized populations, as seen in chapter two. Additionally, when teaching complicated areas of study, such as feminist studies or trauma studies, in general education courses, monster studies can be beneficial. Using monster texts and intersecting the lens of monster studies with the lens of the area of study—feminism, trauma—can create an accessible framework with which students can engage with these complex areas of study. The final chapters provide a how-to guide for teaching feminist studies and trauma studies with monsters.
Access Type
Dissertation-Open Access
Recommended Citation
Karn, Colleen, "Monsters Can Do More: Teaching with Monster Studies" (2023). Theses and Dissertations. 1752.
https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/etd/1752
DOI
https://doi.org/10.30707/ETD2023.20231004061829026083.999965