Comparing Monsters: Frankenstein, Grendel, and Adolf Hitler

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What is a monster? It is a large and frightening creature that only does harm, or is it? Things are often referred to as a monster because they are different and people are unfamiliar with what they are. Monsters have been used throughout history in myths and legends because all stories have to have good characters and bad characters. The monster is usually in the role of the bad guy. The first time a monster is described in a story we usually make up our minds about them being a monster because of their looks. They are big and ugly so we think they must be monsters. Storytellers have always used monsters to create fear and excite people but monsters also have another role, that is to label people or things we do not like. When a person is labelled a monster it is usually because they are evil and wicked. This is not necessarily because they are big and ugly but because they do things that anger people. Examples of these are murderers, dictators or people who behave in a bad way. The idea of a monster is used in everyday life. The press use the term 'monster' to refer to criminals or bad people because they know their reader will pay more attention to it. As well as scare people monsters also interest people. Children learn about monsters from an early age. They are in bedtime stories and on television. When parents talk about monsters in a place some children are deterred from that place, while other are fascinated. Later in life people know that there are no such things as monsters but still like to be scared by them because they can relive the time when they were young. For example if a man in his childhood years thought there was a monster under his bed and a film was made about it, he could relate to the film. Monsters are able to frighten people and at the same time entertain people, such as when we watch horror films.

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