Jeffrey Jerome Cohen Monster Culture

In “Monster Culture (Seven Theses)”, Jeffrey Jerome Cohen examines and defines monsters in seven related theses regarding their purpose, actions, and appearance. Cohen also uses monsters created in the media and evaluates their implication. One of the first theses discussed the fact that a monster’s body “incorporates fear, desire, anxiety, and fantasy” which in turn gives them independence. (Cohen 456) This independence derives from the monster’s freedom to free; the monster already has a fixed purpose. The monster knows what it is here for: to be feared, hated, desired, etc. Cohen then goes on to proclaim that a monster’s body is a “construct and a projection” that only exists to reveal and warn us about things to come; stating that the monster always signifies “something other than itself”. (Cohen 456) . Using Cohen’s theory on

monsters we can hold observed phenomenons to view.
A particular observed phenomenon that can be analyzed under Cohen’s theory is the bronze sculpture created by Arturo Di Modica, Charging Bull.

The Charging Bull is located on Broadway & Morris St in New York, the sculpture is also known as the Wall Street Bull due to where it’s located and why it was essentially made. Seeing the buffalo by itself, one would not consider this sculpture to be a phenomenon that can view under Cohen’s theory, however that is not that case anymore. As of March 7, 2017, another bronze sculpture was placed in front of the Charging Bull sculpture, this sculpture is labeled Fearless Girl. The Fearless Girl, created by Kristen Visbal, is a sculpture of a young Latina girl facing the Charging Bull, confidently with her hands on her hips. Anteriorly, the Charging Bull represented a strong symbol for “aggressive financial optimism and prosperity” (Wikipedia), now with the little girl in front of the bull, the bull now turns into the villain, or monster. The bull is now a monster standing at the opposition of a little girl. This leads one to question, does the hero create the monster? Furthermore, the bull is now this source of aggression towards female leadership, not only in the workplace, but more

specifically, Wallstreet. (Fierberg & Levy) Cohen states that “the monster is an incorporation of the Outside”(Cohen 459), which brings one to contemplate that some may see the bull as the monster, but to others, it is the girl that is the monster. One can note that throughout Cohen’s essay there are not many direct clams that can support the idea that the bull is a monster, but their is an abundance that support the girl being one. In Cohen’s third thesis one of his statements reads that “the monster resists classification built on hierarchy” (Cohen 458), this speaks to the current situation with the sculptures, because this girl is resisting the roles that are already being set for her, the gender roles some women cannot break out of. Cohen goes on by proclaiming that monsters are “demanding instead a system allowing polyphony, mixed response” “and resistance to integration” (Cohen 458).