The Monster By Litt Summary

Monster: main point of the story The story The Monster by Toby Litt is about the life of a monster that lacks self-awareness. This “monster” has been given no type of correct calling and is unfamiliar with its own physical identity (Litt 250). The monster was limited to its memory but still retained certain aspects. Because it “didn’t have a very good memory,” it couldn’t remember the characteristics of one tree in order to compare it to the other, but it could remember certain maternal characteristics his mother had displayed. The monster tends to live the same day over and over again. It begins by it being curious about its identity and uses pain and touch to discover more about itself. Then, rather than looking in a puddle to see its appearance,

It searched to discover itself in some way by touch. It discovered some characteristics such as “floppy growths upon each side of his head” and “its big bell” (Litt 249). This gives it some charity on his identity and places as hope for someday finding out what it really is. It also “had only an intimation of what sex it was” causing it to reject others sexual intents by “its doubts as to its own nature. (Litt 250). This just shows it has no true understanding of itself which is why it finds dreaming so powerful. It would dream of its “absolute certainty of being” (Litt 250). This allows it to be free of uncertainty and live in happiness. Also the monster enjoys head bashing because it allows him to have a familiar feeling and a sense of its body. Pain one of the things the monster uses to discover more about its self-such as fruit and sleep. Head bashing would “help locate parts of its body in relation to one another” (Litt 250). This plays a role in humanity as well because fear cause deprived us of knowledge. It also can allow us to ignore our resources such as the community in this story, and allows us to be ignorant. This monster inherency and by choice never discovers his true self being thereby living in fear of this knowledge. The monster is in fear of finding out the truth about himself which limits its knowledge and stops it’s from discovering new knowledge. If this monster as well as all of humanity

“rag picker”, neighbor called him an angel, treated him like trash by putting him in the chicken coop but once their soon was healed they wanted to treat him better, “threw him food as if he weren’t a supernatural creature but a circus animal” (407). Too human, doesn’t meet standard from priest Gonzaga, started charging to see him, he refused food, “patience was his only supernatural virtue. Burned him, villagers lost interest in him, went to the spider women “who had been changed into a spider for disobeyed her parents. Less admission, could ask her question, bought things with money made, was fearful of him, the man tolerated, came down with chicken pox, push him out of bedroom with a broom, “living in hell full of angels, “no longer an annoyance in her life but an imaginary dot”