Dallas Willard Books Seven Essential Titles to Read! The book made a few strong points, but ultimately it was a mediocre read. We can anticipate either alien salvation or judgment from beyond. Conflicting anxieties about race, class, gender, sexuality, religious beliefs, science, and politics manifest as haunting beings among the populace. Good references in the book that I looked up to further read about horror movies and their importance to our sociological perspective. Free trial is available to new customers only. It was the first-ever Michael L. Printz Award recipient, an ALA Best Book, a Coretta Scott King Honor selection, and a National Book Award finalist. Continue to start your free trial. Component 3: Vocabulary. Thanks for creating a SparkNotes account! Our main man wonders how anyone can get used to the slammer. Historian W. Scott Poole distinguishes himself by focusing on the American context, providing a history told through the personified expressions of our anxieties and fears. From our colonial past to the present, the monster in all its various forms has been a staple of American culture. Buy now: [ Amazon ] [ Kindle ]. This was a great concept, but I struggled to even make it through the introduction. Picked up on a whim, I certainly got the expected analysis of horror movies as a way for Americans to understand and react to their culture, but the author also makes the (very strong and well supported) argument that far from being a way to understand the world around us, monsters are also used by those in power to crush those without under their heel while also ignoring and excusing the fact that they're doing so. Mrs. Henry testifies to being in the drugstore and seeing two young Black men arguing with the store owner. IE- minorities = what we are anxious about / obsessed with = the monstrous = monsters. In the end, though, I could easily see assigning parts of this book to undergraduates. Monsters in America. 1996-2023, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates, Select a location to see product availability. Frontier wilderness beasts, Freddie Krueger, witches of Salem, alien invasions, and freak show oddities are some of the monstrous creatures. Emily Dickinson Poems Seven of our Favorites! By entering your email address you agree to receive emails from SparkNotes and verify that you are over the age of 13. for a customized plan. A masterful survey of our grim and often disturbing past. Your group members can use the joining link below to redeem their group membership. An interesting and accessible overview of the link between American history and the monsters that fascinate them. Everything from Communists, feminists, and foreigners to Candyman, Dracula, and The Exorcist are examined for the social attitudes to evil that they illuminate (and that we may believe, consciously or subconsciously). Steve worries about why OBrien turned away from him after winning the case. | What is it that rumbles in the American unconscious that relates to the figures we see on the screen. However, at times the overt political messages can be more aggressive than effective, the book frequently covers more breadth than depth, and I was left without a clear sense of how monsters in America (US, presumably, rather than hemispheric) differed from those in international nightmares--or how the globalization of monster culture influenced American culture. "Monsters in America" is a work that touches on the many facets of Horror in America. Trick-or-treat! can only mean one thingHalloween. Anything outside the norm brought about the birth of a monster, which can differ depending on the social, economic, cultural, or political influences of the time. St. Augustine Best Books on His Life and Work, Holy Sonnets John Donne Complete Text. Newer movies like "Terminator," shows what happens when we place our trust in machines. Mark Eckel is Dean of Undergraduate Studies and Professor of Old Testament at Crossroads Bible College. A masterful survey of our grim and often disturbing past, Monsters in America uniquely brings together history and culture studies to expose the dark obsessions that have helped create our national identity. Just about all the scarey things that crawl into popular media hail from the leaf-littered shadowy forests that haunt the American mind. Study Guides, Friday afternoon, July 17th & December, 5 months later. An unexpected guilty pleasure! If you will, a shining city on hill built on the bodies of natives, blacks, women, and anyone else we dont like very much. It is a frightening world we live in, yet the horrific things in our literature and culture play a vital part in helping us reach some understanding, and even some peace about them. Excerpt. Analysis The monster tells Victor:"You must create a female for me with whom I can live in the interchange of those sympathies necessary for my being." Victor refuses and then later relents to the monster's wishes. From our colonial past to the present, the monster in all its various forms has been a staple of American culture. Monsters in America instead should acknowledge monsters exist in every culture, every tribe, every era. BUY . His footnotes have left me with a massive pile of additional books to read. Poole offers an insight on America's fascination with monsters. Poole invites us into an important and enlightening, if disturbing, conversation about the very real monsters that inhabit the dark spaces of America's past. Often fascinating attempt to look at monsters through the lens of American history, Reviewed in the United States on November 1, 2011. Another problem for Steve is that James King, a young Black hood, is Steves co-defendant. But he also shows that the monstrous can be sympathetic, that it can also be used by the oppressed to speak back to the mainstream. She continues to assert that Steve served as the lookout for the robbery and is as guilty as the others. Monstrosities exist in us and therefore they are all around us. Consulting newspaper accounts, archival materials, personal papers, comic books, films, and oral histories, Poole adroitly illustrates how the creation of the monstrous other not only reflects societys fears but shapes actual historical behavior and becomes a cultural reminder of inhuman acts.. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading American Monsters: A History of Monster Lore, Legends, and Sightings in America. Reviewed in the United States on December 3, 2017. Poole states that, in actuality, that the Europeans saw the natives as uncivilized people and even believed them to be monsters. is available now and can be read on any device with the free Kindle app. James King has his own lawyer, Asa Briggs. Steve tells his story through handwritten notes as in a journal and a typewritten screenplay. Reading this for research for a paper I am writing for a creative nonfiction class for college, but what an interesting book regardless! Monsters and American History W. Scott Poole offers many unique explanations for the creation and story telling of monsters in his essayMonsters in America.Poole examines the cultural history of the monster and how it intersects with American history. Monster is a 1999 young adult novel by Walter Dean Myers. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. A masterful survey of our grim and often disturbing past, Monsters in America uniquely brings together history and culture studies to expose the dark obsessions that have helped create our national identity. A.Universal white male suffrage B.Public education C.Child labor D.Temperance. I feel like three stars is generous for a book that did not bring me any new insights, but it was neither especially good nor especially bad. . The atheist taught that inflicting suffering while enjoying the process is human nature. Even fewer scholars do so as adeptly and as entertainingly as W. Scott Poole. Not only do they continue to live in our midst, but, as historian Scott Poole shows, these monsters are an important part of our pasta hideous obsession America cannot seem to escape.Pooles central argument in Monsters in America is that monster tales intertwine with Americas troubled history of racism, politics, class struggle, and gender inequality. Would that Poole could have written a chapter on one of the liberal American horror shows: 50 million babies slaughtered through this countrys abortion industry. It's rarely happy news being reported. Continue to start your free trial. A.Slavery B.States' rights C.Internal improvements D.Westward expansion. By entering your email address you agree to receive emails from SparkNotes and verify that you are over the age of 13. For the record, I'm *not* well versed on the horror genre due to my fear of almost every popular culture monster. Michelangelo Biographies Best Books on the Renaissance Artist! Hades Roman name: Pluto. Steve testifies that he did not take part in the drugstore robbery or discuss it with anyone before it happened. Definitely would recommend it as a quick read and dive into monster history, as well as a great resource to find other books the author recommends to look into more! on 2-49 accounts, Save 30% He states that he knows James King and Osvaldo Cruz, but only casually. Books About Race in America; Coretta Scott . They Poole offers an insight on America's fascination with monsters. Some of his writings can be accessed at www.warpandwoof.org. ", In 2014 he published _Vampira: Dark Goddess of Horror_ that looked at the life of 1950s horror host Maila Nurmi (a.k.a. Learn more how customers reviews work on Amazon, Baylor University Press (January 15, 2014). Want 100 or more? If one would like to get into the spirit of monster mania during Halloween, no better place to begin is with the books that generated monster madness: Dracula, Frankenstein, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, The Picture of Dorian Gray, and The Island of Dr. Moreau. )1980-present and discuss ways in which the monsters of the era are the products of historical change, conflict and context. These summaries should not . "Sick," published by Abrams/Amulet). Both belief about the supernatural and the supernatural itself creates creatures which slither into our thinking-being-behaving. Suppose someone wanted to trace American history through the common coffee cup. Full content visible, double tap to read brief content. Thanks for creating a SparkNotes account! From our colonial past to the present, the monster in all its various forms has been a staple of American culture. He compares himself with the other prisoners. Well-researched and insightful, the writing of the text is also energetic and engaging. One wishes for a consistency in commentary. Petrocelli also calls an eyewitness, Mrs. Lorelle Henry, to the stand. Forged from a partnership between a university press and a library, Project MUSE is a trusted part of the academic and scholarly community it serves. He wonders what OBrien saw. 2715 North Charles StreetBaltimore, Maryland, USA 21218. Lovecraft_. I am fiercely passionate about two things: History and Monsters. His footnotes have left me with a massive pile Poole walks readers through the American history of monsters, matching horror trends to American epochs, where it turns out our sociopolitical climate influences the monsters we laud and follow in fiction, film, and the media. If you're looking for an introductory book to the subject, it's a great resource. Michelle Shannon is licensed under a Interesting as a surface-level exploration of "Monster Theory". Which one would you like to know more about and why? From our colonial past to the present, the monster in all its various forms has been a staple of American culture. Academic, yet very accessible, I was fascinated by this book, and it holds a very special distinction as the only book I was required to buy for a college class that has earned a permanent place on my bookshelf now that the class is over. He is the author of several books, including a biography of H.P Lovecraft, which became a Bram Stoker award finalist, and Wasteland: The Great War and the Origins of Modern Horror. Poole does justice to judgment; the focus of some horror films. Discount, Discount Code He reveals how monster stories went west to Sand Creek and Wounded Knee, bringing the preoccupation with monsters into the twentieth century through the American Indian Movement. Usually just called Athena, this goddess emerges from Zeus's head fully-grown and armed. Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window), Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window), Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window), Click to share on Skype (Opens in new window), Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window), Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), When you get the opportunity to see your daughter, @muse and their #willofthepeopleworldtour was by f, @evanescenceofficial has been around for twenty ye, When you havent seen your favorite band live in, When your partner is obsessed with the Alex Murdau, Monsters in America: Our Historical Obsession with the Hideous and the Haunting, https://bookshop.org/shop/thatswhatsheread, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. I love ghost stories and folklore because they reveal an aspect of history and popular thinking in an entertaining way. Subscribe now. Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Highly recommended for horror or monster fans with an interest in American history; slightly less so for American history buffs with a hobby in monster entertainments. The history of America -- one fear, one monster, at a time. W. Scott Poole is Professor of History at the College of Charleston, where he teaches courses on monsters, pop culture, and American history. Monster presents through the obvious things, for example, krakens or werewolves. Whats worse is how these monster images exist even until today. During the robbery, Aguinaldo Nesbitt, the fifty-five-year-old owner of the store, was killed. From Victorian-era mad scientists to modern-day serial killers , new monsters appear as American society evolves, paralleling fluctuating challenges to the cultural status quo. This book is really good, a look at our monsters in a social conceptional way. Lovecraft in print. In a nutshell, monsters for Poole are metaphors / stand-ins for whoever is loathed or feared in a certain historical context. Suppose someone wanted to trace American history through the common coffee cup. She explains that some jurors have decided against him just because he is young and Black, so Steve has to make the jury see him as different from the other defendants. It is not a book on actual monsters but how Americans find monsters in different eras on social constructs. The atheist taught that inflicting suffering while enjoying the process is human nature. Petrocelli presents the charges against the defendants. Detectives Karyl and Williams describe their arrival at the crime scene. Acknowledgements: Thank you to Kelly Hughes from Dechant-Hughes for my review copy! Insightful and brilliant! The pages are littered with characterizations which demonize only a conservative set of ideas. Best Johnny Cash Books Biographies and More! Pooles excoriation of one homogenous grouping belies the essence of the problem which is our human nature. But real monsters collect different trophies; they are no laughing matter. as uncivilized people and even believed them to be monsters. Poole summarizes, Perhaps our own beliefs about monsters and their intractable nature help to produce the monsters we fear the most (164). [Pooles] book is sufficiently clear and engaging for general readers to enjoy and would make a worthwhile addition to undergraduate course in American history or culture. Instead of representing the "us vs them" mentality, monsters are much closer so home: they are us. Bolden testifies that he bought cigarettes from Bobo Evans and that Evans told him about the robbery. Social commentary may drive sub-text but money drives the movie. From 19th century sea serpents to our current Publishers Weekly session with vampires and zombies, Poole plots America's past through its fears in this intriguing sociocultural history. Steve is about to stand trial for felony homicide. A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Excellent study of the machinery of monsters and their meaning Help others learn more about this product by uploading a video! Before you get all "He's Anti-American!" It's a comprehensive look into ghoulish, weird, and woke world--10/10. to start your free trial of SparkNotes Plus. Thanks for exploring this SuperSummary Study Guide of "Monster" by Walter Dean Myers. Synopsis: From our colonial past to the present, the monster in all its various forms has been a staple of American culture. Monsters are not just fears of the individual psyche, historian Scott Poole explains, but are concoctions of the public imagination, reactions to cultural influences, social change, and historical events. This is an amazing book. IE- minorities = what we are anxious about / obsessed with = the monstrous = monsters. Dorothy Sayers Where to Start with her Mystery Novels? Antiracism Books for Christians A Reading Guide, Thomas Merton Books An Intro Reading Guide. A lot of people gave it poor reviews, maybe because they didn't like what the author plainly demonstrated, that the real monsters in America are the Americans, mainly the white Americans. A Midsummer Night's Dream (No Fear Shakespeare) by SparkNotes QUICK ADD Macbeth (No Fear Shakespeare) by SparkNotes QUICK ADD Hamlet (No Fear Shakespeare) by SparkNotes QUICK ADD Julius Caesar (No Fear Shakespeare) by SparkNotes QUICK ADD Othello (No Fear Shakespeare) by SparkNotes QUICK ADD Twelfth Night (No Fear Shakespeare) by SparkNotes For the next 7 days, you'll have access to awesome PLUS stuff like AP English test prep, No Fear Shakespeare translations and audio, a note-taking tool, personalized dashboard, & much more! Discount, Discount Code In his new preface and expanded conclusion, Pooles tale connects to the presentillustrating the relationship between current social movements and their historical antecedents. Poole seeks to undermine myths of American exceptionalism by locating monsters that he believes exist outside our psyche, in history. Ten Important Women Theologians To Start Reading. Unfortunately, however, the writing just reads as super amateurish and unnatural--to the point where your brain feels exhausted after slogging through only a couple pages. Through the two and a half weeks I took with this book, I have been citing it in conversation. From our colonial past to the present, the monster in all its various forms has been a staple of American culture. Not only do they continue to live in our midst, but, as historian Scott Poole shows, these monsters are an important part of our pasta hideous obsession America cannot seem to escape. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. Component 2: Summary. religious texts and newspaper accounts of "satanic panics" into a highly readable analysis of the concept of the devil in American cultural history. Poole's connection of the monster to American history is a kind of Creature Features meets American cultural history. Scott - For All Who Hunger - Feature Review, Mattix & Thomas, Eds - Christian Poetry in America Since, Copyright 2023 The Englewood Review of Books. I appreciated that in this second edition he shows how our language of the monstrous has played a role in instances like the police shootings of unarmed black people and how visions of dread play into Donald Trump's rhetoric. "Angels, Monsters, and Jews: Intersections of Queer and Jewish Identity in Kushner's "Angels in America."" PMLA 113, no. You can find more scary stories from him on Twitter: @monstersamerica. For Poole Halloween means more trick than treat; we discover that the monsters are us. Please try again. Petrocelli, the State prosecutor, calls more witnesses to establish the facts of the crime. Browning's research, including extensive field work in New Orleans, has uncovered a subculture of . I have read Mr. Poole's work before, so I knew I was in for a treat and I was right. W. Scott Poole is Professor of History at the College of Charleston. The kind of monsters depends on the era. This book is a wonderful introduction to American history through the lens of monsters. Not only is America guilty of creating its own horrors, failure to acknowledge monsters also creates them (23). The State rests its case. 62 reviews Salem witches, frontier wilderness beasts, freak show oddities, alien invasions, Freddie Krueger. Go to BN.com to get your copy of these helpful resources. If it bleeds, it reads. $18.74/subscription + tax, Save 25% I had to read this for a class (one I wasn't too stoked about, if I'm being honest) and went into it with a pretty closed mind. I loved this book. This item: Monsters in America: Our Historical Obsession with the Hideous and the Haunting by W. Scott Poole Paperback $34.99 The Monster Theory Reader by Jeffrey Andrew Weinstock Paperback $45.11 On Monsters: An Unnatural History of Our Worst Fears by Stephen T. Asma Paperback $28.95 What other items do customers buy after viewing this item? Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations. It was the first-ever Michael L. Printz Award recipient, an ALA Best Book, a Coretta Scott King Honor selection, and a National Book Award finalist. If specters of the past still haunt our present, they may yet invade our future. A well informed, thoughtful, and indeed frightening angle of vision to a persistent and compelling American desire to be entertained by the grotesque and the horrific. Pallas Athena Roman name: Minerva. This is such an interesting and compelling about our connection to the monstrous and the monstrous' role in expressing national anxieties in our popular media. The Monster feels completely alienated: "none among the myriads of men" will take pity on him. I used this as a textbook for a themed English course: Monsters, Myths, and Magic. Finally, in the new section "American Carnage," Poole challenges readers to assess what their own monster tales might be and how our sordid past horrors express themselves in our present cultural anxieties. Subscribe now. Wright Books An Introductory Reading Guide to The Theologians Work, Joy Harjo Poems Five of the Best Poems by the US Poet Laureate, John ODonohue Poems Four of our Favorites. As W. Scott Poole's text will serve as the conceptual framework for the course, this assignment seeks to promote regular critical engagement with the text. on me, relax. I seem to be having bad luck with books lately, but the writing style just didnt connect with me. New York: Theatre Communications Group, 2013. It was just way too "all over the place" for me. The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. The book's unusual range is one of its contributions; its freshness of juxtaposition is another. Steve calls the movie Monster because that is what the prosecutor has called him. I'm just saying that throughout the country's history, there have been some pretty dark times. The Monster argues that his murderousness is not his fault. The jury returns verdicts of guilty for James King and not guilty for Steve Harmon. And I don't have to mention the meaning of all the zombie movies. (The medical examiners evidence suggests that the shooter was probably right-handed.)
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