The traditional monster theme is a predatory creature
slaying people. It may eat them. It may not. The people die regardless.
A monster may be an animal of a sort… or a person of a
sort. Its nature is primal regardless.
Monsters are often fond of women. They abduct them. Even
a dragon may take a maiden for a treasure. King Kong fancied human blonds. The
interest is sexual, of course.
Monsters may be victims of humanity and are provoked to
be monstrous. Frankenstein’s monster is not the only one.
Ordinary humans are helpless against monsters. Their only
hope is that they vastly outnumber their predator. Well, there may be a hero to
save the day.
Traditionally, the hero is the monster’s archenemy. A
human (such as Beowulf) or human-hybrid (such as Heracles) slays the slayer of
human beings. The hero’s motive may be questionable, but the deed is done
regardless.
What if the monster is a hero and its victims are the
baddies? I do not mean the monster is avenging itself. What if the humans are
doing evil and the monster strives to stop them… for goodness sake?
A heroic monster slaughters people as easily and readily
as a villainous monster does. The only difference is that a good monster kills
baddies and a villainous monster kills innocent people. The dynamic is the same
otherwise. The heroic monster may even eat villains or abduct their women.
A monster is a strange creature, especially if a person
of a sort. It is dangerous whether friendly or unfriendly. Its nature is
predatory. Humans are its natural prey… for better or worse.
We love monsters. We relate… to their victims. We are
thrilled by the danger and fascinated by the easy violence. We appreciate what
monsters do to us to make our lives exciting.
