Skräcklitteraturen har oftast tolkats som en oanvändbar del av skönlitteraturen för skolans undervisning, eftersom teman som skräcklitteraturen berör är svårdiskuterade i undervisningen. En del lärare har trots det sett skräcklitteraturens potential vid undervisningstillfällen. Vår studie pekar på att det finns hjälpmedel för läraren att använda i undervisningen som hjälper läraren att diskutera skräcklitteraturens teman. Studiens syfte är att undersöka hur skräcklitteraturen behandlas i forskningen för grundskolans årskurser 4–9. De två dilemman som finns för användandet av skräcklitteraturen i klassrummet som vi sett och som har varit grunden för forskningsfrågorna är kan skräcklitteraturen användas i undervisningen och vad innebär det för eleverna. I vår studie vill vi visa att det finns tillfällen för användning av skräcklitteraturen i klassrummet. De möjligheter vi presenterar underställs med forskningsfrågorna: ”I vilken utsträckning är eleverna intresserade av skräcklitteraturen och varför?”, ”Vad har forskare för litteraturdidaktiska teorier om skräckgenren?” och ”Vilka för- och nackdelar kan finnas med att använda skräckgenren i litteraturundervisningen?”. I studien har metoden Grounded Theory använts för att analysera och kategorisera 10 utvalda tidskriftsartiklar. Resultatet i studien visade att lärare med fördel kan använda skräcklitteratur i undervisningen.

This dissertation explores various characteristics that define the monstrous and the heroic — both on their own and in conjunction with each other — in three representative texts of the Middle Ages, the Old English 'Beowulf' (manuscript c.1000), the Persian epic, 'The Shahnameh' (c.1010) and Gottfried von Strassburg’s Middle-High German poem, 'Tristan' (c.1210), as it delves into the cataclysmic aftermath of their corporeal confrontation. At the core of this study of three linguistically and geographically different, yet thematically contiguous texts, lies the significance of corporeality in terms of its articulation of the heroic self and identification of the monstrous other. Far from being diametrically opposed, the heroic and monstrous bodies bear enough resemblance to justify René Girard’s use of the phrase ‘monstrous doubles’ in reference to the host of similarities they manifest in the course of their confrontations. However, as shall be demonstrated, heroic and monstrous bodies need not be engaged in a single battle to manifest signs of similitude. Particular properties, such as ‘gigantism’, could be read as tokens of heroism and monstrosity, depending on the context. In 'Beowulf', for example, both Beowulf and Grendel stand out on account of their massive bulk, yet the former is marked as heroic; the latter, as monstrous. Significantly, the hero’s monstrosity not only endows him with an advantage over his fellow-humans, but also facilitates his mastery of monstrous bodies. The conquest of monstrous bodies overlaps with other paradigms of power including mastery over land and women. Gigantomachia and dragon-slaying tend to be coterminous with territorial claims. It is no coincidence that colonized lands are marked by their so-called ‘monstrous’ inhabitants, for as such, their conquest is rendered as both an act of heroism and a means of purification. Indeed, the purging of lands is a primordial priority of the heroic mission. Paradoxically, however, the hero has to be stained by elements of monstrosity in the first place to succeed at monstrous confrontations and goes on to acquire even more monstrous characteristics in a process which leads to ‘sublation’, the incorporation of a concept by a subsequent one in a way that leads to the formation of a new concept manifesting features of both. A third zone of possibilities comes to the fore in the midst of the entanglement of heroic and monstrous bodies. The clash between the heroic and the monstrous bodies could be read as a fusion, a marriage, which gives birth to a third party, in this case, a ‘Third Space’, a zone of discursivity and hybridity arising from the confrontation of an ‘I’ and a ‘Thou’. Significantly, the ‘Third Space’, in being unstable and fluid, is both susceptible to and a harbinger of change. In light of the fluidity of this space, the dismemberment and incorporation of bodies marking monstrous encounters take on added significance. One of the primary consequences of monstrous conflicts is ‘incorporation’, a freighted term, as shall be argued in the final chapter. While ‘incorporation’ can take place at a simple corporeal level, including the acts of cannibalism interspersed in 'Beowulf' and 'The Shahnameh', it can also constitute a mental challenge, a fusion of two different horizons of understanding. After all, in being both 'mixta' and 'mira', monsters not only serve as obstacles to the heroic body, but also to the intellectual mind. Although reflective of the mutability of times and the incertitude of man’s life during what has come to be known as the monstrous Middle Ages, monsters continue to charm us with their composite and enigmatic essence up to this day.

This dissertation explores various characteristics that define the monstrous and the heroic — both on their own and in conjunction with each other — in three representative texts of the Middle Ages, the Old English 'Beowulf' (manuscript c.1000), the Persian epic, 'The Shahnameh' (c.1010) and Gottfried von Strassburg’s Middle-High German poem, 'Tristan' (c.1210), as it delves into the cataclysmic aftermath of their corporeal confrontation. At the core of this study of three linguistically and geographically different, yet thematically contiguous texts, lies the significance of corporeality in terms of its articulation of the heroic self and identification of the monstrous other. Far from being diametrically opposed, the heroic and monstrous bodies bear enough resemblance to justify René Girard’s use of the phrase ‘monstrous doubles’ in reference to the host of similarities they manifest in the course of their confrontations. However, as shall be demonstrated, heroic and monstrous bodies need not be engaged in a single battle to manifest signs of similitude. Particular properties, such as ‘gigantism’, could be read as tokens of heroism and monstrosity, depending on the context. In 'Beowulf', for example, both Beowulf and Grendel stand out on account of their massive bulk, yet the former is marked as heroic; the latter, as monstrous. Significantly, the hero’s monstrosity not only endows him with an advantage over his fellow-humans, but also facilitates his mastery of monstrous bodies. The conquest of monstrous bodies overlaps with other paradigms of power including mastery over land and women. Gigantomachia and dragon-slaying tend to be coterminous with territorial claims. It is no coincidence that colonized lands are marked by their so-called ‘monstrous’ inhabitants, for as such, their conquest is rendered as both an act of heroism and a means of purification. Indeed, the purging of lands is a primordial priority of the heroic mission. Paradoxically, however, the hero has to be stained by elements of monstrosity in the first place to succeed at monstrous confrontations and goes on to acquire even more monstrous characteristics in a process which leads to ‘sublation’, the incorporation of a concept by a subsequent one in a way that leads to the formation of a new concept manifesting features of both. A third zone of possibilities comes to the fore in the midst of the entanglement of heroic and monstrous bodies. The clash between the heroic and the monstrous bodies could be read as a fusion, a marriage, which gives birth to a third party, in this case, a ‘Third Space’, a zone of discursivity and hybridity arising from the confrontation of an ‘I’ and a ‘Thou’. Significantly, the ‘Third Space’, in being unstable and fluid, is both susceptible to and a harbinger of change. In light of the fluidity of this space, the dismemberment and incorporation of bodies marking monstrous encounters take on added significance. One of the primary consequences of monstrous conflicts is ‘incorporation’, a freighted term, as shall be argued in the final chapter. While ‘incorporation’ can take place at a simple corporeal level, including the acts of cannibalism interspersed in 'Beowulf' and 'The Shahnameh', it can also constitute a mental challenge, a fusion of two different horizons of understanding. After all, in being both 'mixta' and 'mira', monsters not only serve as obstacles to the heroic body, but also to the intellectual mind. Although reflective of the mutability of times and the incertitude of man’s life during what has come to be known as the monstrous Middle Ages, monsters continue to charm us with their composite and enigmatic essence up to this day.

Det här arbetet syftade till att undersöka om de skakningar och ryck som uppstår vid en dålig motion capture-inspelning, kan användas till fördel i skräcksammanhang och utveckla den skrämmande egenskapen hos en zombiekaraktär. Som bakgrund har undersökningen gått igenom litteratur kring Zombies, The uncanny valley, Das Unheimliche och deras förhållande till spel.Till det material som skapades till undersökningen genomfördes en motion capture-inspelning och sedan skapades tre stycken videoklipp föreställande en zombie. Datan ur inspelningen redigerades på tre olika sätt och varierade mängden ryckighet i zombiens rörelser. Undersökningen utfördes med intervjuer av både icke-skräckerfarana och skräckerfarna informanter.Resultatet visade att det klipp där skak och ryck tillförts uppfattades som mest läskigast av en majoritet av informanterna. Slutsatsen skulle däremot ha kunnat validerats i högre utsträckning med fler intervjuade informanter.

CAVALCANTE, João Vitor de Sousa. O acesso ao outro: monstro, fronteira e alteridade em Where the wild things are. 2015. 118f. – Dissertação (Mestrado) – Universidade Federal do Ceará, Programa de Pós-graduação em Comunicação Social, Fortaleza (CE), 2015. / Submitted by Márcia Araújo (marcia_m_bezerra@yahoo.com.br) on 2016-03-29T17:42:08Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2015_dis_jvscavalcante.pdf: 3760721 bytes, checksum: 7d7222ff3d8ebc7e4e44a4d59ccf83fe (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Márcia Araújo(marcia_m_bezerra@yahoo.com.br) on 2016-03-29T17:45:04Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 2015_dis_jvscavalcante.pdf: 3760721 bytes, checksum: 7d7222ff3d8ebc7e4e44a4d59ccf83fe (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-03-29T17:45:04Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2015_dis_jvscavalcante.pdf: 3760721 bytes, checksum: 7d7222ff3d8ebc7e4e44a4d59ccf83fe (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015 / A proposta desta pesquisa é discutir as figurações da monstruosidade na obra do ilustrador norte-americano Maurice Sendak, mais especificamente no livro Where the Wild Things Are, publicado em 1963. Ao analisar a relação entre o herói Max e os monstros com os quais lida em sua aventura, discutimos a presença dessas criaturas bestiais como mecanismos de fabricação da alteridade e como elementos de intersecção cultural, habitantes das zonas fronteiriças das culturas. Na relação com o monstruoso, a subjetividade não se assenta no caráter estável e agregador de uma identidade, mas sim na relação conflituosa e fragmentária da alteridade, em que o “outro” é sempre fabricado, configurando-se não apenas como limite, mas também como condição para o “eu”. O corpo do monstro evidencia o caráter fronteiriço do ser, como signos que deliram em zonas limítrofes. Esses elementos entram em conflito com a ordenação binária estabelecida pela cultura e desagregam dicotomias elementares tais como natureza e cultura, normal e patológico, homem e monstro. Empreendemos nossa investigação a partir de questões que tocam a visualidade das páginas ilustradas por Maurice Sendak. Assim, centramos nossa análise na relação intersemiótica entre os sistemas sígnicos verbal e icônico. Tomamos como âncora conceitual estudos que versam sobre palavra e imagem (Flusser, 2011; Nodelman, 2012), bem como trabalhos sobre monstruosidade (Cohen, 1996, 1999; Corno, 1997; Gil, 2006). Além desses autores, articulamos nossas reflexões pondo em diálogo as noções de fronteira e de semiosfera elaboradas pelo semioticista Iuri Lotman com o conceito de limite do filósofo espanhol Eugenio Trías e com categorias da Antropologia Social, notadamente alteridade e cultura.

This thesis examines the ways in which the rapid economic changes, as portrayed in two Costa Rican novels, Única mirando al mar (1993) and Los Peor (1995) by Fernando Contreras Castro, serve as solid foundation for laying out the deep-rooted economic and political challenges that have profoundly affected not only Costa Rican society but many of the national institutions. It focuses on revealing the uprising unfertile relationship between the residents and the governmental institutions, whose monstrous model of behavior are incompatible with the Costa Rican Constitution and thus, generating a systematic shift in the social norms. It explores the historical and literary Costa Rican context demonstrating how the narrative shade considerable light on the complex system of governance and its fragility in a democratic society. / Master of Arts / This thesis examines the institutions and the monstrosities in two Costa Rican novels—<i>Única mirando al mar</i> (1993) by Fernando Contreras Castro and <i>Los Peor</i> (1995) by Fernando Contreras Castro—to explore how the rapid economic changes under the neoliberal paradigm in Costa Rica have affected not only the most vulnerable sector of the population of this country but such affection has spread to all the internal institution of the nation.

This thesis aims to discuss the heroic and the monstrous aspects of Beowulf. In the heroic part, I will discuss Beowulf as a culture hero and a mythological hero; in the monstrous part, I will discuss Beowulf as a monster-man and monsters as man-monsters. Beowulf is about a hero who intends to prove himself by killing malicious monsters. The victory over the villains further brings Beowulf the character to the Geatish throne, though Beowulf¡¦s obsession with glory finally results in the fall of his kingdom. Beowulf¡¦s rise represents the rise of the Geatish kingdom and meritocracy; and his fall also triggers the fall of the kingdom. Beowulf¡¦s journey to the Danish kingdom also resembles Joseph Campbell¡¦s theories of mythological heroes. Beowulf has been regarded as a hero for decades, but however heroic, Beowulf embodies some monstrous tendencies. His rationale to kill repugnant monsters and gain glory in return does not work on the combat with Grendel¡¦s mother and the fire dragon, since the ogress kills Aeschere in order to avenge her only son¡¦s death; and the dragon causes strife because of the theft. The monsters, on the other hand, are somewhat heroic since they know the ethics of vengeance.

This thesis explores French philosopher Jacques Derrida’s ’hauntology’ through the lens of digital monsters and feminist theory. Hauntology – a pun on ‘ontology’ and ‘haunting’ – offers an ethics based on responsibility towards that which cannot be said to fully exist, yet has an effect on our everyday lives nonetheless. Like the figure of the ghost, such undecidable existences are neither absent nor present, here nor gone, of the past or the future. In other words: they haunt. By engaging with hauntology through contemporary stories of digital monsters – such as The Curious Case of Smile.jpg, Welcome to Night Vale and Mushroom Land TV - the thesis discusses how such troubling hauntings might be imagined, and what it means to think an ethics based on responsibility towards the undecidable. In this way, the thesis brings together hauntology and digital media, arguing that thinking with and through the figure of the ghost as well as the digital monster may lead to different and critical ways of imagining both the world and ethics. In short, drawing upon feminist theory and creative writing, the thesis maps out a relational ethics of hauntings and internet story-telling. / Denna avhandling utforskar den franske filosofen Jacques Derridas ’hauntologi’ genom digitala monster och feministisk teori. Hauntologi - en ordlek på ontology och haunting - erbjuder en etik som bygger på ansvar gentemot det som inte kan sägas helt existera, men ändå har en effekt på vårt dagliga liv. Liksom figuren ’spöket’ är sådana obestämbara existenser varken frånvarande eller närvarande, här eller borta, i det förflutna eller framtiden. Med andra ord: de hemsöker. Genom analyser av samtida berättelser om digitala monster - som The Curious Case of Smile.jpg, Welcome to Night Vale och Mushroom Land TV - diskuterar avhandlingen hur sådan oroande hemsökelser kan bli föreställda, och vad det innebär att tänka en etik baserad på ansvar gentemot det obestämbara. På detta sätt sammanför avhandlingen hauntologi och digitala medier ihop för att argumentera att akten att tänka med och genom spöket som figur och det digitala monstret kan leda till annorlunda och kritiska sätt att föreställa sig både världen och etik på. Avhandlingen bygger på feministisk teori och kreativt skrivande för att utforska en relationell etik baserad på hemsökelser och internet-berättelser.

Denna studie undersöker korrelationen mellan en ökad grad av sexualisering av kvinnliga monster och obehagskänslor. Artefakten som skapades för detta syfte bestod av fem versioner av en monsterdesign i olika grader av sexualisering. 16 personer deltog i studien och resultaten visar att obehagskänslor påverkas av en högre grad sexualisering, men det finns ingen påtaglig skillnad i hur de olika könen upplever ett sexualiserat kvinnligt monster. Undersökningen baseras på forskning kring monstruös kvinnlighet och dess plats i skräckgenren. Artefakten som skapades inspirerades bl.a. av Silent Hill 2 (Konami, 2001) och dess karaktärsdesign för dess kvinnliga monster. Denna undersökning kan användas i syfte av en större utredning gällande genus och hur de olika könen och olika sexualiteter uppfattar sexualiserade kvinnliga monster. De applicerade teorierna hade även kunnat användas för en undersökning om stigmatisering av mental sjukdom i skräckgenren.

The film Monster (USA, 2003) is based on the life of Aileen Wuornos, the Florida prostitute who was one of the few documented female serial killers in the United States. The scriptwriter and director of the film, Patty Jenkins, surprisingly centered the film on a love story, instead of assuming the role of judge or advocate towards the actions of Wuornos. After a flash back sequence that recreates the childhood of Lee (Charlize Theron), the film opens as Lee meets Selby (Christina Ricci), a young and immature lesbian in a bar. Lee responds very rudely and defensively to the clumsy flirtation of Selby, as she does not think of herself as gay and her life as a prostitute has made her very hostile towards society. However, Lee opens up to Selby, as she perceives her as her last chance to find Love. Patty Jenkins cinematically evokes Lee’s hopelessness and despair before meeting Selby in order to emphasize the importance of this same-sex relationship. For Lee, Selby is the innocent child that she has to protect and save, a symbol of the child she once was herself. Inspired, she goes out to work on the highway to earn money for their first date, and a client beats her unconscious, ties her up, rapes her with a tyre iron and pours petrol over her. Fearing for her life, Lee shoots him, and then takes his car and wallet. As her relationship with Selby develops, she enters into the role of provider and protector. After her brutal encounter, she is scared of the streets and makes an attempt to go straight. However, 3 in her attempt to look for a proper job she encounters social rejection and brutalization. Pressurized by her new girlfriend to provide money, Lee goes back to prostitution. However, her last traumatic experience with the rapist john makes her believe that all her clients might turn out to be abusive, which provokes in her a desire for revenge and killing. Unable to stop, she robs her victims to provide for her girlfriend and believes that she can identify which clients deserve to die. After the killing of an innocent man, she is turned over to the police by Selby. Monster is not about sensationalism, but rather portrays the intimate tragic story of a human being who became a serial killer, due to a combination of bad social and personal pathologies. The Meaning of the Form: The aim of this thesis is to explore the representation of women and aggression in Patty Jenkins’ film Monster. I will argue that, while the female characters in Monster do not escape the conventional portrayal of women within the dominant Hollywood cinema, their portrayal does nonetheless create a ‘non-normative’ representation. By exploiting the classical narrative and a particular model of representation of women, Jenkins creates a cinematic text which attacks the patriarchal principles grounding the model. Therefore, the main argument of this thesis will be that Jenkins uses the Hollywood system of narration and representation of women in order to subvert and criticize it. Ultimately she is using the film as means to critique the patriarchal violence within American society itself. In order to substantiate my argument, I will first look at the conventional representation of women in fiction-film genre1, and will then investigate how the performance of aggression is constructed within the film. The film represents aggression as a social phenomenon that develops into a pathological behavior. By establishing the history of the general phenomenon of female aggression, I will examine its specific representation in my film case study Monster. Although the film introduces different female characters that each have their particular expression of aggression and representation, the primary focus of analysis will be Lee, the main character of the film.