Monsters in the Classroom: Essays on Teaching What Scares Us

“[The essays] usefully, insightfully, and often ingeniously, demonstrate how a wide range of existing theoretical work on monstrosity can be productively employed in a variety of classroom contexts.”—Sean Moreland, University of Ottawa. “A strong collection that is truly pedagogical insofar as it provides concrete tools...syllabi, assignments, etc....for educators of all levels. It also folds in scholarship, as the two go hand-in-hand.—Lisa Nevarez, Siena College. Exploring the pedagogical power of the monstrous, this collection of new essays describes innovative teaching strategies that use our cultural fascination with monsters to enhance learning in high school and college courses. The contributors discuss the implications of inviting fearsome creatures into the classroom, showing how they work to create compelling narratives and provide students a framework for analyzing history, culture, and everyday life. Essays explore ways of using the monstrous to teach literature, film, philosophy, theater, art history, religion, foreign language, and other subjects. Some sample syllabi, assignments, and class materials are provided.