Imagining the monstrous other: An introduction to the research on the medicalized undead
Monsters are liminal subjects, whose ambivalent position challenges culturally established distinctions between the normal and abnormal, the ordered and disordered, and the healthy and unhealthy. They blur the lines between self and other, the familiar and the unfamiliar, and the “us” versu...
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| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Institute of Ethnography, SASA, Belgrade
2024-01-01
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| Series: | Glasnik Etnografskog Instituta SANU |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doiserbia.nb.rs/img/doi/0350-0861/2024/0350-08612403219M.pdf |
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| Summary: | Monsters are liminal subjects, whose ambivalent position challenges
culturally established distinctions between the normal and abnormal, the
ordered and disordered, and the healthy and unhealthy. They blur the lines
between self and other, the familiar and the unfamiliar, and the “us” versus
“them.” The indeterminacy of these categories embodies itself in what we
term „human monsters” — Individuals transformed into monsters after death.
These undead figures display the terrifying consequences of their
transformation, primarily through their uncanny appearance and identity
characteristics. This paper serves as an introduction to various
perspectives on monstrous Others and the medicalization of the undead
(mainly zombies). It aims to formulate initial hypotheses for researching
the impacts of disease, death, and monstrous transformation, including
bodily, identity, and cognitive characteristics that determine and redefine
our understanding of monstrosity and humanity. |
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| ISSN: | 0350-0861 2334-8259 |