Overview

Religion, Culture, and the Monstrous: Of Gods and Monsters explores the intersection of the emerging field of ""monster theory"" within religious studies. With case studies from ancient Mesopotamia to contemporary valleys of the Himalayas to ghost tours in Savannah, Georgia, the volume examines the variegated nature of the monstrous as well as the cultural functions of monsters in shaping how we see the world and ourselves. In this, the authors constructively assess the state of the two fields of monster theory and religious studies, and propose new directions in how these fields can inform each other. The case studies included illuminate the ways in which monsters reinforce the categories through which a given culture sees the world. At the same time, the volume points to how monsters appear to question, disrupt, or challenge those categories, creating an 'unsettling' or surplus of meaning.

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9781793640260

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Reviews

""This is a collection I've been waiting on for years. The sacred and the profane have frequently created a unnatural union in our monsters. Scholars of a variety of disciplines have tried to make sense of where these lines meet. This volume, and the incredible collection of scholars found in it, moves beyond some of the iconic studies in the field, changing much of that we think we know about monsters, religion, the sense of the holy, and how all of these intersect in our personal and collective experience. New insights pop on every page and prepare to have older theories autopsied and buried. This book combined academic rigor with a profound sense of the dangerous cultural moment in which it appears, this book will make scholars and monster fans alike rethink what those bumps in the night really mean."" --W. Scott Poole, author of Wasteland: The Great War and the Origins of Modern Horror, College of Charleston Because of the wide range of religious perspectives, the book is suitable for anyone interested in the intersection of monster theory and religion. The book could be helpful to students of comparative religion and cross-cultural engagement (missions). Finally, the two chapters on Christianity, in particular, could be beneficial for biblical scholars and Christian theologians. -- ""Andrews University Seminary Studies"" Mikles and Laycock have gathered an impressive array of scholars to guide readers through stories of ancient Mesopotamia demons, seventeenth-century Japanese ghosts, American Bigfoot hunters, and other astounding and occasionally terrifying tales, revealing how often the monstrous and the religious intersect. Intellectually rigorous and often eminently entertaining, this trailblazing collection provides a much-needed methodological framework for the growing use of monster theory within religious studies.Of Gods and Monsterswill satiate those hungry to articulate why monsters matter and will demonstrate to those unaware why we must attend to these haunting, awe-inspiring junctions --Kelly J. Murphy, Central Michigan University

Author Information

Natasha L. Mikles is lecturer at Texas State University Joseph P. Laycock is associate professor of religious studies at Texas State University

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