Making the Monsters

Is the werewolf a symbol of our own desire to give in to our darkest selves, to rampage through the night with no control, and to be able to claim, “I had no idea what I was doing; it wasn’t me, it was the beast?”

Join Nikki as she explores the werewolf, an embodiment of the fight between man and beast.

Send questions or episode ideas to [email protected].

Want to read more? Check out these resources:

David Gilmore's Monsters: Evil Beings, Mythical Beasts, and All Manner of Imaginary Terrors. 

Brent A. Stypczynski's dissertation titled  "Evolution of the Werewolf Archetype from Ovid to J.K. Rowling" 

In this episode, Nikki shares her experience with the Tennessee version of Lizzy Borden at the haunted Happy Birthday House.

Who is the real monster-- the doctor or his creation? In this episode, Nikki explores Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.

Is she a fairytale creation of the Grimm brothers or truly the monster in the family?  In this episode, Nikki explores the evil stepmother.

In this bonus episode, Nikki shares true stories from her childhood.  From her oldest memory of a break-in to a terrible night at home with a babysitter, she explores a number of intruders in her childhood home.  Sometimes, the monster isn't hiding in the woods.

Why has the zombie permeated pop culture since the early 1900s?  In this episode, Nikki explores the archetype of the undead and how they are merely a reflection of what we fear we will become.

Follow the podcast on Facebook at www.facebook.com/makingthemonsters.
Send questions to [email protected]

Check out these resources:
https://www.psychologies.co.uk/self/why-are-we-scared-of-zombies.html
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/out-the-ooze/201810/why-we-fear-the-zombie-apocalypse
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brick-brick/201402/what-does-our-zombie-attraction-say-about-us
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/grand-rounds/201206/zombies-are-not-real

Do modern vampires suck? From a creature that made it rain blood to one that sparkles in sunlight, why has the vampire changed so drastically over time? In this episode, Nikki explores the vampire archetype, tracing its history from primitive man onward, while sharing her love of The Lost Boys, Joss Whedon, and a teenage boy who slept in a coffin.

Follow the podcast on Facebook at www.facebook.com/makingthemonsters.
Send questions to [email protected]

Check out these resources:
Iaccino, James F. Psychological Reflections on Cinematic Terror: Jungian Archetypes in Horror Films.Hort, Barbara.  Unholy Hungers.  New York: Shambhala, 1996. 

Heldreth, Leonard G., and Mary Pharr, eds. The Blood Is the Life: Vampires in Literature. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 1999.
Fountain, Jennifer A.  The Vampire in Modern American Media.  2000.  Dartmouth University. 29 March 2009.

Frost, Brian J. The Monster with a Thousand Faces : Guises of the Vampire in Myth and Literature /. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 1989. 

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