{"id":14901,"date":"2023-06-27T08:25:00","date_gmt":"2023-06-26T22:25:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/?p=14901"},"modified":"2023-06-27T08:34:39","modified_gmt":"2023-06-26T22:34:39","slug":"monsters-are-metaphors-storytellingovertime","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/monsters-are-metaphors-storytellingovertime\/","title":{"rendered":"Monsters Are Metaphors! #StorytellingOverTime"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><a href=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/dinosaur.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/dinosaur.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14903\" width=\"480\" height=\"221\" srcset=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/dinosaur.jpg 640w, http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/dinosaur-300x138.jpg 300w, http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/dinosaur-150x69.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 480px) 100vw, 480px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">No matter how many monstrous creatures, villains or plagues we create in our imaginations, they are first and foremost reflections of what we most fear about society. Our evolving world might influence their shape and form over time, but they are still metaphors for our collective fears. Thus the 1830s folklore of \u2018<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Spring-heeled_Jack\" target=\"_blank\">Spring-Heeled Jack<\/a>\u2019 personified the frightening urban world of Victorian industrialisation, the 1954 film <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Godzilla_(1954_film)\" target=\"_blank\">Godzilla<\/a><\/em> represented the alarming power of nuclear power and radiation, and \u2018Big Brother\u2019 from George Orwell\u2019s 1949 novel <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Nineteen_Eighty-Four\" target=\"_blank\">Nineteen Eighty-Four<\/a><\/em> embodied fears of World War II totalitarianism and what that said of us as humans. With each monstrous story, we can thus find an opportunity to reflect on what monsters might tell us about our societies.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-full is-resized\"><a href=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/apocalypse.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/apocalypse.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14904\" width=\"320\" height=\"180\" srcset=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/apocalypse.jpg 640w, http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/apocalypse-300x169.jpg 300w, http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/apocalypse-150x84.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 320px) 100vw, 320px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Such stories also allow us to ask valuable questions about the real world, such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Where might we find hope when all else fails?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Which values might we seek to retain through a crisis, and which would we relinquish?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>At what cost would we protect what we cherish, and to what aim?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>After the societal breakdown that inevitably follows the impact of a significant &#8216;monster&#8217; \u2013 be it a single entity, invasion or plague \u2013 how might we find our way back to a civilised existence?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-medium\"><a href=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/When-Dark-Roots-Hunt-by-Zena-Shapter-RGB-scaled.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"196\" height=\"300\" src=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/When-Dark-Roots-Hunt-by-Zena-Shapter-RGB-196x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14824\" srcset=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/When-Dark-Roots-Hunt-by-Zena-Shapter-RGB-196x300.jpg 196w, http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/When-Dark-Roots-Hunt-by-Zena-Shapter-RGB-669x1024.jpg 669w, http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/When-Dark-Roots-Hunt-by-Zena-Shapter-RGB-768x1175.jpg 768w, http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/When-Dark-Roots-Hunt-by-Zena-Shapter-RGB-1004x1536.jpg 1004w, http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/When-Dark-Roots-Hunt-by-Zena-Shapter-RGB-1339x2048.jpg 1339w, http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/When-Dark-Roots-Hunt-by-Zena-Shapter-RGB-98x150.jpg 98w, http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/When-Dark-Roots-Hunt-by-Zena-Shapter-RGB-scaled.jpg 1674w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 196px) 100vw, 196px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At a recent writers\u2019 festival, I was asked about the world of Palude I created for <em><a href=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/portfolio\/when-dark-roots-hunt\/\">When Dark Roots Hunt<\/a><\/em>, and particularly its giant water-ants and carnivorous wyann trees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the real world, <a href=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/ants\/\">ants seem to follow me everywhere<\/a>, even nipping on my shoulder in the shower and biting my leg on planes! If I were truly the focus of their hunt, I would be terrified by how well they mobilise en masse \u2013 a worthy villain. Reminiscent, perhaps, of human armies and their relentless endurance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As for trees, although I absolutely adore being in nature, trees <em>are<\/em> intimidatingly long-living and impenetrable, with long roots reaching far out of sight \u2013 what if those long-living, impenetrable roots also reached for us? In such a world, how would we live? Would we bend it to our will, or succumb to its might? Is this a metaphor for our increasingly contemporary fear that nature might soon turn on us, toppling us from our status as invincible hunters, and instead making us the hunted?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Of course, more often than not \u2013 in both fiction and the real world \u2013 the truest monster is always human. Perhaps this is because we really are our own worst enemy, or perhaps it\u2019s because we cannot even imagine a world in which we are not in control of our own destiny. Either way, monsters and their stories can act as a guide to the dynamics of the society in which they\u2019re told, and an insight into our vulnerabilities \u2013 for in simply believing we\u2019ll always win over the monsters we create, we risk that one day we actually won\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Perhaps if you come to read <a href=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/portfolio\/when-dark-roots-hunt\/\"><em>When Dark Roots Hunt<\/em>,<\/a> you\u2019ll let me know what monster-metaphors you find.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">More #StorytellingOverTime Posts:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/who-is-your-hero-storytellingovertime\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"14885\"><em>Who is Your Hero<\/em><\/a> \u2013 all about the hero&#8217;s journey in stories<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em><a href=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/fear-of-the-unknown-fear-of-yourself-storytellingovertime\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"14897\">Fear of the Unknown, Fear of Yourself<\/a><\/em> \u2013 how we find a part of ourselves in wilderness stories<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em><a href=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/no-one-listens-to-change-storytellingovertime\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"14910\">No One Listens to Change<\/a><\/em> \u2013 how stories can test out elements of progress<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em><a href=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/the-power-of-love-betrayal-storytellingovertime\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"14906\">The Power of Love &amp; Betrayal<\/a><\/em> \u2013 how stories help us understand the complex nature of love<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em><a href=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/monsters-are-metaphors-storytellingovertime\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"14901\">Monsters are Metaphors<\/a><\/em> \u2013 how monsters are metaphors for the dynamics of society<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>No matter how many monstrous creatures, villains or plagues we create in our imaginations, they are first and foremost reflections of what we most fear about society. Our evolving world might influence their shape and form over time, but they are still metaphors for our collective fears. Thus the 1830s\u2026<\/p>\n<p class=\"continue-reading-button\"> <a class=\"continue-reading-link\" href=\"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/monsters-are-metaphors-storytellingovertime\/\">Continue reading<i class=\"crycon-right-dir\"><\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":14903,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"The next in my series of #StorytellingOverTime posts \u2013 how monsters are metaphors for the dynamics of society...","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[7],"tags":[2521,1448,2520,2522,2518,1532,2143,2505,2519,2448,2445],"class_list":["post-14901","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-writer-advice","tag-ants","tag-creatures","tag-godzilla","tag-human","tag-metaphors","tag-monsters","tag-nineteen-eighty-four","tag-society","tag-spring-heeled-jack","tag-trees","tag-when-dark-roots-hunt"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/dinosaur.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14901","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14901"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14901\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14999,"href":"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14901\/revisions\/14999"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14903"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14901"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14901"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14901"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}