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Monstrous Children and Childish Monsters
Essays on Cinema's Holy Terrors
Edited by Markus P.J. Bohlmann and Sean Moreland
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Book Presentation:
Perhaps because of the wisdom received from our Romantic forbears about the purity of the child, depictions of children as monsters have held a tremendous fascination for film audiences for decades. Numerous social factors have influenced the popularity and longevity of the monster-child trope but its appeal is also rooted in the dual concepts of the child-like (innocent, angelic) and the childish (selfish, mischievous). This collection of fresh essays discusses the representation of monstrous children in popular cinema since the 1950s, with a focus on the relationship between monstrosity and “childness,” a term whose implications the contributors explore.
About the authors:
Markus P.J. Bohlmann is professor of English at Seneca College, Toronto. He is on the editorial board for Red Feather Journal: An International Journal of Children’s Popular Culture and Children and Youth in Popular Culture.
Sean Moreland has published numerous essays, primarily on literary and cinematic horror, as well as poetry and short fiction. He is chief editor of Postscripts to Darkness (pstdarkness.com), and is on the editorial board for the Edgar Allan Poe Review.
Press Reviews:
"A must read because of its breadth, scholarly approaches, and accessible language"—Albeit Journal
"A welcome addition to horror film studies"—Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts
"Instructs, entertains and provokes…exciting and substantial collection…witty and perceptive…rich cinematic detail, provocatively argued theories and solid historical grounding combine to make Bohlmann and Moreland’s substantial collection an inspiring source of reference on the monstrous child. It is crucial reading for scholars of fantasy and horror. A valuable resource on popular culture representations of otherness."—Anna Powell, Research Fellow, Gothic Studies Centre, Manchester Metropolitan University
See the publisher website: McFarland & Co
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Toxic Imagination in Global Horror Cinema
by Patricia Saldarriaga and Emy Manini
The Politics of Monstrous Figures in Contemporary Cinema (2025)
Witches, Zombies, and Cyborgs Re-enchanting the Ends of the World
The Monster Always Returns (2017)
American Horror Films and Their Remakes
Monsters, Demons and Psychopaths (2016)
Psychiatry and Horror Film
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