Honors Program Theses

Award/Availability

Open Access Honors Program Thesis

First Advisor

Philip Hopper

Keywords

Monster films--History;

Abstract

In the following pages, dear reader, you will be astounded, mystified, entertained, and intrigued. Using Stephen King’s three monstrous archetypes outlined in Danse Macabre as a guide, and the 1930’s Universal Monster Films as a starting point, I trace the roots of the Vampire, Two Faced, and Thing Without a Name through time and space. Along the evolutionary track of these archetypes, I touch on changes regarding perception and performance, in relation to social and historical shifts. I will be your guide exploring the scenery, costuming, sound design, and cinematography (to name a few) as I examine each film within an evolutionary track, and chart the dynamic differences that emerge. The following pages are a culmination of my observations, while seated for many hours in front of my Macbook, with childlike fascination pondering what makes the monsters scary, and how they’ve prevailed as characters for 90 years.

Year of Submission

2023

Department

Department of Communication and Media

University Honors Designation

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the designation University Honors

Date Original

5-2023

Object Description

1 PDF file (1 volume (unnumbered))

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