Re-Defining the Monster I: Mapping Diseased and Exotic Monsters

Sponsoring Organization(s)

Special Session

Organizer Name

Teodora Artimon; Andrea-Bianka Znorovszky

Organizer Affiliation

Trivent Publishing; Ca' Foscari Univ. Venezia

Presider Name

Andrea-Bianka Znorovszky

Paper Title 1

Nature versus Nurture in the Monstrosity of English Books that Mark the End of an Era: Frankenstein and Beowulf

Presenter 1 Name

Cassandra Ruiz

Presenter 1 Affiliation

Háskóli Íslands

Paper Title 2

The Monster Within: Death, Disease, and Demons in the Holkham Bible Picture Book

Presenter 2 Name

Lacy Gillette

Presenter 2 Affiliation

Florida State Univ.

Paper Title 3

Fadlan, Mandeville, and the Land of Darkness: The Medieval Making and Mapping of Semitic Monsters

Presenter 3 Name

Mary Katherine Hillman

Presenter 3 Affiliation

Univ. of Louisiana-Monroe

Paper Title 4

C'est une molt laide bete a veoir: The Unicorn between Monstrosity and Exoticism

Presenter 4 Name

Xavier Dectot

Presenter 4 Affiliation

National Museums Scotland

Start Date

10-5-2019 3:30 PM

Session Location

Schneider 2335

Description

The session debates on the various definitions of the concept of ‘monster.’ It also explores questions with regard to the formulation of the human body as a site of monstrous activity. Furthermore, it focuses on the connections between monstrosity and anti-Semitic feelings in the context of discoveries and conflict in late Medieval Christian and early Islamic travel narratives. The session will also examine otherness in relation to nature/nurture and the boundaries between the exotic/unusual and extraordinary/monstrous as reflected in the image of the unicorn. Teodora Artimon