Hey everyone! 

I'm Anthony Rodriguez, a senior from San Francisco majoring in Business Management Economics. To share a bit about myself, I enjoy exploring the city's diverse foodie scene as well as  riding my motorcycle through the windy roads of San Francisco. This class excites me because it's something I never anticipated taking during my college journey.

Reflecting on my experiences with the concept of "monsters," I realize my childhood was filled with imagination rather than fear. Rather than being frightened by a specific monster, I would construct them in my mind, some features that I found terrifying: multiple arms, sharp teeth, and enormous eyes. The darkness amplified these fears, creating a sense of vulnerability where I felt unseen by these imagined creatures.

Conversely, when thinking about a monster that empowers me – a question that initially puzzled me – I think of Mike Wazowski. This character represents a type of monster that is less intimidating: small, round, and unthreatening. His appearance provides a sense of control and diminishes the fear typically associated with monsters. In this way, Mike Wazowski symbolizes a "powerful" presence, one that doesn't evoke fear but rather a sense of assurance.

Hello! My name is Jaden and I am a 4th year sociology major from the Bay Area. I transferred to UCSC last winter quarter and I now work as a rock climbing instructor at Agility Boulders and Adventure Out LLC. When I was younger one of my biggest fears was of deep water. Specifically of a monster of some kind grabbing me. I was terrified of the ocean and always found an excuse to stay on dry land during beach trips. I guess that feeds into my fascination with the Loch Ness Monster. Most monsters that I heard about as a kid were always undoubtedly fake. Frankenstein's monster, werewolves, and vampires were always unquestionably fake. I never for a second thought that they might be real and pose a threat to me. But the Loch Ness Monster always had some plausibility in it. There was always a consideration that it might actually be real, and there still is. Many of the monsters that we discuss are based on ancient literature or folktales. But the Loch Ness Monster is more modern, realistic, and thus more scary. My contribution to this website was the background research on "The Call of Cthulhu" and the sociofunctionalist research on the overall mythos. 

Hi! My name is Emily Candela and I’m a second-year student double majoring in Latin American Latino Studies and Psychology! I’m super excited to be taking this course because it seemed super fun while also being super fascinating. When I was younger I was never really scared of the basic monsters, like zombies, Frankenstein, werewolves, etc. However, I was always (and sometimes still am) afraid of the dark. Not just because it was dark, but what I believed would reside in the dark. I had a great fear of a hidden figure or creature lurking in the dark and coming out to grab me and take me away. This fear also went hand in hand with my fear of ghosts. I grew up in a family that fully believed that ghosts were real, my parents would constantly mention the supernatural and things of that nature, so I was constantly afraid that an evil spirit or something along those lines would either haunt me, possess me, or kill me. The idea of a hidden or shielded monster or creature lurking and preparing to attack me filled me with so much dread Growing up that fear developed into more of a fascination with the supernatural. I love learning about people’s beliefs regarding ghosts or seeing articles and different media discussing them. 

Hello! 

I'm Mariah and I'm a first year here at UCSC hoping to major in psychology. 

When I was a kid, there were never really any monsters that incited any fear in me. I was very aware as a child that monsters weren't like the ones I'd see in movies and that there wasn't any proof of monsters from old legends to be true. Instead, any monsters I encountered through different media made me curious. I wanted to know how something like that could exist and wondered why they were so feared. Big monsters like Kaiju monsters fascinated me because I knew they weren't real, but someone had the imagination and creativity to think of such a monster. Through reading or looking deeper into the monster, it was obvious that many had some kind of tragic backstory or lore as to why they were the way they were. I felt empathy for the monsters since many were just misunderstood or mistreated. Many were created to be monsters by those around them. Monsters that make me feel powerful are any female presenting monsters. A specific one that makes me feel powerful is Mothra. Mothra doesn't have the typical appearance of most Kaiju monsters. She is small and looks weak, but in reality is really strong and intelligent.

My name is Jonah and I’m a freshman at UCSC with a proposed film and digital media major. I am very interested in the role of monsters in fictional stories and the things that they can tell us about the people who invented them. When I was growing up, I lived in Southern Germany and was exposed to many German children’s stories that scared me. The monster that scared me the most was Knecht Ruprecht. Knecht Ruprecht was a clawed goat-like monster that would visit during the winter and punish naughty children. He would hit naughty children with a bundle of sticks and even kidnap some in his sack to take back to his lair. Although I was never fully convinced that he was real, the thought that he might be scared me. Knecht Ruprecht is still very interesting to me because he shows the lasting influence of old Bavarian traditions in Germany, even in non-bavarian regions. Another monster that has always fascinated me is the Hydra. The idea of a monster that only becomes more powerful when you fight it is terrifying. Its unique ability forces the hero fighting it, Hercules, to think about other strategies to defeat it which shows the value that Greek culture put on problem-solving.

I was born in Chicago, Illinois, and lived there until I was 8 when I moved to California. I’ve lived all around the Bay Area since. I am currently planning on majoring in Art with a possible focus in botanical illustrations. I love to explore and collect bones, rocks, feathers, plants, mushrooms, etc. I tend to start many things and never finish them; I have a lot of half-finished books, art and sewing projects, the list goes on. As a kid, my favorite monster that I would dress up as every Halloween would be a witch. My little self loved witches for the sole reason that they were powerful women who were outcast because of their strangeness hand in hand with the unknown. Once I really dove into the history of the Salem witch trials I viewed them in a different light; the connection of witches to inherent femininity and how women have been historically shunned is apparent and another reason why witches are my favorite monsters nowadays. They display not only a true part of history but a powerful symbol of what being a woman can mean.