Scholars of the monstrous remind us that it tends to facilitate a rethinking of our ways of being in the world. To quote Jeffrey Jerome Cohen:

“A mixed category, the monster resists any classification built on hierarchy or a merely binary opposition, demanding instead a ‘system’ allowing polyphony, mixed response […] The horizon where the monsters dwell might well be imagined as the visible edge of the hermeneutic circle itself: the monstrous offers an escape from its hermetic path, an invitation to explore new spirals, new and interconnected methods of perceiving the world.”

In this sense, monsters are not only a manifestation of a crisis (and as such require a new approach to reality), but actually enable new approaches by questioning earlier categories through their very presence. The monstrous challenges our ways of making sense and at the same time opens them up to the possibility of new reconfigurations. This autumn a conference devoted to various dimensions of the monstrous will take place at the Institute, allowing you to use this opportunity.

We are still accepting contributions, so if you’re interested, get in touch, and even if you’re not, please help spread the word about the event. You will find more details at Time of Monsters conference – 16-17 November 2022, Bielsko-Biała, Poland (WWW) and Time of Monsters International Conference 16-17 November 2022 | Facebook We hope to see you in November!