We love them. We love watching them. We love following them in secret as they commit all kinds of terrible crimes. Things we'd never dream of doing...right?We fear for Norman Bates when the car stops sinking for a brief moment in the swamp behind his house.
We envy Hannibal Lecter's sophistication and intellect.
We feel the adrenaline rush when Dexter is finished stalking and finally lays the next deserving victim down on his table.
We watch in triumph as a young Lisbeth Salander tosses a carton of gasoline and a lit match through an open car window, savoring her victory as the flames that engulf the driver burn in her eyes.
What is the matter with us? Are we all longing to do these evil things ourselves? Are we just products of an increasingly violent society that demands constant escalation to combat our desensitized palettes? Or are we attracted to these characters because we know we will never do the things they do?
More than anything else, I believe these literary and cinematic monsters remind us of the depths of our humanity. That sounds a bit dramatic, but think. Monsters defy unbelievable odds just to survive. They all carry dark secrets. Some boast of what they've done, desperate for attention. Others cling to secrecy, terrified of being discovered for what they really are. All desire to be loved in one way or another. All desire to be remembered. Origins and secrets. Actions and reactions. Survival. Love. Legacy.
The devils we aren't merely afraid of -- the ones who make our pulses race before even lifting a finger, the ones we long to understand -- they're all holding up broken glass and forcing us to look at our own reflections. How far could we go to survive? Will we allow circumstances to dictate our lives or will we take control? Do we follow a code like Dexter or are we aimlessly chasing cars like the Joker? Do we only see the worst of our own natures and overlook the chance for redemption?
Don't dismiss these monsters as preposterous childhood imaginings run wild or perverse creations with which we have nothing in common.
They have a lot to teach us about ourselves.
Maybe that's what makes them so scary.
