When people hear or think of the word monster they instantly become fearful or scared.  Monsters are supposed to be scary, ugly, and creatures that shouldn’t exist.  In any sort of book, movie, or television show a monster is the cause of a lot of problems.  They are the reason why buildings are destroyed, people are frightened by them, and their physical traits alone are scary.  Unlike humans that are normally scared of monsters, the protagonists in the article are different.  Both of the sisters like the monsters because they can relate to them.

In Monsters by Tacey Rosolowski the sisters take on a liking for the monsters. Unlike most humans who would be terrified of them they actually enjoy watching the monsters.  When a monster dies or something bad happens to these monsters they become emotional and even sometimes cry about the outcome.  The sisters are trying to show how people become judgmental and worrisome about monsters because they don’t look like the rest of the world.  Big, scaly, or enormous were the words the protagonists used to describe the monsters. So because their physical features aren’t equivalent to what people see in others than they are automatically placed in the “monster category”.  The sister was fat is what her mother told her and she was placed on a diet.  She didn’t notice her weight or felt it was an issue because she was comfortable in her own skin.  That is the issue with lots of people in the world they become worried about their physical appearance.  Am I too big? Should I lose weight? can be common questions that plenty of human beings ask themselves.  The author reveals “If you couldn’t look like the slim, popular creatures in magazines and at school, the rationale went, this compulsive inactivity and self hatred was an important kind of activity.” (Page 284)  To the world the monsters were the problem but to the protagonists they were actually the superior ones.  The monsters were in society naturally and pure.  They knew who they were and remained true to themselves.  The ones that were the actors were the ones who took a daily count of their calories, strive to maintain an image, and do anything to keep up with the rest of the world.

Rosolowski touched on gender roles and physical features.  This is a world filled with both men and women but females are expected to take on way much more.  For example, if a boy smells then it is okay because he is a boy but if a girl smells she has poor hygiene.  There are lots of double standards when it comes down to females versus males and it starts at birth.  It starts when a baby boy wears the color blue and the baby girl wears the color pink.  If a new born girl has on the color blue she can easily be mistaken for a little boy.  That is some of the roles when it comes down to genders.  In addition, in order to be a model, an actress, a celebrity, or placed on a pedestal people must fit the image. It isn’t about their own personal choice but more of what society likes and they feed off from that.  As the author mentioned this is where adolescence, especially females begin to lose their innocence.   The author highlights “Adolescence transforms not only body image, but the intimate psychic places where girls live and generate the energy to actively reach out into the world.” (Page 284)  They begin to risk who they really are just to have a name for themselves and not feel out of place.  The sisters want to prove that shouldn’t be the case.  There isn’t anything wrong with remaining who you are.  if a person chooses to wear baggy clothes than that is there preference.  It shouldn’t make them feel less of a person.

1.) What defines a “perfect girl”? Which category were the sisters placed in?

2.) Why were  monsters so meaningful to the sisters?