Freddy Krueger is the typical monster that provokes a feeling of disgust and rejection. He is, after all, meant to be a creation that unites detestable qualities. Not only is he physically repulsive, with his severely burnt skin, but is also regarded as sadistic serial killer. These characteristics, I believe were the reasons why I, as a little girl, was traumatized after watching A Nightmare on Elm Street. I was unable to regain my sleep for weeks . Every night, right after closing my eyes, I would have a vivid image of him wearing his green and red stripped sweater while holding his razor glove. At that moment I would instantly open my eyes. I couldn’t bear the idea that once asleep I would be dragged into a dream where there was the possibility of never waking up just as seen with the movie victims. However, as much as I resisted falling asleep I would inevitably do so after a few hours to soon be awaken by another nightmare. My fear, as a little girl, was specially a result of my feeling of vulnerability against his ability of only living in dreams making him unavoidable. The torture seemed to be eternal and it took me a long time to overcome the fear.

Evidently Krueger has characteristics of a typical monster, such as coming out during the night and having unnatural powers of deforming his own body. This, however, makes me wonder if just the mere fact he was a serial killer makes him a monster, can all serial killers be considered monsters or are they meant to have a form of physical defect? If so, are also supernatural powers such as the ones Freddy possessed of turning dreams into reality and immortality unnecessary to categorize someone as a monster? Moreover, it seems that most monsters, such as Freddy, become who they are as a result of a traumatizing experiences of their childhood. This drives me to my next concern of whether monsters are born or made, are they unfairly judged?