MonsterFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaThis article is about legendary creatures and physical deformity. For other uses, seeMonster (disambiguation).

Allegoria dell'immortalit(Allegory ofimmortality), byGiulio Romano.Amonsteris any creature, usually found inlegendsorhorror fiction, that is often hideous and may produce fear or physical harm by its appearance and/or its actions. The word "monster" derives fromLatinmonstrum, an aberrant occurrence, usually biological, that was taken as a sign that something was wrong within the natural order.[1]The word usually connotes something wrong orevil; a monster is generally morally objectionable, physically or psychologically hideous, and/or a freak of nature. It can also be applied figuratively to a person with similar characteristics like a greedy person or a person who does horrible things.The root of "monstrum" is "monere"which does not only mean to warn, but also to instruct, and forms the basis of the modern Englishdemonstrate. Thus, the monster is also a sign or instruction. This benign interpretation was proposed by Saint Augustine, who did not see the monster as inherently evil, but as part of the natural design of the world, a kind-of deliberate category error.[2]Contents[hide] 1Definitions 1.1Classic monsters 1.2Single monsters 1.2.1Gigantism 1.2.2Repetition or deficiency 1.2.3Defective closure 1.2.4Hermaphrodites 1.2.5Origin of single monsters 1.3Double monsters 1.3.1Unequal double monsters 1.3.2Origin of double monsters 2Cultural history 3Monsters in fiction 3.1Film 3.1.1PreWorld War II monster films 3.1.2Post World War II monster films 3.2Prose fiction 3.3Games 4See also 5References 6External links