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Monsters...and Our Worst Fears

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Actor Boris Karloff in the role of the Frankenstein monster, 1931.
Actor Boris Karloff in the role of the Frankenstein monster, 1931.

From ancient times to the latest slasher flick to "Where the Wild Things Are," we fear and revel in the hair-raising horror of the great beast, the unspeakable boogeyman, the terrifying other.

Even when the beast is us.

From the Minotaur to Frankenstein to Freddy Krueger, monsters rock and woo us. Tomorrow on Halloween, there will be plenty of little monster critters out with bags of candy. Today, we look at why.

This hour, On Point: A new history of monsters.

You can join the conversation. Tell us what you think — here on this page, on Twitter, and on Facebook.Guest:

Stephen Asma joins us from Chicago. He is a professor of philosophy at Columbia College in Chicago. His new book is "On Monsters: An Unnatural History of Our Worst Fears."

This program aired on October 30, 2009.

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