Female monsters and their scary bodies
When I was in high school I had strange, conflicting opinions about my own sexuality. On one hand, I thought that I looked good and had matured well, but on the other hand I felt like everybody was trying to shame me for it. The kids I worked with told me I looked ugly without makeup and my friends told me I looked weird with makeup. I felt like my femininity was a bad thing no matter how I sliced it, and whenever I felt attractive I was shamed for it.
This all reached a height when a guy who I thought was my friend told me that he was tired of me “seducing” him all the time without ever putting out. This prompted him to nickname me “The Succubus.” I had no idea what to think. Did this mean that he found me attractive? For a self-conscious 17-year-old, I felt kind of flattered, but he was basically calling me a monster, and saying that my sexuality was threatening to him — just as female sexuality has scared men for years.
A succubus is a made-up female monster that preys on sleeping men in their dreams and feeds off their sexual energies causing men to physically and sexually deteriorate. In the past, succubi were repulsive creatures that barely resembled humans. Today, they are often portrayed as beautiful, scantily-dressed seductresses with perfect bodies. I wonder which one that guy was referring to when he gave me that nickname.
This all got me thinking about female monsters and the demonization of female sexuality in the past. For the life of me, I can’t think of a single female monster that isn’t gross or sexually twisted or just downright sexist. Female monsters are few and far between in the first place and many of them are seductresses.
In Greek mythology, for example, Sirens sat on rocks and lured men to their deaths. One of Odysseus’ girlfriends, Circe, was a witch/nymph seductress who was impressed with Odysseus for being able to resist her sorcery and sexuality.
Then there’s the persecution of witches in the 1400s. Women who didn’t conform to their roles at the time were accused of being witches and burned at the stake. Some women were considered too beautiful or too ugly, and therefore believed to be witches. If a woman was smart, she was also accused of witchcraft. And to this day we dress up as ugly green hags for Halloween and say we look like witches.
These sexist portrayals of women continue to this day. I don’t watch many horror movies, but I feel the need to bring up Jennifer’s Body. I used to love this movie, and not just because I love Amanda Seyfried and Megan Fox. The movie’s about a possessed teenager who seduces her male classmates then murders them during sex. The movie was made for entertainment purposes, but the literal demonization of the high school slut grosses me out now that I’ve grown up.
Now, I’m not trying to dampen the fun or stop anyone from dressing how they want for Halloween, but I think it’s important to be aware of this problematic history. The truth of the matter is that sexism kind of ruined monsters for me. There just aren’t many unproblematic female monsters.
So, seductress or not, I eventually reclaimed my appearance. If being confident and attractive scares people, I say let them be scared. I know that looking good doesn’t mean I owe anyone anything, and I know there’s nothing wrong with that. Female monsters may be demonised for their sexuality, but all that really means is that there is nothing scarier to the patriarchy than strong women who are comfortable in their own skin.
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