"Do you know you are very strong?": Rethinking identity and monsterhood

[schmerica]

The Monster at the End of This Book by Jon Stone is a classic text in Muppet studies, standing out as one of the seminal works in the genre. The story, as such, consists of "lovable, furry old Grover" breaking the fourth wall to conduct a conversation with the reader. Since the title frightens Grover, he begs the reader not to continue on with the story -- a desire that obviously never be fulfilled, as the pages continue on, nonetheless. In a way, then, the entire book can be seen as a sadistic exercise; in order to engage with the text, it is necessary for the reader to indeed actively torture the helpless Grover, even as he goes to extraordinary lengths to avoid his fear.

This is far from the most disturbing aspect of the book, however, as a closer analysis shows. Of The Monster at the End of This Book's twenty pages, eighteen are devoted to Grover's fear and anxiety of monsters. The final two pages conclude the story with a seemingly happy ending, as Grover is relieved to discover "[he], lovable, furry old Grover [is] the monster at the end of this book. And you were so scared!" (Stone 19). Instead of bringing the story to a satisfying conclusion, however, these pages instead seem to recontextualize the entire work. Grover is himself a monster, and yet the first thing he admits to us is that "Oh, [he is] so scared of Monsters!!!" (Stone 1). In this light, the entire work seems to be an obvious exploration of Grover's internalized self-loathing. One can imagine the same story told from the perspective of a gay person, or a Jewish one, or a member of any other minority group towards its other members, and the result is equally disturbing.

Grover's lack of identification with his monster self is not only evidence of his prejudice, but also raises questions about his level of assimilation with the larger, non-monster community. The audience for the book is clearly intended to be solely made up of non-monsters, and Grover joins himself immediately to this group and denying his own heritage as he allies himself with the majority. The greater social prejudices towards monsters, then, do have huge personal effects on the individual Muppet, and Muppets studies definitely requires further analysis into this promising field.

fox1013 made me.

Comments

[fox1013.livejournal.com]

I love you like cake.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

*BEAMS*

...You should totally write a rebuttal, now.

[china_shop]

Heeee! You win!

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

Yays! What exactly is it that I win?

[marginalia.livejournal.com]

my childhood is just not at all what i thought it was.

...

i. um. am kind of disturbed that this is my only muppet icon.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

*giggles* It does make your point a little less convincing.

[mergatrude.livejournal.com]

COOKIES! for you!

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

YAY COOKIES!

[leld.livejournal.com]

I realize you don't know me but... I think I love you. Because this is made of awesome.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

[corinna-5.livejournal.com]

There Is A Monster At The End of This Book, actually.

I just bought a copy for my nieces, and was struck by its formal postmodernism, which of course allows Grover to move from abjection to denial by transferring his anxiety of the self directly onto the reader, and also implicates the reader directly in the social structures that create his abjection. In the end, the act of recognizing himself as the structuring monstrosity of the text, much like the Lacanian mirror stage, ends up being his way of entering into language and subjectivity.

Plus, the girls really like Grover, although not as much as they love Elmo.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

I went with The Monster at the End of the Book because that's what was on the cover, according to the scans of the book in the link above. I don't have a hard copy handy, alas.

Also, you get two thumbs up. Woot.

[rubynye.livejournal.com]

I am deeply impressed. Also, rather terrified.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

*beams* I totally approve of that response!

[janet-carter.livejournal.com]

Oh, poor Grover! Although one could argue that, within the context of the Muppet subculture, a context that is strangely absent from this particular text, the idea of "monsterness" has been reclaimed.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

That is an EXCELLENT point! <3<3<3

[hobbledehoy.livejournal.com]

oh my goodness, ericapup!

umm, what else. oh, lemony snicket and the please-stop-reading.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

Ooh, yes, Lemony Snicket also has the interesting narrative structure! Although he seems to be trying to make us stop reading for our own good, not for his, which is an interesting difference.

[anotheryourself.livejournal.com]

puck made me read this and it is GREAT, and i think i remember having lots of these these thoughts when i was little... except not like a paper.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

*giggles* I didn't actually have the thoughts in paper-form either, but Fox made me write them that way, because she is bossy.

[lynnmonster.livejournal.com]

I want to frame this.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

*beams*

[ellenore.livejournal.com]

This is genius.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[dine.livejournal.com]

you? are v. v. geeeeenius! once I started reading, I couldn't stop giggling at the academic-speak analysis - so brill!

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

Heh, thanks!

[sdwolfpup.livejournal.com]

*affixes shiny gold "Best Post Of The Day" sticker to this post*

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

eeeeee, yay! I love shiny stickers!

[bathsweaver.livejournal.com]

::anime eyes::

But...but at the end, he realizes monsters are nothing to be afraid of, that he is nothing to be afraid of, after all?

::desperately textwanks::

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

I suppose the text is rather ambiguous at that point, actually. Hmm.

[petronelle.livejournal.com]

I am suddenly grateful that my liberal arts education was inflicted on me because it permits me to be properly appreciative of your brilliance.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

Score one for liberal arts!

[ellen-fremedon.livejournal.com]

Clearly, your liberal arts education has prepared you to WIN AT LIFE. *fangirls*

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

Man, and people act like it never comes in handy for anything! In your face, practical people!

For the win!!!

[the-star-fish.livejournal.com]

I am never ever navigating away from this page. Ever.

::moves in::

Re: For the win!!!

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

*fluffs up the pillows and brings you a cookie*

[hoeyon.livejournal.com]

This is just awesome.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

it's so. TRUE.

[raucousraven.livejournal.com]

But then, isn't Grover's self-loathing the defining factor of his half-conscious identification as monster? If he accepts that monstrousness, does it not automatically cease to be monstrous, at least within his perception?

...Also, the words Muppet and seminal in the same sentence are seriously breaking my brain. Er, what's left of it *resumes helpless laughter*

Re: it's so. TRUE.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

*giggles* I do what I can!

[ladyvyola.livejournal.com]

Dammit, how come one never has a "You are interrogating this text from the wrong perspective"/Anne Rice batshit icon when one needs it?

Gold star, pat on the head, cookies for you, etc!

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

I bask in your praise!

[brownbetty]

I'm sorry, but we have RUN OUT OF THINGS FOR YOU TO WIN.

:very sad:

[hobbledehoy.livejournal.com]

oh no! :: gestures to their next comment ::

[hobbledehoy.livejournal.com]

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

I shall wear it proudly!

[roguewords.livejournal.com]

*memories this*
Because, yes.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

*grins*

[brermatt.livejournal.com]

I would be remiss if I did not post the lyrics to Grover's companion song "Monster in the Mirror."

You will have to discern for yourself if it indicates a breakthrough for Grover... Wubba wubba therapy may be a viable countermeasure to minority discrimination.

"The Monster In The Mirror"
Words by Norman Stiles
Music by Christopher Cerf
sung by Grover

Saw a monster in the mirror when I woke up today
A monster in my mirror but I did not run away
I did not shed a tear or hide beneath my bed
Though the monster looked at me and this is what he said:

He said "Wubba wubba wubba wubba woo woo woo"
Wubba wubba wubba and a doodly do
He sang "Wubba wubba wubba" so I sang it too
Do not wubba me or I will wubba you
Do not wubba me or I will wubba you

Told the monster in the mirror, "No, I am not scared"
Then I smiled at him and thanked him for the song that we had shared
Well, the monster thanked me too, he smiled right back and then
The monster in the sang his song again

He said "Wubba wubba wubba wubba woo woo woo"
Wubba wubba wubba and a doodly do
He went "Wubba wubba wubba" so I sang along
Yes, wubba wubba wubba is a monster song
Wubba wubba wubba is a monster song

Wubba wubba wubba wubba woo woo woo
Wubba wubba wubba and a doodly do
He went "Wubba wubba wubba" and I sang along
Wubba wubba wubba wubba wubba wubba
Yes, wubba wubba wubba is a monster song
Wubba wubba wubba is a monster song

If your mirror has a monster in it, do not shout
This kind of situation does not call for freaking out
And do nothing that you would not like to see him do
'Cause that monster in the mirror he just might be you

Singing "Wubba wubba wubba wubba woo woo woo"
Wubba wubba wubba and a doodly do
Wubba wubba wubba you can join in too
Wubba wubba wubba wubba wubba wubba
Yes, if you wubba me then I will wubba you
If you wubba me then I will wubba you

Going wubba wubba wubba is the thing to do
Everytime you wubba us we'll wubba you