Monster

This article is about monsters as a kind of hostile legendary creature. For other uses, see Monster (disambiguation).

Monster (lat. monstrum) is a term for any number of legendary creatures that frequently appear in mythology, legend, and horror fiction. They are also a mainstay of role-playing and video games. "Monster" usually, but not always, implies that these creatures are larger than human size. It almost always implies that the creatures are powerful and hostile to the hero, and must be overcome to succeed in the quest.

Occasionally, there are monsters who act out of legitimate motives and their monsterous appearance leads to serious misunderstandings. One well known example is the Horta in the Star Trek episode, "The Devil in The Dark".

Well-known monsters

• Bigfoot
• Bogeyman
• Cthulhu
• Frankenstein's monster.
• Godzilla (see Toho Studios; kaiju)
  • Gamera
  • Mothra
  • Rodan
• Gorgon
  • Medusa
• Grendel
• Hydra
• Jabberwock
• King Kong
• Loch Ness monster
• Roc
• Scylla & Charybdis
• Sphinx
• Tarasque

Famous stories involving monsters

• The myth of Bellerophon
• Beowulf
• The Call of Cthulhu
• Dracula
• Frankenstein
• Saint George
• The labors of Hercules
• The Hobbit
• Jabberwocky, in Through the Looking Glass
• Jack and the beanstalk
• The Lord of the Rings
• Saint Martha and the Tarasque
• Nibelungenlied
• The Odyssey
• The myth of Perseus
• Theseus and the minotaur

See also

• cryptozoology
• index of fictional species
• lake monster
• legendary creature
• sea monster