Love zombies? Or vampires? Do you find it weird that people get freaked out by those things where you can’t get enough? Monsters represent the darker side of our humanity, and so the monsters we love can tell us more about who we are than we think. Often it’s so easy for us to project our fears or desires onto things outside us that we forget that these mythological beings represent parts of our own minds…
Number Five: Zombies. Zombies are the empty, soulless, incurable shells of humans that have a never-ending need to feed on people (or just brains). They’re also tied up closely with an apocalypse. If you find that you just can’t get enough of these monsters, then reflect on what this represents and how it relates to you: perhaps you feel like you’ve led a wasted life or you’re unsure about your real worth and you long for a fresh start. Both the absence of the zombie’s mind and the apocalyptic scenery mirror this. If you fancy yourself a survivalist zombie-hunter then this even more pronounced. It might suggest you feel a lack of fulfillment in this life and wish not only that the whole world would change, but that you could finally have a meaningful role in it.
Number Four: Vampires. Vampires represent the powerful and eternal darker side of humanity. The modern representations we have created have expanded the central myth, but at their core, these monsters represent a soulless immortality (unless staked in the heart or beheaded) who need to feed on blood. Feeling a connection to Vampires can represent a few things: a feeling of deep loneliness or sadness (mirrored by their ability not to care), a need to feel special (mirrored by their immortality) and/or a desire to be connected to others but an inability to do so (mirrored by the need to feed on a life-source but that need being deadly to the other).
Number Three: Werewolves. Werewolves are human most of the time but turn into uncontrollable savage killers under full moons. This might represent a fear of an underlying dark side that you have no control over but that part of you loves and needs. This side is always there, lurking inside you, but it’s only in certain circumstances that it takes over and controls you, often ending in horrible consequences you later regret. Secretly you might hope that somewhere there’s a rare cure (a silver bullet) that might take away this threat to the people you love.
Number Two: Witches. In recent decades, Witches have undergone an image change, with them now associated with a neutral power that is often nature-based. However, the traditional myth revolves around powerful, evil women that worship the devil for their own selfish goals. Sexist themes aside, relating to these monsters can represent a desire for the ability to affect change in the world around you (accessing magic). It can also be also symbolic of the desire to separate yourself from the mainstream (join a coven) and be seen as different or special.
Number One: Aliens. These monsters are often represented as human-animal hybrids from fantastical or distant places. Aliens have been part of human mythology for thousands of years. They often have access to powers or technologies that make them awe-inspiring or terrifying and can be associated with ruling over or destroying the world. The psychological equivalent to the idea that there are unknown beings from places we can barely imagine is that there are aspects of our personalities that seem so non-human, we have to imagine they come from a far-off world. In other words, a fascination with all things aliens can represent a desire to connect parts of yourself or humanity that you don’t understand to parts you’re afraid you can’t resist.
