Imaginary monstrous Muslims shaped the Western construction of the real Muslim

Evidence

The history of monsters is a subject addressed in several disciplines, among them history, theology, and religious studies. In this study, I will argue that imaginary Muslim monsters have determined the construction of the Muslim in Western thought. At times, these constructions have involved fantasies about Jewish and African bodies; at other times, they have reacted to anxieties surrounding categories beyond race—in particular, those related to religion, gender, and sexuality. To be clear, I am interested here in raising an awareness of these creatures—demons, giants, cannibals, vampires, zombies, and other monsters—that can help us understand the status of Muslims today as stock characters in the Western imaginary landscape. The character of the homicidal terroristic Muslim stalks the Western social imaginary in print media, television, and film, but he has ancestors. — Sophia Rose Arjana, Muslims in the Western Imagination, 20

Categorization

• XREF: The taxonomy — demon, giant, cannibal, vampire, zombie — names the recurring figures the reader’s guiding question tracks as fear containers; ties the book’s method to the reader’s own analytical framework.