The queer monster has been a staple in fiction for ages. The “other” aspect that defines monstrosity is naturally paired with the ostracized queer figure. How better to accent a demon, than with the demonized? This essay explores why queerness clings to the monstrous, and how this dynamic has shifted over time. When does monstrosity feed into queerness, and when does queerness enhance the monstrous? Using the character Mystique from the long-standing X-Men franchise as a case study, I compare how her strange appearance and abilities have villainized her queer subtext, and yet how they have come to strengthen her identity as a queer woman. Furthermore, this essay takes a peak at how monstrosity has been reappropriated in the digital self-publishing age to celebrate queer power and speculate on future incarnations of monstrous queerness in comics visual culture.
","abstract_html":"<p>The queer monster has been a staple in fiction for ages. The “other” aspect that defines monstrosity is naturally paired with the ostracized queer figure. How better to accent a demon, than with the demonized? This essay explores why queerness clings to the monstrous, and how this dynamic has shifted over time. When does monstrosity feed into queerness, and when does queerness enhance the monstrous? Using the character Mystique from the long-standing X-Men franchise as a case study, I compare how her strange appearance and abilities have villainized her queer subtext, and yet how they have come to strengthen her identity as a queer woman. Furthermore, this essay takes a peak at how monstrosity has been reappropriated in the digital self-publishing age to celebrate queer power and speculate on future incarnations of monstrous queerness in comics visual culture.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Cea, Dee"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Illustration & Visual Culture","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Graduate School of Art","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2024,"date_issued":"2024-05-08T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2024-05-08T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:12:17Z","subjects":["Art and Design"],"languages":["English"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/mfa_illustration/31","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Cea, Dee"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2024-05-10T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Graduate School of Art"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Illustration & Visual Culture"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Art and Design"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/mfa_illustration/31"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The queer monster has been a staple in fiction for ages. The “other” aspect that defines monstrosity is naturally paired with the ostracized queer figure. How better to accent a demon, than with the demonized? This essay explores why queerness clings to the monstrous, and how this dynamic has shifted over time. When does monstrosity feed into queerness, and when does queerness enhance the monstrous? Using the character Mystique from the long-standing X-Men franchise as a case study, I compare how her strange appearance and abilities have villainized her queer subtext, and yet how they have come to strengthen her identity as a queer woman. Furthermore, this essay takes a peak at how monstrosity has been reappropriated in the digital self-publishing age to celebrate queer power and speculate on future incarnations of monstrous queerness in comics visual culture.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Welcome Home Stranger: The Evolution & Assimilation of the Queer Monster"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Cea, Dee"],"dc:date.available":["2024-05-10T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The queer monster has been a staple in fiction for ages. The “other” aspect that defines monstrosity is naturally paired with the ostracized queer figure. How better to accent a demon, than with the demonized? This essay explores why queerness clings to the monstrous, and how this dynamic has shifted over time. When does monstrosity feed into queerness, and when does queerness enhance the monstrous? Using the character Mystique from the long-standing X-Men franchise as a case study, I compare how her strange appearance and abilities have villainized her queer subtext, and yet how they have come to strengthen her identity as a queer woman. Furthermore, this essay takes a peak at how monstrosity has been reappropriated in the digital self-publishing age to celebrate queer power and speculate on future incarnations of monstrous queerness in comics visual culture.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/mfa_illustration/31"],"dc:language":["English"],"dc:subject":["Art and Design"],"dc:title":["Welcome Home Stranger: The Evolution & Assimilation of the Queer Monster"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Graduate School of Art"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Illustration & Visual Culture"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:12:17Z"}