Journal articleIssue 12025
Reading the Shapeshifting Monster in Carpenter's The Thing (1982) Through Layers of Divulged Distrust
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author
Eden Tweedie
abstract
This article presents a critical reading of John Carpenter's film The Thing (1982), arguing that its narrative of distrust offers an extension to conventional monster theory. The author proposes a “beyond the body” approach, positing that monstrosity is located not in the alien's physical form, but in the atmosphere of suspicion its presence engenders. Drawing on theorists including Jeffrey Jerome Cohen and Sarah Juliet Lauro, the analysis examines how the shapeshifting antagonist acts as a catalyst, exposing dormant layers of distrust at personal, social, and societal levels. The article investigates how Carpenter's formal techniques, including characterization and mise-en-scene, depict the characters' descent into paranoia, leading to violence that blurs the line between human and monster. At a societal level, the film is interpreted as a microcosm of its contemporary context---a post-Watergate era marked by skepticism towards institutions such as science and government. The author concludes that by decoupling monstrosity from a visible, physical body, The Thing suggests that true monstrosity is a latent and fundamental aspect of human interaction, revealed only under pressure.