A Monster Scale

Copyright 2020 by Gary L. Pullman

One way to energize a genre of fiction is to introduce into it a hierarchy, or some other type of analytical or descriptive scheme, that is commonly used in a different type of narrative literature.

As Don Lincoln, author of Alien Universe: Extraterrestrial Life in Our Minds and in the Cosmos, observes, science fiction employs the scale “popularized” in J. Allen Hynek's “1972 book The UFO Experience,” which identifies three types, or “kinds,” of “close encounters” with extraterrestrial spacecraft or beings:

1st Kind: UFO sighting

2nd Kind: UFO sighting supported by "physical evidence"

 

3rd Kind: Encounter with alien beings

These original “kinds” of “close encounters” have been extended, says Lincoln, by four other types, although these additional levels “are “not universally accepted”:

4th Kind: Abduction with "retained memory"

 

5th Kind: "Regular conversations"

 6th Kind: "An encounter" resulting in a human's "death or injury"

7th Kind: Hybrid progeny resulting from human-monstrous mating

Although hybrid horror-science fiction narratives or dramas sometimes include extraterrestrial beings (e. g., Stephen King's Dreamcatcher and such films as Alien, The Thing from Another World, and Invaders from Mars), space aliens are primarily a staple of sci fi fiction. Monsters, on the other hand, are more often antagonists in horror fiction.

Hynek's scale, and its extension, provide a means of re-imagining monsters:

1st Kind: Monster sighting

2nd Kind: Monster sighting supported by "physical evidence"

3rd Kind: Encounter with monster(s)

4th Kind: Monster's abduction recalled (or recovered through the discovery of a lost film or video

5th Kind: Periodic communications with the monster, vocally or otherwise (e. g., through mental telepathy)

6th Kind: "An encounter” with the monster which results in a human's “death or injury”

7th Kind: Human/monster mating resulting in a hybrid progeny

Many of these types of “close encounters” with monsters have already been depicted in horror novels, short stories, or movies. There have been many sightings of monsters, as in Frank Peretti's 2006 novel Monster; encounters with monsters (as in Mary Shelley's 1818 novel Frankenstein), periodic communications with the monster (as in Anne Rice's 1976 novel Interview with a Vampire), encounters with monsters that end in human's deaths (so many there's no need to cite an example), and even matings between women and monsters that result in births of hybrid human-monster children (as in Ira Levine's 1967 novel Rosemary's Baby).

However, an imaginative use of this extended scale of “close encounters” with monsters, rather than with aliens—which, it could be argued, represent simply another type of monster) can still introduce innovations into the horror genre. For example, the scale could be used to structure a novel or, for that matter a heptalogy, or series of seven works, each of which is inspired by one of the seven types of “close encounters” with monsters listed in the “monster scale” adapted from Hynek's hierarchy.

Paranormal and Supernatural Hoaxes

copyright 2008 by Gary L. Pullman

A number of paranormal and supernatural hoaxes have been, and continue to be, perpetuated upon the public; many of these, whether from a position of belief or skepticism, are of interest to published and aspiring writers of fiction concerning horror, fantasy, and science fiction. Some of the more familiar and long-standing of these frauds are included in this post.

Cottingley fairies

Cousins Elsie Wright (16) and Frances Griffith (10), of Cottingley, England, photographed themselves with cutouts of cardboard fairies. Experts confirmed the authenticity of the photographs, but Kodak refused to follow suit. The pictures sparked a huge controversy, which involved, among others, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the author of the Sherlock Holmes detective stories, who wrote an article on the incident, “Fairies photographed--an epoch making event,” for Strand magazine. He wrote a follow-up account of the fairies in The Coming of the Fairies, expressing his personal conviction that they were real beings. In 1981, the girls finally admitted that the photographs were a hoax, the fairies being cardboard cutouts mounted upon hairpins.

Crop circles

Geometric patterns that appear overnight in crops or pastures, as in the film Signs, are alleged to be the handiwork of extraterrestrial visitors who, perhaps, intend the designs to be navigational aids for their more navigationally challenged peers. However, Doug Bower and Dave Chorley have explained how they created such designs as a prank. Using nothing more than planks of wood, rope, hats, wire, and ingenuity, they created a 40-foot circle in only 15 minutes. When publicity proved to be less than they’d anticipated, they repeated the procedure near a natural amphitheater near a busy roadway and increased the complexity of their designs when critics were unimpressed by their simple circles. The wire was used to fashion a loop that, suspended from a hat, allowed the men to focus on a distant landmark as an aid to keeping lines straight. Their hoax was exposed when Bower’s wife, noting the high number of miles on her husband’s odometer, confronted him as to his many outings, and, afraid she’d think he was being unfaithful to her, he confessed his and Chorley’s hobby. Others have since taken up the practice, which has become something of an international pastime.

Hundredth Monkey Effect

Lyall Watson claimed that Japanese scientists observed the so-called hundredth monkey effect, in which, once a number of the animals learned to wash sweet potatoes, the practice was instantly performed by other monkeys on nearby islands as well. However, this account ignores the fact that one of the monkeys who had learned to wash the vegetables by imitating older monkeys (the same way that all the others also learned the practice) had swum to one of these islands, where it lived for four years, and that sweet potatoes were introduced by humans into the area at about the time that the so-called effect was supposedly observed.

The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSICOP) Internet article, “Don’t Be Fooled: Strange Hoaxes That Endure,” debunks several paranormal hoaxes:

• The Roswell incident, in which a crashed alien spaceship and its crew, killed in the impact, were supposedly recovered and sent to secret military installations.
• Spiritualism, which is predicated upon channeling spirits or otherwise communicating with the dead.
• Psychic networks, which the gullible can telephone for help with the future.
• The Shroud of Turin, which is said to be the burial cloth of Jesus Christ.
• The Cottingley fairies (see above).
• Crop circles (see above).
• The Amityville Horror, the story of a supposedly haunted house, wherein a previous resident “murdered his parents and siblings,” was created by homeowners George and Kathy Lutz “over many bottles of wine” and became a major motion picture.
• The Piltdown Man, who was comprised of a human skull and an orangutan’s jawbone.
• Psychic surgery, which involves the supposed removal of “'tumors' and other diseased tissue” sans scalpel and anesthesia.
• King Tut’s curse, which was supposedly inscribed over the doorway to his tomb and has caused the deaths of his final resting place’s plunderers, whereas, “in fact, ten years after the tomb was opened, all but one of the five who first entered it were still living.”

The Cardiff giant, mentioned among the “C” entries of our own “A Dictionary of the Paranormal, the Supernatural, and the Otherworldly” post, is also mentioned.

For those who are interested in the subject of paranormal and supernatural hoaxes, two excellent sources are The Skeptic’s Dictionary and James Randi Educational Foundation's An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural. We also recommend Chillers and Thrillers own four-part “Alternative Explanations” series: Part 1 , Part II, Part III, and Part IV.

About.com’s Stephen Wagner sponsors an annual “Paranormal Photo Hoax,” inviting the public to send him “a fake paranormal photo of any kind,” such as one of monsters, ghosts, poltergeists, fairies, UFO’s, or “anything else you can dream up.” Stories concerning the photographs are also welcome, he says. He’s the judge, and certain “terms and conditions” apply. Interested parties can read more at his blog, Paranormal Phenomena.

A Dictionary of the Paranormal, the Supernatural, and the Otherworldly (S - U)

copyright 2008 by Gary L. Pullman

Note: Unless otherwise noted, definitions are courtesy of dictionary.die.net, an Internet dictionary in the public domain.

S

St. Elmo’s Fire--A visible electric discharge on a pointed object, such as the mast of a ship or the wing of an airplane, during an electrical storm. Also called corposant (Answers.com).

Saladin balloon--a government balloon that “shot up” into the sky with a passenger, Walter Powell, on board, becoming lost in the vicinity of a UFO (The Charles Fort Files).

Satan--in Judeo-Christian religion, the chief spirit of evil and adversary of God; tempter of mankind; master of Hell.

Satanic ritual abuse--“alleged systematic abuse of children by Satanists” (The Skeptic’s Dictionary).

Satanism--the worship of devils (especially Satan).

Satyr--one of a class of woodland deities; attendant on Bacchus; identified with Roman fauns.

Scapulimancy-- “a decision procedure used by the Naskapi Indians whereby the shoulder of a caribou is held over hot coals causing cracks in the bone which are then used to direct a hunting party” (The Skeptic’s Dictionary).

Scientism--“the self-annihilating view that only scientific claims are meaningful, which is not a scientific claim and hence, if true, not meaningful. Thus, scientism is either false or meaningless” (The Skeptic’s Dictionary).

Scientology--“the religion that was initially established as a secular philosophy in 1952 by science-fiction author L. Ron Hubbard” (Wikipedia). Actors Tom Cruise, John Travolta, Kirstie Alley, and Karen Black and singer-actress Brandy Norwood are among its netter-known members, according to Famous Scientologists (Church of Scientology).

Scrying--“a type of divination” in which one seeks “to scry or descry is to spy out or discover by the eye objects at a distance”; crystal ball gazing is an example (The Skeptic’s Dictionary).

Sea serpents--monsters reported by sailors to inhabit the sea, some of which may have been kraken or other natural creatures that were unfamiliar to those who sighted them; Beowulf claims to have fought and killed many of them during a swimming contest against Breca (the author).

Séance--a meeting of spiritualists; "the séance was held in the medium's parlor."

Shamanism--any animistic religion similar to Asian shamanism especially as practiced by certain Native American tribes; an animistic religion of northern Asia having the belief that the mediation between the visible and the spirit worlds is effected by shamans.

Simulacra--A likeness; a semblance; a mock appearance; a sham.

Shelley, Mary--author of Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus; wife of the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley Sleep paralysis--“Sleep paralysis is a condition that occurs in the state just before dropping off to sleep (the hypnagogic state) or just before fully awakening from sleep (the hypnopompic state). The condition is characterized by being unable to move or speak. It is often associated with a feeling that there is some sort of presence, a feeling which often arouses fear but is also accompanied by an inability to cry out. The paralysis may last only a few seconds. The experience may involve visual, auditory, or tactile hallucinations.” (The Skeptic’s Dictionary).

Soul--the immaterial part of a person; the actuating cause of an individual life.

Sorcery--the belief in magical spells that harness occult forces or evil spirits to produce unnatural effects in the world.

Spontaneous human combustion--the reported bursting into flame, possibly from an internal, but unknown cause, so that the body or part thereof is consumed by intense heat that does not destroy nearby objects, such as the chair in which the person is seated or other objects in near proximity to the body (the author).

Spirit guide--the spirit of a dead person or a supernatural entity that mediums claim to channel, during séances, automatic writing sessions, or at other times, and who often reveals occult information to the medium and otherwise offers guidance concerning various topics, personal and otherwise (the author).

Spirit photograph--the alleged production of images on photographic media by paranormal means such as psychokinesis or of paranormal phenomena such as ghosts or astral bodies (The Skeptic’s Dictionary).

Subliminal--below the threshold of conscious perception. Superstition--an irrational belief arising from ignorance or fear.

Stigmata--marks resembling the wounds on the crucified body of Christ.

Stonehenge

Stonehenge--an assemblage of upright stones with others placed horizontally on their tops, on Salisbury Plain, England,-- generally supposed to be the remains of an ancient Druidical temple.

Synchronicity--the relation that exists when things occur at the same time; "the drug produces an increased synchrony of the brain waves."

Synaesthesia--a sensation that normally occurs in one sense modality occurs when another modality is stimulated.

T

Talisman--a trinket or piece of jewelry thought to be a protection against evil.

Tantra--doctrine of enlightenment as the realization of the oneness of one's self and the visible world; combines elements of Hinduism and paganism including magical and mystical elements like mantras and mudras and erotic rites; especially influential in Tibet.

Tarot cards--cards used to tell fortunes (or, in Europe, more commonly, to play games); the deck consists of 22 cards of the major arcana (“secrets”) and 56 cards of the minor arcana. The major arcana includes such cards as the Fool, the Emperor, the Empress, the Hierophant, the World, the Star, the Sun, Death, and the Devil; their meanings can be reversed as well (the author).

Telekinesis--a the power to move something by thinking about it without the application of physical force.

Teleportation--the movement of material objects through space by the power of the mind alone (psychokinesis) or by other means.

Testimonial evidence--a type of anecdotal evidence based upon one’s own personal experience, such as is sometimes given by churchgoers concerning how God has affected their lives or changed them as people, although testimonial evidence may include any type of testimony, such as eye-witness courtroom testimony; such evidence is regarded as seriously flawed and unreliable by scientists (the author).

Theosophy--belief based on mystical insight into the nature of God and the soul.

Theurgy--magic performed with the help of beneficent spirits.

Third Eye--a metaphysical concept that symbolizes some people’s ability to experience paranormal or supernatural phenomena (visions, clairvoyance, poetic inspiration) that come from internal stimuli rather than external stimuli; also called the “inner eye” or the “mind’s-eye”; sometimes symbolizes intuition or the imagination (the author).

Tinnitus--a ringing or booming sensation in one or both ears; a symptom of an ear infection or Meniere's disease.

Twain, Mark--American author; wrote The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and many other works combining humor and social satire; had a prophetic dream in which his brother, Henry, was killed (the author).

Trance--a psychological state induced by (or as if induced by) a magical incantation; a state of mind in which consciousness is fragile and voluntary action is poor or missing; a state resembling deep sleep.

Troll--in Scandinavian folklore, a supernatural creature (either a dwarf or a giant) that is supposed to live in caves or in the mountains.

Shroud of Turin

Turin, Shroud of--a burial cloth that is said to bear the likeness of the crucified Christ, perhaps as a result of radiation that was released by his body upon his death; carbon dating has cast doubt upon its authenticity as Christ’s burial shroud; see “holy relic” (the author).

Truman, President Harry S--U. S. president who supposedly signed a “Top Secret, Eyes Only” document recounting the discovery of extraterrestrial corpses at a UFO crash site near Roswell, NM, and establishing a secret committee for investigating these and other visitors from other planets; the committee was known as Majestic-12 and included well-known, well-respected government officials and scientists (the author).

U

Underworld--(in various religions) the world of the dead.

Unidentified flying objects (UFOs, flying saucers)--any object that moves under its own power and cannot be accounted for (by the observer) by reference to known phenomena; many such objects turn out to be natural objects (weather balloons, clouds, atmospheric effects, aircraft, planets, meteorites); some believe them to be extraterrestrial spacecraft visiting Earth (the author).

Urantia book--a book that alleges to have been written on the basis of information provided by “superhuman personalities,” although “Matthew Block. . . has identified hundreds of plagiarized passages” in the book (The Skeptic’s Dictionary).

Urban legend-- “An apocryphal story involving incidents of the recent past, often including elements of humor and horror, that spreads quickly and is popularly believed to be true” (American Heritage Dictionary); see “testimonial evidence.”

Urine Therapy, the book

Urine therapy--the drinking of one’s or another’s urine (or its topical use) to maintain health and cure disease; supposedly, Mahatma Gandhi was a practitioner (the author).

A Dictionary of the Paranormal, the Supernatural, and the Otherworldly (P - R)

copyright 2008 by Gary L. Pullman

Note: Unless otherwise noted, definitions are courtesy of dictionary.die.net, an Internet dictionary in the public domain.

P

Paganism--any of various religions other than Christianity or Judaism or Islamism.

Palmistry--telling fortunes by lines on the palm of the hand.

Pandora--in Greek mythology, the first woman; created by Hephaestus on orders from Zeus who presented her to Epimetheus along with a box filled with evils.

Panspermia--The theory that microorganisms or biochemical compounds from outer space are responsible for originating life on Earth and possibly in other parts of the universe where suitable atmospheric conditions exist (American Heritage Dictionary)

Pantheism--belief in multiple Gods.

Papyromancy--divination using paper (the author).

Paradigm shift--“a change in basic assumptions within the ruling theory of science” (Wikipedia).

Paranormal--seemingly outside normal sensory channels; not in accordance with scientific laws.

Parapsychology--phenomena that appear to contradict physical laws and suggest the possibility of causation by mental processes.

Penile plethysmograph--“that measures changes in blood flow in the penis in response to audio and/or visual stimuli. It is typically used to determine the level of sexual arousal as the subject is exposed to sexually suggestive content, such as photos, movies or audio” (Wikipedia).

Pentagram--a star with 5 points; formed by 5 straight lines between the vertices of a pentagon and enclosing another pentagon.

Perpetual motion machine--a machine which, once it is set in motion, moves continuously thereafter, requiring less energy to operate than it generates; perpetual motion machines are impossible, as they violate the first law of thermodynamics (the author).

Pets, homing of--the ability of pet animals to find their way home over long distances by unknown means (the author).

Phrenology--a now abandoned study of the shape of skull as indicative of the strengths of different faculties.

Philosopher’s stone--a substance that is alleged to be able to transform a base metal, such as lead, into gold (the author).

Physicalism--the doctrine that only physical things exist and that, consequently, all things that exist are physical (the author).

Physiognomy--the human face, believed to be a key to interpreting character (the author).

Piltdown Hoax--a fraud in which the jawbone of an orangutan was represented to belong to and a human skull which had belonged to an undiscovered early form of human being (the author).

Placebo effect--a therapeutic effect without a pharmaceutical or medical basis, simply as a result of the belief that the substance provided will help to alleviate symptoms or remedy physical condition (the author).

Plant perception--the theory or belief that plants are sentient or conscious of their environment and react to stimuli (the author).

Plesiosaur

Plesiosaur--extinct marine reptile with a small head on a long neck a short tail and four paddle-shaped limbs; of the Jurassic and Cretaceous (dictionary.die.net); some believe that the Loch Ness monster may be a plesiosaur (the author).

Pluto--the Greek god of the underworld.

Poe, Edgar Allan--American author of “tales of the grotesque and the arabesque”; Poe gave the modern horror story its structure and many of its themes (the author).

Poltergeist--a noisy ghost, which is alleged to cause mischief and may be destructive and dangerous (the author).

Polygraph--see “lie detector.”

Possession, demonic or Satanic--the alleged take over and control of a person’s body by Satan or a lesser evil spirit; priests may attempt to evict the spirit by exorcising it (the author).

Post hoc fallacy--see “magical thinking.”

Pragmatic fallacy--“the pragmatic fallacy is committed when one argues that something is true because it works and where ‘works’ means something like “I’m satisfied with it,” “I feel better,” “I find it beneficial, meaningful, or significant,” or “It explains things for me” (The Skeptic’s Dictionary).

Precognition (foretelling the future)--knowledge of an event before it occurs.

Prometheus--in Greek mythology, the Titan who stole fire from Olympus and gave it to mankind.

Pseudo science--knowledge that appears to be or is represented as being scientific but does not conform to scientific principles or cannot be demonstrated as true or false by use of the scientific method; see pyramidology (the author).

PSI--”A term used to demarcate processes or causation associated with cognitive or physiological activity that fall outside of conventional scientific boundaries (ESP, for example)” (Wikipedia).

Psychic--pertaining to forces or mental processes outside the possibilities defined by natural or scientific laws; "psychic reader"; "psychical research"; a person apparently sensitive to things beyond the natural range of perception.

Psychic detective--a person who uses alleged osychic abilities to investigate crime (the author).

Psychic surgery--allegedly, the use of psychic means to perform surgical procedures (the author).

Psychoanalysis--a set of techniques for exploring underlying motives and a method of treating various mental disorders; "his physician recommended psychoanalysis."

Psychokinesis (moving objects by mental means)--the power to move something by thinking about it without the application of physical force.

Psychologism--the explanation of physical, social, historical, cultural, religious, or other facts, principles, beliefs, or values through psychological theory; often used derisively, when this approach is considered reductionistic (the author).

Psychology--the science of mental life.

Psychometry--any branch of psychology concerned with psychological measurements; The art of measuring the duration of mental processes, or of determining the time relations of mental phenomena.

Pterodactyl--extinct flying reptile.

Pyramidiocy--the supposedly scientific study of pyramids and their effects; a pseudo science (the author).

Q

No entries.

R

Rama--avatar of Vishnu; any of three incarnations: Ramachandra or Parashurama or Balarama.

Ramtha--“a 35,000 year-old spirit-warrior who appeared in JZ Knight’s kitchen in Tacoma, Washington, in 1977” (The Skeptic’s Dictionary).

Randi's paranormal challenge--the offer of “a one-million-dollar prize to anyone who can show, under proper observing conditions, evidence of any paranormal, supernatural, or occult power,” made by James Randi, a “magician and author of numerous works skeptical of paranormal, supernatural, and pseudoscientific claims” (The Skeptic’s Dictionary)

Reflexology--the massaging of feet to diagnose and cure disease” (The Skeptic’s Dictionary)

Relic

Relic, holy--a memento, such as bones, a garment, or a body part, that is believed to have belonged to a holy person or saint; see “Christ, foreskin of” (the author).

Reincarnation--a second or new birth.

Remote viewing--the use of psychic powers (and map coordinates) to discern targets or other items of intelligence at specific locations from which the “viewer” is physically absent (the author).

Repressed memory--”the memory of a traumatic event unconsciously retained in the mind, where it is said to adversely affect conscious thought, desire, and action” (The Skeptic’s Dictionary).

Retrocognition--“a type of clairvoyance involving knowledge of something after its occurrence through psychic means” (The Skeptic’s Dictionary).

Revelation--The act of revealing, disclosing, or discovering to others what was before unknown to them.

Rod--“an insect caught in the act of flying by a video camera” and passed off as “some sort of unknown alien life form” (The Skeptic’s Dictionary).

Roswell (New Mexico), UFO--site of the alleged crash of an extraterrestrial spaceship and the recovery of its injured occupants (the author).

Rumpology--“the art of reading the lines, crevices, dimples, and folds of the buttocks to divine the butt owner's character and get a glimpse of what lies ahead by analyzing what trails behind” (The Skeptic's Dictionary).

Rune--any character from an ancient Germanic alphabet used in Scandinavia from the 3rd century to the Middle Ages; "each rune had its own magical significance."