Why do women want to have sex with Monsters?

[Sareau]

What about Captain Kirk, and all the alien ladies he slept with? They might not all be monstrous, but is an alien different than a monster?

Yes-most of Kirk's ladies weren't known predators of humans.

[Sareau]

Actually, upon reflection, I think two episodes of Star Trek are germane to the thread: the Salt Vampire, who wears the form of it's Renfield's dead wife, is protected by it's Renfield, but the defense speech is leaden and takes the form of a naturalist preserving an endangered species-quite frankly, Betty White's monologues in Lake Placid are more emotive, and I do NOT think Betty was knocking alligator boots.
The other is one of Kirk's females, a human woman who qualifies as a monster since she's killing all the witnesses who could pin a mass murder charge on her father. Kirk does become romantically entangled with the actress, but he drops the romance after her murderous nature is revealed.
Compare this with Dark Shadows, a contemporary program. The character of Barnabus Collins is, from introduction to the telling of his backstory via seance/reenactment, a thoroughly psychotic and bloodthirsty traditional vampire. His first impulse is to kill any obstacles, when he is foiled in kidnapping a woman by his Renfield, incidentally sparing him from being uncovered by two men following his intended prey, his "reward" is the Renfield, Willy, survives a brutal beating administered while the two are locked in a hidden room awaiting the humans to leave. He turns his many-times great niece into a Renfield and promises to vampirize her if she serves well (which she really does), murders the Collins family doctor to bring his co-conspirator into the mansion, and even kidnaps the daughter of a blind painter and holds her captive, brainwashing her into being his long-dead lust object. In giving his backstory, he was as reprehensible a human as he was evil a vampire, gutshotting his brother and driving the object of his desires to suicide.
After the backstory, Barnabus does a 180-women watching the series had made him a sex symbol, and the only reason they watched.
While Barnabus Collins is redeemed-and the modern storyline abandoned to make way for the "new" Barnabus-the character the women fell in love with had no redeeming qualities whatsoever.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

I'm not sure Barnabas counts toward your thesis. We're not talking about fan reaction, are we? I'm not as conversant in the original Dark Shadows as I'd like to be, but the only women I know of that loved Barnabas in the story while knowing he was a vampire were Josette (not while mortal, but as a ghost, a monster herself) and Dr. Hoffman, but Dr. Hoffman grew to love him when he was repentant and looking for a cure. Also, wikipedia tells me the show was created by men, not women. (Not surprising in the male-dominated world of 1960's TV)

If we're talking about fan reaction, I think men will flock to sexy actresses as much or more as women will to actors, whether they are playing a monster or not. Selma Hayak was a hot as a vampire in From Dusk till Dawn as in any other role she's been in, for example.

Another counterexample that only women write about this: Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Yes, Jane Espensen and Marti Noxon were heavily involved in the writing, but the show was Joss Whedon's baby, and he wrote a lot of it, even in episodes that he wasn't credited as the writer. And that show (and the spinoff Angel) featured:

VIEW CONTENT:

Male Vampire/Female Human love (Buffy/Angel, Buffy/Spike)
Male Vampire/Female Vampire love (Spike/Dru, Angelus/Darla)
Male Human/Female Vampire love (Lindsay/Darla.. sorta)
Male Werewolf/Female Human love (Willow/Oz)
Male Human/Female Demon love (Xander/Anya, arguably Knox/Illyria)
I'm sure there's more, but that's off the top of my head...

And while I agree that most female "seductress"-type monsters don't reveal their monstrous nature at first, there's the standard trope of "Hey, don't rescue me, this ain't so bad!" once they are revealed. (usually played for laughs.)

ETA: Ah, just thought of another one: Piers Anthony. I'm pretty sure that man has written about men lusting after nearly every monster in the manual. In the Apprentice Adept series, for example...

VIEW CONTENT:

Male human/Female Robot love, Male human/Female bloblike-alien love, Male Robot/Female Unicorn love...

[Sareau]

Buffy was a classic, but in most of the relationships you mentioned, the monstrous nature of the one partner was hidden, or (in the case of Willow and Oz) they were dating before Oz was afflicted with lycanthropy. The only relationship mentioned that fits the paradigm is Buffy & Spike, and that pair had known each other as adversaries for years before Spike went on the rebound into Buffy.
Piers Anthony's Xanth series crossed everything, in a aliens-are-humans-in-funny-hats sort of way-all the "monsters" were exotic, but not predatory. Neither partner was in danger of being eaten by the other.
Fan reaction may not count, but for Barnabus, I make it since 1)Johnathon Frid was not a handsome man, even by 60s standards.
2)Other monsters who appear in the series, most notably Adam, a Frankenstein creation that was animated by Barnabus's vampirism, giving Adam life and Barnabus humanity, actually WAS a very handsome man-his Adam was a big puppy dog who followed Caroline around and obeyed her every whim. When she ordered him into a closet to avoid detection by the authorities, he vanished never to appear again, and the fans didn't notice-despite his looks, he wasn't appealing to the fan base. Barnabus, as a psychotic monster, saved the series and then, the men writing the show redeemed his character.
It still remains, with the singular exception of Buffy/Spike, which was probably fan motivated, that this trope is feminine in nature. It's interesting that women, who are very risk averse in the marketplace, and won't take dangerous or inconvenient jobs, will take such risks in their private lives.

[A G Thing]

NOTE THAT BELOW THIS IS PURELY THEORETICAL FROM EXAMINATION AND IS NOT A DECLARATIVE STATEMENT OF REALITY ONLY WHAT BIAS MAY MOTIVATE SUCH TRENDS IN HETEROSEXUAL WOMEN/MEN LOVING MONSTERS.

Well the way I see it, it might be more of an issue of the tools/roles each gender is supposed to espouse in the public mindset of American and other cultures. Having read plenty of fiction and watched plenty of movies as well as taking some minor study in these topics I propose this below for consideration as a sort of theory. I could be wrong but these seem like pretty solid reasons why things are the way they are in fiction for men and women dealing with monsters of the opposite sex.

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Men as the gender bias that has developed often times need to feel as if they are the protector or in charge. Also when compared baseline to baseline human man vs woman they are physically more able most times simply by genetic predisposition to grow larger muscles and do not have to deal with certain biological functions that can incapacitate them for a while. Men are also predisposed by cultural norms to exhibit stoic and self dependent unemotional states of being which predisposes them to reject what may offends their sensibilities though this may not always be so. Often times men may become obsessive or fixated but it requires an understanding of the object in question for it to develop.

Women on the other hand in their described bias have the capacity to be the protector and guides to nurture things they believe need protection. They are by chemical make up due to estrogen more often subject to dopamine and often form attachments to things that they perceive as good or pleasurable. Also as they physically carry the burden of the majority of the physical act of child birth and have body structures to actually provide for and nurture a child this gives them a very servile appearance due to needing support during this state to ensure safety of both mother and child.

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So for women it would seem that monsters sometimes may represent not only a surrogate child sort of idea but also an idealized acceptance of a sort of feminine role in their part in the relationship. They provide support for the child like qualities of the monster in that they try to show it how to live or at least provide it with the love that they seem to need. Second this comes without the whole having to maintain every aspect of care of the child as they are not superior to the monster but on a level in which they might experience a pleasurable excitement and form that into a lasting attachment. Third this falls into a sort of acceptable pattern of gender roles in that the male is the more physically powerful and or the one who is active in the world but in the case of social living the world may be more exotic and in some regard is balanced by the woman's own ability to perhaps interact with the human world though for some monsters that may not hold true. There is also the understanding that women suffer a weakness in the form of child birth and deal with the negative aspects of having periods and such. Monsters having similar requirements such as blood drinking or feeding are relate-able and they also are attractive because their own powers like a woman's own are related to the negatives. Monsters are often changed by these powers or must at times be weakened and may need further protection which is a new experience that a woman can fill with a sense of exotic rebellion against implied gender roles serving to further take some male traits. Also the prospect of gaining power and or changing position to become more equal with their partner is often viewed by women as a positive step in a relationship and thus is preferred.

Men on the other hand view monsters that obviously present themselves as such to be more often than not a challenger to perceived roles. IE they are viewing women in power as a threat to their masculinity and are thus being replaced and or shown up. A woman is often an accepted compliment to their species and what ever joking aside to how men don't know women they still understand what women fundamentally are and that is they are human. Monsters however even if revealed offer mysteries and questions that may inhibit a man from focusing his attention on more than solving what is before him. It is often the case in fiction that a man will be attracted to a dangerous woman thinking he understood what she is and perhaps wrongly so. With monsters that security that the woman is fundamentally human enough to view as such may be harder to quantify. Also monsters depending upon their type often have feeding or other requirements to their bodies that require them to perform some biological function. If this is the case changing their bodies which for a man is a source of pride to have a weakness/dependance is a much larger thing involving a surrender of their sense of self as not able or capable to rise to meet the challenge. While defending a weakened monster to protect them may seem to fall back to a male para dime the fact is that when the monster is at its strongest it is the one that is the superior protector most often. Another aspect that men have in sexuality is that they are the ones who create change and then get to continue on less disabled then before. A monster changing them may seem as personal as sex thus if the monster changes them it can imply that they have taken a sort of feminine or also a child role which men are often depicted to rebel against especially when they cannot relate to their partner in the encounter as human.

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So anyone care to discuss?

[High Priest Mikhal]

Actually, while these are "blanket statements", it's because I cannot address every single author or authoress without greatly expanding the size of my posts to where no one would want to read the whole thing. Women DO prefer sex with monsters, and not just as a fantasy trope. Convicted killers and rapists are inundated with letters, gifts, money, and marriage proposals, while Lizzie Borden died an old maid and Lorraina Bobbett still can't get a date.

There are clinically proven psychological reasons for that. The men are behind bars, safely out of reach of these women who want a thrill but not the danger that comes with being near such monsters. If and when parole comes along, those same women will often testify against it and/or seek divorce and relocate because they recognize the danger. Exceptions are often psychologically damaged themselves and have histories of abuse and co-dependency. As an abuse survivor myself I can say it's more common than we'd like to think because the abused don't always have the courage, or feel the need, to tell anyone. Guilt is a weapon abusers master.

As for the women you mention, I feel other posters have summed up my feelings and views quite succinctly already. And what I said above about abused individuals stands here as well. Such incidents just don't get the same coverage.

[Zilfer]

Where is it that women won't take risks in their jobs? There are plenty of women who do so. The first thing that sprung into my mind was the men and women serving in the army. There are some tough women out there, and other's striving to break the boundries and common tropes that we have with women not being able to do (insert job here).

I don't think women know immediately that the monster's aren't human either. Just like a female vampire and to a male human regardless of whether he knows or not he can still fall for it. There's a Lure like you said, it's the same with women. I'm seeing a lot of onesidedness where it happens on both sides pretty much the same, i just don't think your realising it.

I mean no offense when i bring this up, but it's like for example Gays, a lot of people immediately think man on man. A lot of people don't like that, but! We looking at the opposite there are plenty of people that like Fem on Fem(i'd say there's a larger portion of people that would accept that/unless of course your talking to certain religious people). I see more of a huge reaction when it's man on man. It's just more reported on and jarring. Me myself I'm not bothered by either, though I'm not sure I've run into a pure lesbian yet, only a few gay friends that were male.

[Sareau]

Where is it that women won't take risks in their jobs? There are plenty of women who do so. The first thing that sprung into my mind was the men and women serving in the army. There are some tough women out there, and other's striving to break the boundries and common tropes that we have with women not being able to do (insert job here).

I don't think women know immediately that the monster's aren't human either. Just like a female vampire and to a male human regardless of whether he knows or not he can still fall for it. There's a Lure like you said, it's the same with women. I'm seeing a lot of onesidedness where it happens on both sides pretty much the same, i just don't think your realising it.

I mean no offense when i bring this up, but it's like for example Gays, a lot of people immediately think man on man. A lot of people don't like that, but! We looking at the opposite there are plenty of people that like Fem on Fem(i'd say there's a larger portion of people that would accept that/unless of course your talking to certain religious people). I see more of a huge reaction when it's man on man. It's just more reported on and jarring. Me myself I'm not bothered by either, though I'm not sure I've run into a pure lesbian yet, only a few gay friends that were male.

The reason for the discrepancy between male/female wage earnings is because men will take higher risk occupations for better pay, as well as inconvenience themselves for their jobs, while women won't. Obviously, this is a general trend among women, and some women do take on more dangerous professions, but most of their coworkers will be men. This according to a Cato Institute Study.
In the incident that sparked this thread, the female charracter encounters the werewolf in full wolf-man form and without a word, lets him take her to bed. I noted this as odd, and one of the ladies from my church took it upon herself to enlighten me as to the numerous (mostly) female writers who initiate monster sex between their heroines and whatever beastie is the romantic interest-usually vampires, but obviously werewolves as well, anything Anita Blake can wrap her legs around, zombies, etc. No giant monster sex, but you know those Japanese...
And, though it has nothing to do with the subject, "Gay" does mean only man-on-man. The term comes from a French phrase referring to the male actors who'd play female roles in the days when theater was too obscene for women. It became a codeword to identify homosexuals among themselves before it passed into the mainstream.

[Five]

Literary feminism as viewed through the lens of fantasy-horror? The antithesis of the "damsel in distress"? This version seemingly has women in a position of power (through feminine charms; lust) over not just mankind, but of things that prey on mankind. Thus placing women as the apex predator of sorts. Everything bows down to the woman. As a buddy of mine used to say: "Soft skin will always win." ha

I dunno. I don't really subscribe to any of this. I just saw this thread and thought I'd drool a little..

[Zilfer]

lol definately an enteraining addition to the topic to say the least and it could definately be looked at from that point of view. Regardless, I still see "lust" as the primary 'lure' for both males and females falling prey to monsters.

[Sareau]

I thought it would be an interesting discussion point. I would really like to hear a female weigh in, but this is the Internet...

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

I would really like to hear a female weigh in, but this is the Internet...

Which is populated by more women than men, according to recent studies, so that's not really and issue.

(It's the RPG industry and fanbase that's more male than female, which is more likely to blame for the lack of female response here. (If indeed that's the case. I don't actually know the gender of everyone posting in this thread.))

[Sareau]

I would really like to hear a female weigh in, but this is the Internet...

Which is populated by more women than men, according to recent studies, so that's not really and issue.

(It's the RPG industry and fanbase that's more male than female, which is more likely to blame for the lack of female response here. (If indeed that's the case. I don't actually know the gender of everyone posting in this thread.))

I've read the Law:"There are no chicks on the Internet"

[Zilfer]

I think that's changed quite a bit in the last few years. Though obviously there will be crazy people out there still and they still will be over reported to make the public paraniod of their kid going on the computer. xD

[Five]

I thought it would be an interesting discussion point. I would really like to hear a female weigh in, but this is the Internet...

I find it to be an interesting point of discussion. Yet at the same time I don't think it is one that has a definitive answer. Only specific authors and writers can properly answer questions directed towards their character development, story arc, intention(s), whatever. Is it any of what I previously mentioned? Any of what other posters here in this thread have suggested? A modernistic take on Beauty and the Beast (a subtly placed, world-recognisable fairy tale all grown up)? Is it an attempt at cross-gendering the medium (be it readers or movie goers)? It is idea wakeboarding (arguably all ideas are)? Could be any, could be all, could be none of the above. All we do know is that it is a trend. Especially in the theatres (which again, I feel is sales-based; get the "girlfriends" going to "guy" movies and vice versa).

That, and I don't think a female would have any special insight to the goings on of these stories...any more than any male. We can only speak for ourselves, regardless of gender, and like it or not we are all bound by interpretive imagination. The Hundreth Monkey Effect (if you even believe in it) doesn't apply here. Likewise trying to apply social science. It's a work of art from an individual source. And again, to understand why, ask the source. It's a fun discussion in that we can round up particular points of view, but I think that's the best that can come of this.

But what do I know? Seriously. I'm faceless...Heh