Chapter 9: Mothers, Monsters & Media: Examining the Parallel Between Motherhood and the Monster

It is easy to imagine some monstrous other embodying the unknown that is under one's bed, but hardly anyone imagines that the monster is the one tucking you into bed. The one you call mom. Departing from Cristina Santos's work, in this chapter, I will be examining the role of ‘pre-social’ news media (pre-Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, etc.) in depicting the ‘monstrous mother’, the mother who kills her own children. The television news medium holds large potential for the construction and maintenance of stagnant hegemonic values. Women, predominately mothers, continue to be characterised in media as nurturing, gentle and comforting. With a strategic absence of discourses surrounding the ‘monstrous mother’ in the early 2000 news media, it is important to consider the ways these mothers are constructed when these sweet caretakers turn into murderous villains. By examining the cases of Patsy Ramsey and Casey Anthony, I will be discussing how their stories were presented in the media as doubly monstrous, since they both committed crimes that contradict the expected role of a mother. Regardless of the time gap between these cases, ultimately, until ideas about women, women's bodies and women's roles change, women and mothers will continue to face constant scrutiny as media reflects current beliefs, ultimately allowing women and mothers to be equated with the monster.