Anomaly and Norm

The Adaptability of Life Between Anatomy and Biology

First Room. The Anomalous as Monstrum

The latin monstrum has the same root from the verb moneo, “admonish, warn”, in the sense of indication of the gods that mortals have to interpret: the monstrum is therefore a living being “out of the natural”, precisely “monstrous”.

Even in ancient Greek there is a term, téras, which indicates any divine sign that mortals can interpretate to predict the future. From téras and -logia (speech, study) derives the term “teratology”, which in anatomy, zoology and botany refers to the study of morphological anomalies.

In a historical-social context in which the scientific knowledge is limited, the superstition is widespread and the medical treatment absent or inefficient, the anomalous individual comes de-humanized and excluded or even suppressed. In the Christian context the old testament vision of deformity like “guilt” comes progressively mitigated from the pietas (pity) and the charitas (charity) in the origin of the first hospitali: central to this is the gospel passage about the man born blind (John 9, 1-4), in which Jesus, when questioned, clearly responds that no one is to blame for his blindness.

Today “monster” has retained the meaning of prodigy or wonder only in the literary register, while the first meaning is that of a creature that is the result of a unnatural contamination of different elements that can arouse horror or amazement. In biology “monster” is an animal or vegetable that presents severe abnormalities, sometimes compatible with life. In the italian language “monster” has undertaken different meanings from a horrible, deformed person to a person that has exceptional gifts.