"Coraline", Part 1: The Uncanny and the Monstrous-Feminine

Paranormal Pajama Party

Tonight on the podcast, we’re unravelling the chilling tale of Coraline Jones and her mother. No, not her mother. Her Other Mother. The one with the button eyes.

Coraline – both the children’s movie and the novella – is the story of a girl battling for independence and identity. This battle is symbolic, sure, but it’s also literal – Coraline has to destroy the Other Mother from the mirror world hidden behind a tiny door.

Tonight, we’re talking about Freudian psychology and all the uncomfortable things that entails: the uncanny, the Oedipus complex, societal anxieties surrounding femininity and motherhood, and a whole lot of talk about gonads.

Crawl down the tunnel with me into the dark corners of Coraline's world, where not all that glimmers is gold, and not all mothers are what they seem.

Key moments

• 0:00 – Content warning
• 0:54 – "The New Mother", by Lucy Clifford
• 21:54 – Welcome to the party!
• 24:25 – A synopsis of 'Coraline'
• 27:25 – Coraline's real mother
• 29:38 – Coraline's Other Mother
• 30:38 – The eyes have it
• 32:14 – The uncanny
• 36:22 – Barbara Creed and the monstrous-feminine
• 39:55 – Outro

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