From big cats and terrible lizards to leviathans and legendary kaiju, the “monster” has played a critically important role in our understanding of the world and our place within it. That perspective, in turn, has informed our attitudes toward–and our exploitation of–megafuana throughout history and in the present day. This course is a multi-disciplinary exploration of the role that dangerous and gigantic beasts have played in shaping humanity: our psychology, our spirituality, our arts, and our environmental ethic. What would our world become without such fantastic beasts?.