There’s nothing better around Halloween than getting scared by a monster movie. A lot of the monsters that have thrilled us throughout the years–Frankenstein’s monster, Dracula, the Mummmy, The Wolfman and more–were immortalized by Universal Studios.

All of the monsters say something about the human experience. Dracula speaks to our fear of death, the desire to surpass mortality, and the tug-and-pull that happens with the need for sex and feelings of lust. Frankenstein’s monster represents the human desire to control death. The Mummy goes even further with that fear and examines our fear of the unknown. The Wolfman corresponds to our desire to control our wilder feelings.

The real emotions these monsters represent make them both dangerous and alluring. We want to be able to defeat them, but we also want to become them on some level. These monsters tap into our baser selves, the selves we want to grow away from. However, because that base self is still part of our collective psyche, monsters will always be parts of our lives.

If you want to relive your fears of these monsters, make sure to check out “Universal Classic Monsters: The Essential Collection” on DVD and Blu-ray. Click here if you’d like to learn more information.