About

Die Monster and What Is A Man? are two popular catchphrases from the video game Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. The lines, spoken by Richter Belmont and Dracula before the dramatic opening battle of the game, has been widely parodied in the years since the game's release for its over-the-top delivery.

Origin

In the opening scene of Symphony of the Night, released March 20th, 1997,^[1] Richter Belmont confronts Dracula and the two exchange the following dialogue prior to fighting.

Richter: Die monster. You don't belong in this world!

Dracula: It was not by my hand I was once again given flesh. I was brought here by humans who wished to pay me tribute!

Richter: Tribute!? You steal men's souls, and make them your slaves!

Dracula: Perhaps the same could be said of all religions…

Richter: Your words are as empty as your soul! Mankind ill needs a savior such as you!

Dracula: What is a man? A miserable little pile of secrets. But enough talk… Have at you!

Spread

The moment has been a common reference in memes online since it was highlighted in an Angry Video Game Nerd episode posted on November 19th, 2009 (shown below).

Early jokes about the dialogue posted to YouTube include a Sparta Remix of the scene posted February 18th, 2010 by YouTuber Zeo Lightning (shown below, left) and a Hitler's Downfall parody posted December 2nd, 2010 by YouTuber WolfUrameshi (shown below, right).

In the ensuing years, it has become an iconic piece of video game dialogue and has been parodied in multiple animations and dramatic readings. For example, on July 13th, 2019, Twitter user @Castlegaynias posted a Discord Sings attempt at the scene, gaining over 15,000 retweets and 32,000 likes (shown below, top). The audio from the video inspired an animated parody posted by YouTuber Payton Tate on August 9th, 2019, gaining over 1.5 million views (shown below, bottom).

The phrase has also been used in image macro parodies that turn the line into a snowclone reading "What is a X? A Y!" For example, on September 13th, 2019, Twitter user @foone^[2] posted a reference to Untitled Goose Game (shown below, left). On December 24th, 2018, Twitter user @BradyHartel^[3] made a Christmas-themed parody (shown below, right).

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References