Horrifying Health Benefits Every day a family watches various movies whether it romance, comedy, science fiction or even action. The most beneficial out of the many genres is that of horror. Horror movies have many unknown health benefits people find hard to believe. These movies help by improving on only your body but your mind as well. “How?” you may ask; it not only boosts your immune system but can also help you lose weight and even sharpens your mind to be more alert in any situation. Some people still might being finding this information hard to believe but as you continue to read you will gradually start to see the truth behind this. The general belief out there is that these movies are not healthy for you and often activate denser energies within the body. I have to say that I agree in some ways, but at the same time I never felt any negative effects personally other than the phobias I created in my own head about the girl from The Exorcist.
The Immune system is a unique system. It helps us fight of unwanted diseases like the flu, the common cold, or even a stomach virus. Researchers suggest that while people watch horror movies, their brain secretes chemicals. As a result, there is an increased brain activity, which makes the mind alert for a while. Additionally, threat signals that pass through the brain stimulate adrenal glands to produce adrenaline, which has an anesthesia (loss in the ability to feel pain) like effect. So yeah in a way your immune system is
negotiates with what one may feel when, or after, viewing a horror film. While this may
In essence, we might be inclined to believe horror films in fact create a sense of gray. To take this a step further, there’s documented facts proving how people are inspired by horror films and actually carry this out in real life. However, King’s suggestion that horror films are like roller coaster was more persuasive. When I think of riding a roller coaster, I recall all of my experiences of watching horror movies. The emotions are similar, almost always leaving me with an adrenaline rush, sense of fear, rapid heartbeat and at times sick to my stomach. It’s terrifying watching someone on the “big screen” being harmed or murdered and yet I’m always relieved when the bad guy or gal receives pay-back in the end. I guess that would be my sense of excitement?
One report by Bernie DeGroat says that watching horror movies can cause effects such as “inability to sleep through the night after exposure” to the graphic movie (DeGroat, par 3). After seeing the movie Jaws, one person said that the thing that scared him the most wasn’t the shark “or actual deaths that was frightening, but the blood” (DeGroat, par 9). According to the Greek philosopher Aristotle, people that watch horror movies are more prone to releasing their negative emotions, also called catharsis. Although, studies have shown that Aristotle is completely wrong, horror movies actually make people more aggressive than they were before watching the movie. Therefore, why would everyone crave horror movies when really they make us more
The liking for horror movies lies in the excitement and danger they pose. People enjoy being scared because it pushes a surge of adrenaline.
A new horror film just got released into theaters, are you going to go pay to see it? Most definitely. Horror films draw us in because we are all mentally ill, as Stephen King says. In King’s article “Why we crave horror films” he argues humans are insane, and why it is necessary for them to watch horror films. To defend King’s argument, it is clear to see that humans “need” to “purge” primal urges. People watch these films because they love being scared, feed their mental cravings, and watch for their own entertainment. Everyone has that so-called “insane” side to them, wether they like the films or not.
Because modern cinematic techniques have allowed filmmakers to get more graphic, horror flicks have desensitized young American viewers to violence.
One in four college students in a recent study said they experience lingering effects of a frightful movie or TV experience from childhood. (Bernie DeGroat) Fear is an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief the someone or something is dangerous causing pain, or threats. It is not appropriate for middle schoolers to read classic horror stories like “The Tell-Tale Heart”, because they can cause them anxiety and it can make them aggressive after watching scary movies.
Horror movies can have negative psychological effects. Although some people enjoy the thrill and nastiness of horror movies, I, for one, do not. Watching horror films give me nightmares, and make me extra paranoid. Rather than my inner psyche feeling “satisfied,” I feel disturbed. Watching horror films can also cause heightened stress and anxiety. Under more serious conditions, horror films can even cause PTSD, or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. A woman named Caroline appeared on the Dr. Phil show, who after watching a horror film called Psycho,
Bernie DeGroat in his essay, “Scary movies Can Have Lasting Effects on Children and Teens” has an entirely different opinion that that of Stephen King. In Bernie DeGroat’s essay, horror movies tend to do more harm than good. DeGroat is adamant that horror films are the cause behind many long-lasting negative psychological effects. “One in four college students in a recent study said they experience lingering effects of a frightful movie or TV experience from childhood. These effects range from inability to sleep to avoidance of situations portrayed in those movies” (DeGroat). In DeGroat’s essay the trauma the characters often feel in horrific situations that horror movies display can often cause physiological effects on those who watch it. This being a very different opinion than Stephen King who considers scary movies to be cathartic in many ways. “According to Harrison and Cantor, the younger the study’s participants were when they viewed a scary movie and TV program the longer-lasting the effects” (DeGroat). DeGroat
Horror movies. The type of genre that gives a thrill of adrenaline, yet also gives nightmares late at night. Everyone has watched a horror movie at least once in their lives. And during the movie there is also a time in which the viewer just wants to punch the TV screen and call it quits. Whether it is because their favorite character just did something dumb, or because the ending was horrible, there is always a moment in which one thinks: I would have chosen a better option. I could have survived. In literature, it is often the same thing. Believe it or not, fear is a huge contributor to how the story goes; how it ends, and who dies. Fear either motivates the character to take action or, defeats them. But fear doesn’t act alone. Fear influences people, but what influences the fear? The answer is quite simple, no matter how shocking it can be. Just as love brings happiness, it also brings forth the poison of fear. Whether it is the fear of losing the person they love, or fear that they are no longer loved, both of them are huge contributors on how a character’s actions or decisions are influenced.
The emotion of fear injects the sense of dread all throughout our body, causing our muscles to tense up, pupils to dilate, body to sweat, stomach to clench, and to breathe heavily. Fear’s main intention of doing so is to warn ourselves of any potential danger we might be in and prevent any future harm done to us. (Dayton) So, for what reason might we humans want to experience fear; such as watching horror movies, when it is so closely associated with pain?
We all love a good scare from time to time. That spine chilling horror flick or that toe curling scary story makes our hormones rush. As Halloween is just round the corner, it’s the perfect time to discuss the benefits of being scared.
In the informative essay “Why We Crave Horror Movies”, written by Stephen King, the author believes we are all mentally ill. King goes on throughout the essay employing that people watch horror movies because it reestablishes their normality, and represents the bad in the people watching. King trust the fact that horror films not only appeal to the people watching but also to exhibit to themselves that they are not afraid. Additionally, King articulates that horror films makes people feel like children again. He believes that it gives people old imaginations that composes them to forget about current responsibilities.
It was a dark, cold, November night. The moon overlooked the lake as it mirrored its reflection. It was peaceful, too peaceful. I was on my way to my aunt’s, who lived a mile or so from my house. I didn’t want to go, but my mother made me. She was working a double shift at the hospital and she didn’t want me to be alone tonight. Tonight was the night my brother died two years ago. It’s a funny story how it happened, but that’s a story to tell another time. According to Stephen King’s essay “Why We Crave Horror Movies” he draws viewers into horror stories like the one above simply because we crave it. King claims in his essay we obsess over the wanting of horror as if we are daring the nightmare. The human condition is finally allows people
Kathy Benjamin lists 5 scientific ways watching movies effects people. First, they can impact their physical and mental health. She explains when you watch a horror movie or intense film, your heart rate and blood pressure will increase. In extreme cases, people can have heart attacks and/or die. Depressed people should not watch sad movies. Also, scary movies may cause someone to go through a traumatic experience all over again. Second, Kathy mentions watching violence in movies can make you more aggressive. “A new study seems to prove that watching aggression on screen can contribute to being a bully in real life, even if it is just in the short term” (Benjamin). This has been debated for a long time. However, studies have shown that there is some truth to it.