3/22/2012 English 100 The Best of Horror movies
Many people would say that their favorite way to have fun is to go to a beautiful beach and build sand castles or hang out with their friends at the mall. But for me, put me in a dark theater with a murderous psychopath on the loose threatening teenagers and I am happy. I am a lover of horror movies. This is something that I don’t always tell people, because it seems kind of weird to enjoy being scared and grossed out by lots of blood and gore. But in fact, I love horror movies, and I am not alone. And I am not crazy. Horror movies can be not only fun, but some experts have even argued that they are harmless or even good for us.
There are many people who say that horror
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Out of all of them I was the only one who was not afraid. I did not scream, nor did I ever cover my eyes like they did. At one point Barbara tried to leave in the middle of the movie because it was too “scary” I quickly put my leg up in front of her and told her “relax its not even that scary we didn’t pay ten dollars just to see half of the movie and leave”. She stayed but it would have been a good idea if I had let her go. Why? Because she constantly kept screaming every 10 seconds a “scary” part came up in the movie. Farah on the other hand was trying to keep it “cool and tough” just like I was, she didn’t scream much but the expression on her face was priceless, you can tell she was scared. But I kept laughing at them and saying “it’s not even that serious” so they probably thought I was really “tough”. So this is what Stephen King means when he says we try to prove how strong we are or how cool we can play it knowing that the movie is really scary.
Most interestingly, he says “By the time one turns 40 or 50, one’s appetite for double twists or 360 degree loops may be considerably depleted” (King) Once we start to get older our love for horror movies start to disappear and we become little kids again that are afraid to watch scary movies. So King is also basically saying that mostly the younger generation prefers to watch horror movies. “That may explain why horror movies are most popular with younger audiences. Teens and twenty-somethings “are more likely to
So say my personal tastes in movies make me a sick bastard just because of the subject matter portrayed in the narrative. Ok, well that isn’t exactly about what Stephen King was saying. King tells us that the horror movie does a dirty job of satiating our urges and letting our instincts run free, which in turn means that most people have something deep and dark inside them, merely a hairpin away from freaking out and murdering adorable puppies for no good reason (and there are plenty of good reasons, stop lying to yourself). I don’t know about you, but I don’t feel anything deep and evil inside of me that must be satiated so I don’t go on a weekly blood rampage so I feel like that isn’t the reason.
Stephen King never clearly states the thesis of this essay however there is enough information provided that we can infer one. We need to keep our inner lyncher at bay by feeding ourselves with small portions of demonic, bloody, violence, found in horror movies. King writes “It deliberately appeals to all the worst in us. It is morbidity unchained, our most base instincts let free, our nastiest fantasies realized...” (Why We Crave Horror Movies, paragraph 12) and by doing so he’s implying that horror movies are like a temporary fix for our violent craves.
negotiates with what one may feel when, or after, viewing a horror film. While this may
In the essay, “Why We Crave Horror Movies,” King explores his insight into why people enjoy and are fascinated watching horror movies. First, King points out “to show that we can, that we are not afraid, that we can ride this roller coaster”. He’s suggesting that horror movies are like roller coaster in that we search for the pleasurable, daring, lighter side of feeling fear and the thrill of trying to overcome it. King further states, horror movies “takes away the shades of grey,” giving the audience permission to return to children again, “seeing things in pure blacks and whites.” King goes on to explain that we go to “re-establish our feelings of normality”; providing psychological relief for the audience, allowing them to “lapse into simplicity, irrationality, and even outright madness." In my opinion, King’s reason for viewing horror films for psychological reasons is the most unsettling. He argues that horror movies gives the audience permission to return to childhood, viewing their emotions in a simple and madness way. I’m not sure everyone has the ability to differentiate these feelings. If we take a moment to observe the actual audience, we would discover that it’s mostly teens and young adults who have difficulty coping with their emotions and very impressionable.
In the essay, "Why We Crave Horror Movies", Steven King explains that the modern day horror movie is our relief for violence it is what feeds the gator. He uses horror movies because of there violent nature. We all need to be able to step outside life's boundaries and certain
Why We Crave Horror Movies,” Steven King shares his opinion for why society enjoys watching horror films. He is a very well-known author and is very good at what he does. Let’s take a closer look at his article to examine his use of rhetoric to bring his readers to a point of considering a new perspective about themselves. Mr. King takes his reader on a journey of a mix of reasoning and emotions to help guide him or her from one perspective to the other side of a new perspective.
Do you enjoy watching murder, the paranormal, and any other morbid scene which makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up, your palms sweat, and your adrenaline surge? Why people enjoy watching murder, tragedy, and carnage in their spare time has been a mysterious phenomenon. If these gruesomely horrific scenes would not be enjoyable in real life, why is watching a recreation of it so riveting? Stephen King, a world-renowned horror novelist, wrote “Why We Crave Horror Movies” to give insight as to why horror movies, although gruesome and morbid, captivate audiences. King also aims to persuade readers to continue to watch horror movies, arguing that they are a crucial part of keeping sanity. King delves into this psychological aspect of humans and believes that the desire to watch horror films is a normal tendency of humankind. “Why We Crave Horror Movies” includes appeals to emotion, logic, and author credibility in order to convince readers of the positive, normal desire to watch horror films, why it is important to watch them, and why the reader should believe what the author is saying. King utilizes the rhetorical devices—pathos, logos, and ethos—in an effective way through the use of metaphor, logic, humor, and emotion to persuade readers that watching horror films is normal.
him or her involved in the film - how often have you been watching a
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.
King then adds, that another reason we will go and experience a flick intended to raise one’s heart rate, would be “to re-establish our feelings of essential normality.” This suggests, that we go to show ourselves that we are not all that abnormal and horrible when compared to the rest of the freaks that could be potentially roaming the
In the essay, “Why We Crave Horror Movies” by Stephen King, the author talks about the benefits of the horror movies on human beings. He argues that we all behave like mad people by performing weird things like talking to ourselves, showing disgusting faces and having odd fears. Comparing the horror movies with roller coasters, he states that young people are more fascinated by these adventures to prove the point that they can do this and are not afraid of taking challenges. He argues that we get fun by watching people getting hurt and suffering from menacing pain in the movies. Despite having insane thoughts in their mind which they want to execute in reality people are expected to show emotions that are accepted by the society. Horror movies gives psychic relief to these insane
A girl runs frantically through the woods trying to escape an axe wielding villain. The defenseless victim suddenly trips and collapses to the ground. The villain laughs wickedly as he lifts the axe above his head. The girl releases a final scream as the weapon quickly ends her life, causing the audience to go silent as they watch the villain drag away the lifeless body. Death, blood, guts, suspense, screaming, and terror are all just a few things to expect when watching a modern day horror film. What is horror? Horror can be defined as an intense feeling of fear, shock, or disgust. (Wilson) The description of horror is not very pleasant, but for some reason horror films are extremely popular. Why is this so? People are addicted to the
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
Horror is designed to scare, cause alarm and dread, while also entertaining the audience at the same time in a cathartic experience (Dirk, 2016). Horror films are meant for a specific type of audience that enjoy scary films. Dirks (Tim, 2016) approach to genre horror, is that films went back as 100 years ago, from the earliest days our vivid imagination in seeing ghosts in the shadows to be connected emotionally of the unknown, and fear things that are improbable. You watch a horror film, it makes you aware of the scary surroundings, the essence of fear itself, without actually being in any sorts of danger. Dirks argues that there is a fun and thrill factor in being frightened, or watching something disturbing. It gives you that feeling of an adrenaline rush, as well as having that feeling someone is actually next to you lurking in the dark (Dirk, 2016).
One of the reasons that this film made the top ten films of all time