There are many popular genres in today's age but one of the most popular is horror. It has been around for a long time and its continuously changing. Horror is an interesting genre because it involves fear and usually there aren't happy endings, time and time again a monster in the story ends up killing everyone which people do not like. This society is big on happy ending’s, people like a good story where everything turns out okay and horror is usually the total opposite of that. Horror involves monsters and the purpose behind monsters are they bring about a feeling of increased adrenaline which keep people hooked. The main part of a horror story that people enjoy so much are the monster’s the stories are about. They are what make the story …show more content…
Everyone can remember a time in their life when they were scared whether it be when they ran up the stairs before turning the light off so the “monster” in their house couldn’t get them or whether it be walking outside in the dark and becoming paranoid that someone is watching them. Considering that no one enjoys being afraid why does this society enjoy horror so much? The answer is in the monster of the horror story themselves. There are two types of monsters in horror, the ones who look human and the ones who don’t. Monster’s that look human fascinate this society because of the psychological aspect of them. When the monster is a human or is human-like, people can sympathize with them since people want to know what made them how they are, and they make people think about how there is a great possibility that there are monsters in the form of a human all around in their society. On the other side there are the monsters that don’t look human, these are the other type of monsters that fascinate people because people believe that there is no way that they can be real. Seeing both these types of monsters on the big screen or reading about them in stories provides such a thrill that people love. A huffington post article said “Watching a horror movie increases your heart rate by an average of
People develop multiple reasons to why they like to receive these odd and fear emotions, which now in society we call insanity. In the “Why We Crave Horror Movies” by Stephen King, whose main argument is that we watch horror movies to satisfy our curiosity. In the “How Tabloid Train Wrecks Reinventing Gothic Literature” by Carina Chocano, whose main argument is to prove how gothic literature is very similar to gossip; for example, gossiping makes people turn into ghosts, unnatural. It’s tempting to see Gothic tales as escapism, but these stories will sum up during times of trouble. Fascination with fear or Gothic stories satisfies some emotional need of individuals and of society by making people feed on their inner childhood that is inconstantly needed of satisfaction. People can do that by watching horror movies or reading tabloids and that is why they enjoy scaring themselves.
Gripping at your heart, and deep in your soul, you can feel the effect that fear creates. This is a lingering emotion everyone tries to avoid. Intended to scare us we have been drawn to these stories that have been around throughout time. Dark genre, horror, and gore are somethings we have always enjoyed since the Twelfth century. This gives rise to the big question, why?
We yearn for horror to re-establish our feelings of normalcy. For instance, some people would watch a movie and see people melting or in an ugly form, but then realize what King said,
Asma states, "Monsters can stand as symbols of human vulnerability and crisis, and as such they play imaginative foils for thinking about our own responses to menace.” This means that human weaknesses and fears are represented through monstrous figures, and these fictional situations provide perspective into how we react in fearful environments. In our current society we fear many things, including but not limited to failed or corrupt governmental systems, the afterlife, the unknown, and captivity, which makes this claim valid. Although we may not realize it, these fears are embodied by the horror monsters we see in popular culture. Society shares common fears, and often times the most prevailing fear is reflected in the most popular characters at any given time. Monsters are the fictional representations of society’s dark subconscious, exploring not only why the author’s statement is accurate but what we actually fear.
In horror stories there is just enough mystery to make you want to know more, and enough danger to make you glad this is fiction. Scary stories can allow people to conquer their own adversities. We all have our demons, things we’re afraid of but don’t want to admit. Some horror novels play on common fears like IT by: Stephen King which uses clowns as the source for fear, Chucky which features menacing dolls and Contagion which portrays rampant pestilence. By vicariously facing your fears in a novel, you’re able to tame them in real life. Sometimes even watching a character deal with the monster uplifts you to face your own fears. The concept of gruesome entertainment is all in human psychology. In order for us to be entertained, we have to feel the story being told. Scary stories bring us the adrenaline rush, the exploration of the unknown, and even the upliftment we all crave. Luckily the monsters in these stories are all fiction and cannot harm us in real life. Until they show up the next night, waiting for you in the
Ah Monsters! The creaking of the floorboards underneath your feet as you rush into the safety of your bed. The adrenaline coursing through your veins as you see the shadows behind you even though in reality nothings there. Monsters still lurk in the dark corners of everyone’s mind even after all those years since being introduced in the media.
Horror has effects on people because getting scared sticks in your mind. There must be change throughout the story to keep the reader interested because people get bored. There are people who will get tired and shut down if you do not keep them busy and entertained and keep their mind going
Type the word horror into google and you will receive the following definition on Merriam Webster: an intense feeling of fear, shock, or disgust. Horror is different than fear in that it is more disturbing, disgusting, and creepy. Writers of horror stories take repulsive or unspeakable elements and turn them into a story that’s sure to make even the strongest of reader’s arm hairs stand on edge. One such writer spent a portion of his life writing these kind of stories. Edgar Allan Poe was influenced by his own life experiences, social normalities of the early 19th century, and used literary devices to write horrific works such as The Black Cat, The Raven, and Berenice.
As a child, after watching a horror movie… we often fear every little aspect thing such as, walking in the dark, waiting for something to pop out our closet doors, or under our beds. Monsters have been around for a long time. We have feared monsters because we've grown up with something that our relatives have told us that is scary. However, it's the society perspective of what society fears, what we fear and how we fear monsters. Monsters are usually described as a creature which we show fear by its appearance or its actions.
Horror is the genre that keeps the reader on their toes for nights upon end. It keeps them thinking. Thinking about how cruel and disturbing someone, or something, could possibly be. Thinking about what in the world happens to a character after the story drops off in a cliffhanger. Thinking about the probability that the events in the narrative could transpire in real life. Thinking about how likely it is for those things to happen to the reader. Refusing to look out their window in fear of seeing the glimpse of a murderous face, and listening to every sound with acute accuracy, praying that the noise is not one of a stranger creeping up the stairs. Scary accounts make the reader live in fear whenever the
When we think about horror, we think about death and bad things happening to good people. Horror gives a face to material that generally does not have a face. It gets our blood flowing and you cannot stop thinking about it. When is the next bad thing going to happen? Who is it going to happen to? It allows our minds to be creative and picture what we want. It kind of follows the idea that we are not at the top of the food chain like we always are and most people find that scary. Matthew Lewis does a wonderful job of depicting horror in The Monk.
We are drawn into scary movies because they are odd and maybe we never saw it coming. Some people find monsters so intriguing because they are just like humans. We could have the same characteristics as a monster but not be titled a monster, why? Because stereotypically monsters are bad people. They kill other, put each other in danger, they are scary looking and normally no one knows them and nobody wants them around. “Monsters help us express our darkest places.
Throughout the course of the past 100 years, there have been many horror films made. According to Dr. Jeffrey Goldstein, a professor of social and organizational psychology at the University of Utrecht "People go to horror films because they want to be frightened or they wouldn't do it twice.” What Dr. Jeffrey Goldstein meant by this is that people love horror films and they keep going back to watch them whenever a new horror film comes out is because people love to be frightened. For a film to be classified as a horror film it usually means that someone or multiple people in the film die. This would be an understandable reason why people would not enjoy watching this type of film. One population that would be understandably unwilling to
Horror is developed in many different ways, and horror stories are unique in their own ways. From the eerie horror of “The Tell-Tale Heart”
Along with the imagery used, the setting whereby the horror takes its place is an important part of a horror story. This also helps create a daunting atmosphere. Also a specific setting maybe associated with horror such as a graveyard or a marooned big castle, when this type of setting is used it creates an even better atmosphere, as the reader recognises the setting and associates it with horror. In successful horror stories assorted types of characters is used, this mixture is fairly important in the making of a good horror story. This mixture is imperative as using various characters allows the author to explore different aspects of people's personalities, which can be used to explore the menacing side of people's personality, and the author can also explore how other humans interact with the scary side to someone's personality.