What Is H. P. Lovecraft's Horror?

Stephen King’s short story “The Boogeyman” is a thrilling adventure that incorporates an urban legend that has many names throughout the world, and therefore makes any reader able to identify with this story. It pulls you in, making you question whether the stories your parents, cousins, or siblings you had finally deemed as unrealistic and fake were fictional at all. Why is King’s story so eerie? Is it the realism in the story, or the fact that the creature being described may have always been a small weakness for you? The scientific article “The Bogeyman” in which we are explained the origin and purpose for the monster may have the answers to these questions. After all, how probable is it that an unidentified creature will happen to appear in sight tonight?

Horror, what is it, according to literary historian J.A. Cuddon, it is “a piece of fiction in prose of variable length…which shocks or even frightens the reader, or perhaps induces a feeling of repulsion or loathing.” This sets the guidelines for how the generic horror piece is written, as long as it can scare the reader in one sense or the other, or cause them to loath a certain part or character, then it can be called horror. The horror today has roots stemming from old folklore and religious traditions which had elements that dealt with death, the afterlife, and the demonic, along with the things or thing that embody a person. Horror during the 18th century was called gothic horror and this particular type of horror was invented in the

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.

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.

Another character that creates fear for the reader and thereby creates a gothic atmosphere is Frankenstein’s monster. Its outer appearance is described by Walton as “… horrible […] that I shut my eyes involuntarily” (Shelley 221). Hence, the horror to the gothic element is added thorough the appearance of the monster.

The Call of Cthulhu is a horror story that is able to break through and cause terror. The horror comes from forcing the reader to witness awful and unexplainable things happen to the characters in the story, especially without the ability to prevent the misfortunes from happening. It becomes terror because Lovecraft places the entire story in our reality rather then a fictional setting. Becuase of this, we are forced to relate the story’s events to our physical world. It inflicts a sense of danger by insinuating that the forces in the story exist around us. Lovecraft is able to effectively place the imaginary story in our physical world by arming the story in science and logic, using familiar references and locations, and makes you an unofficial

Just as Frankenstein witnessed a natural phenomenon that generates fear, he had to face his own fear in a similar setting (Shelley).

After a hot humid day in July 1947, severe and violent thunderstorms filled the night sky. Long time farmer, Mac Brazel was used to thunder, and storms out in the country. Although something about this night was different. He heard an extremely loud crash, though didn’t think much of it. The next morning however, Brazel stumbled upon the debris of a strange object on his farm. Brazel brought some of the material to a nearby neighbor who urged him to report his find in hopes of getting a reward. Brazel informed the sheriff

In H.P. Lovecraft’s short story “The call of Cthulhu,” written in 1926, Lovecraft does not give his main character a name. H.P. Lovecraft does not tell the readers anything about the main character besides that his great uncle, George Gammell Angell, has died in an accident. When George Gammell Angell dies the main character goes through George’s things, finding George’s manuscript that starts the main characters investigation. The main character may not be given a name or have much development behind his character, but the main character is the narrator of the entire short story. However, there are some points of inner dialogue from the main character so the readers can understand his emotions. H.P. Lovecraft, although he does not develop the main character to a large extent, does develop the side characters to the point we know who they are and what happened to them. George Gammell Angell, as stated above, is the main characters great uncle, as well as, a professor at Brown University before his sudden accidental death. H.P. Lovecraft goes as far as describing George Gammell Angell’s death:

“ People fear what they do not understand. ” In the original 1888 edition of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, this saying is excessively shown throughout the journey of Frankenstein himself and his creation known as “ the creature.” Fear is spreaded in this famous, gothic novel because the epitome of society is lacked by both the creator and the creation, leading to much misunderstanding with who is the real monster. In this novel, the true monster is society because the ideals indirectly presented led Frankenstein to abhor and abandon the creature, the ultimate isolation of both, and the delirious vengeance developed by the two.

The Lovecraft Bar in Portland, Oregon is a tribute to the prolific horror fiction author H.P. Lovecraft. This bar provides a whole world of Lovecraft horror experience and much more. True to its theme, the walls of the horror themed dance bar are painted jet black with severed doll heads and skeletons poking out. The place is decorated with an eight foot tall statue of Cthulhu- a creepy character created by Lovecraft along with several other spooky statues and artworks. Additionally, it hosts a number of themed parties, live music, tarot reading, reading by authors

Mary Shelley creates a sense of gloom, mystery, and suspense, in her novel Frankenstein. The book generates these perceptions though the setting and the terrible events that go on throughout the book. Gothic novels came from the English genre of fiction popular in the 18th and 19th centuries. Gothics are defined by the mysterious and horrific atmosphere, similar to that of Mary Shelley’s writing. Frankenstein is a gothic novel because of the combined elements of extreme and sinister landscapes, horrifying events, supernatural elements, and a passionate, wilful villain.

significance of the story, I must first talk about Lovecraft's specific style of philosophy towards

In “The Call of Cthulhu,” H.P. Lovecraft makes use of a more psychological horror path, which is a major aspect of Lovecraftian horror. Psychological horror uses more suspense build up and shock than blood and gore. H.P. Lovecraft accomplishes this by using a buildup of suspense, not revealing the ‘monster’ till the end while hinting at what the ‘monster’ is throughout the story. H.P. Lovecraft writes the main character following his great uncle's manuscript and piecing together the puzzle of “the Great Ones.” H.P. Lovecraft also creates the sense of suspense by making the main character’s inner dialogue contain the main characters emotions and thoughts of suspect. Another example of the use of psychological horror is when Henry Anthony Wilcox dreams of “the Great Ones,” and experiences a period of mental breakdown that physicians could not identify. Once Henry Anthony Wilcox came out of the episode he remembered nothing, creating a shock factor, and making the reader ask “how did that happen?”

Horror stories focus on creating a feeling of fear and shock using many sources. There are many sources of horror besides monsters and there are more factors involved in making stories part of the horror genre, including supernatural elements, hubris, and setting. Stories including the “Tell Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe, “The Outsider” by H.P. Lovecraft, and “The Monkey’s Paw” by W.W. Jacobs include these elements.