We extend our warmest welcome to our dear readers. We are very happy to present you with our newest creation – a blog that aims to explore various horror books, movies, and podcasts to satisfy your natural curiousity about the genre. We will aim to deliver on your expectations by giving you well-researched articles that are comprehensible and maybe even a little fun.
We were wondering what to dedicate our welcome post to, and after some thinking we realised we should talk about the horror genre, duh! We will specifically talk about the horror genre of literature and cinema, so you know the history of your favourite books and films. Enjoy reading!
Literature and Horror
It’s hard to pinpoint the moment the horror genre emerged in literature. Scholars would say that it did with the advent of the Gothic novel with the release of Horace Walpole’s book The Castle of Otranto in 1765. Still, the horror story has existed for much longer when you look at myths, legends, and even medieval horror stories belonging to different cultures all around the world.
Also, did everyone forget Dante’s Divine Comedy (1307)? The picture he painted, along with the tone and feeling of dread are nothing short of horrific. Then there is The Hammer of Witches (1486), a supposed guidebook, which, however, codified the belief in the supernatural, in this case – witchcraft.
This topic was, of course, always viewed in religious context and it wouldn’t be until the 18th century when literature became more “secularized” perhaps under the influence of the blossoming Enlightenment. After the success of The Castle of Otranto, other writers followed Walpole’s lead and created works with similar setting and themes like A Sicilian Romance (1790) and The Italian (1796) by Ann Radcliffe.
Another female writer that came two decades later, Mary Shelley, went on to further define the Gothic genre with Frankenstein (1818), which is also the first science fiction novel. Washington Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” (1820) brought the Gothic horror to the new world, which was later perfected by the brilliant Edgar Allan Poe.
Cinema and Horror
Cinema, on the other hand, has always had horror on its mind. Since its very inception, when cinema was used as a visual trick rather than a storytelling medium, directors such as George Melies used it to conjure up supernatural beings to the amaze of the audience. In fact, the first horror movie, Le Manoir du diable (House of the Devil), is credited to him.
While looking for the distinctive cinematic language of expression, early film directors were also preoccupied with adapting popular 19th century novels on screen. Most of these novels were in fact horror novels like Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and naturally – Frankenstein and Dracula.
The horror genre experienced both sudden increases and decreases in interest over the next few decades. It arguably found its ground with the contributions of Alfred Hitchcock, namely Psycho (1960) and The Birds (1963). Especially the former presented a new type of horror – that of the serial killer; a seemingly regular Joe who could strike at any time.
The two previous waves of horror movies usually dealt with the supernatural, but Hitchcock heightened the fear of the viewers who realised this could happen to them. The next decade saw serial killers like Ted Bundy and the Zodiac, which brought a sense of terrifying realism to horror movies.
Podcasts and Horror
This is where so-called horror podcasts come along. Many of them discuss real-life horror stories, some of which inspired various films and TV shows. Others though take a more creative approach and mask themselves as reality while relying on fiction.
Creepypastas became increasingly popular in the early 2010’s, for example, with their realistic portrayal of horror that left many people wonder if they aren’t actually non-fictional. There are podcasts dedicated to them, and others dedicated to folklore, thus exploring how the tradition of horror developed across the world.
The horror genre would likely continue to evolve in new and interesting ways and we can’t wait to follow its natural progression.