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Hey all, @christiansager here. I'll be on here for awhile this morning writing this thread about a question often asked about CORRIDOR: "Why Horror?"
Rather than just riff on my own thoughts, I'm going to pull in some research & opinions from others. Follow along!
Rather than just riff on my own thoughts, I'm going to pull in some research & opinions from others. Follow along!
I waited a couple of days to do this so we all had a moment to celebrate. But there's still work to do, work for which storytelling is especially useful.
Horror stories are especially necessary right now.
Horror stories are especially necessary right now.
As Joan Didion wrote: "We tell ourselves stories in order to live."
Stories are how we make sense of the world around us, because our puny human bodies can't process all the chaotic sensory information we receive. We use narrative to make order out of that chaos.
Stories are how we make sense of the world around us, because our puny human bodies can't process all the chaotic sensory information we receive. We use narrative to make order out of that chaos.
There's a few standard arguments for why we should consume horror stories:
1) They helps us practice experiencing negative emotions.
2) Horror works as immersion therapy, prepping us for real-life horror. Grant Morrison calls this an "inoculation." That's ironic in 2020.
1) They helps us practice experiencing negative emotions.
2) Horror works as immersion therapy, prepping us for real-life horror. Grant Morrison calls this an "inoculation." That's ironic in 2020.
3) Horror stories also help us validate the idea that there's something more to this world than we understand. It allows us to indulge in the magical thinking our brains lean toward, but inside a safe space.
To unpack these further, let's turn to some advice from @timwaggoner's WRITING IN THE DARK, where he has a whole chapter on "Why Horror Matters."
http://www.timwaggoner.com/bookswriting.htm
http://www.timwaggoner.com/bookswriting.htm
Waggoner points out that horror fiction allows us to both explore and come to terms with our dark side. That's something that many Americans are struggling with this week, so it's worth looking at closer.
Like many of you I've been struggling with questions about human nature lately: why are we violent and cruel? Waggoner points out that can be overwhelming. Again, it's too much chaotic information for our puny brains.
But horror stories allow us to process this chaotic information indirectly. Kind of like looking at Medusa through her reflection in a mirror.
And yes, it's also fun. Give us an adrenaline boost. Makes us feel more alive.
And yes, it's also fun. Give us an adrenaline boost. Makes us feel more alive.
All storytelling can operate this way, but horror shows us at our worst. It reveals the worst possible ways to deal with conflict.
Later I'll cite some studies that argue horror helps us develop survival skills so we're ready when faced with danger. Like say... a pandemic.
Later I'll cite some studies that argue horror helps us develop survival skills so we're ready when faced with danger. Like say... a pandemic.
This year, many of us have felt pushed to the edge by crises both personally and universal. Horror fiction allows us experience similar feelings, preparing us for when the real hard hits come along.
I've seen many people struggle this year under the pressure of these crises. Some of them might have been more mentally prepared if they hadn't avoided horror in favor of entertainment that was both easy and comfortable.
@timwaggoner also points out that good horror isn't SAFE. It doesn't always end with the heroes winning. Much like real life, protagonists can be defeated or changed by horror. Some become a part of it.
A lot of us feel like this today: We haven't banished evil. This is a temporary win. And we shouldn't let our guard down because of one election.
Further: how did this horror change our friends, families and neighbors? How did they become a part of it?
Further: how did this horror change our friends, families and neighbors? How did they become a part of it?
We can try to answer those questions through horror stories. We can explore our darkest impulses so they no longer have power over us. Instead of avoiding our bad thoughts, we can use them in an attempt to conquer our problems.
. @timwaggoner ends his chapter with this: "The stories we (horror writers) create perform numerous important functions for people as individuals and for civilization as a whole."
The most recent example of this comes from a psychology article published in September which found that fans of horror exhibited greater resilience during the pandemic. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7492010/
They argue that "exposure to frightening fictions allow audiences to practice effective coping strategies that can be beneficial in real-world situations. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7492010/
. @GregRuth wrote an excellent article in 2017 addressing this, specifically in how we expose children to horror.
The world is scary. Rather than leave kids unprepared, let's give them the tools to cope with it. https://www.tor.com/2017/10/02/horror-is-good-for-you-and-even-better-for-your-kids/
The world is scary. Rather than leave kids unprepared, let's give them the tools to cope with it. https://www.tor.com/2017/10/02/horror-is-good-for-you-and-even-better-for-your-kids/
When talking about the catharsis horror stories provide us, Ruth says "Kids can dance with their fears in a safe way that can teach them how to survive monsters and be powerful too." https://www.tor.com/2017/10/02/horror-is-good-for-you-and-even-better-for-your-kids/
Citing an episode of DOCTOR WHO, Ruth points out something we fans of horror already know. It provides us with "guides" who are more honest with us about the world than our parents.
Stephen King & comic books taught me more valuable life lessons than my own family. You?
Stephen King & comic books taught me more valuable life lessons than my own family. You?
So rather than deny horror stories, let's make sure our fears can't get the best of us. Let's learn how to meet and overcome them together. That seems especially relevant right now.
. @SGJ72 — one of our favorite authors here — also addressed this in an essay last year.
We're all outraged and disgusted by the news on a daily basis. So much so we may need horror simply to process those emotions and vent them out. https://tornightfire.com/why-horror-now/
We're all outraged and disgusted by the news on a daily basis. So much so we may need horror simply to process those emotions and vent them out. https://tornightfire.com/why-horror-now/
I especially like this quote from Jones' piece (attached).
Horror stories are built into the very fabric of our culture. Without them, we're left with an overwhelming amount of information to process, without a narrative to make sense of.
Horror stories are built into the very fabric of our culture. Without them, we're left with an overwhelming amount of information to process, without a narrative to make sense of.
* I'm going to pause for a bit to walk my dog. But I'll follow up with more in this thread later!
Some more research on the "why horror" topic was published by @mossabigail in a 2017 article. She spoke with a psychology researcher in Denmark who studied the effects of horror movies. https://www.vice.com/en/article/a3wdzk/why-some-anxious-people-find-comfort-in-horror-movies
He said this: " There's psychological distance when we watch a horror film. We know it's not real—or at least, some parts of our brain know it isn't real. Other parts—ancient structures located in the limbic system—respond as though it were real." https://www.vice.com/en/article/a3wdzk/why-some-anxious-people-find-comfort-in-horror-movies
Consuming horror stories creates a flight or fight response in a controlled environment, allowing us to experience negative emotions in a safe space.
Another researcher at Oxford compared it to exposure therapy, where patients are exposed to the source of their fear and learn to be less fearful of it. https://www.vice.com/en/article/a3wdzk/why-some-anxious-people-find-comfort-in-horror-movies
In an essay on why he makes horror films, @SSheil agrees with writers like Waggoner and Jones. He says horror has a deep concern with examining the fundamental themes of our human experience. https://www.talkhouse.com/death-grief-value-horror-films/
He writes: "The world is a violent and scary place and death is everywhere. We’re reminded every day of the brutality that people can commit, as individuals, as cells, as armies, as governments. Horror asks questions about that brutality – where it comes from, where it leads."
Now seems like the right time to seriously ask ourselves these horrific questions. Why did 70 million of us endorse a racist, a liar, a sexual predator, a fraud, a conspiracy theorist & promoter of violence?
What needs did they think he could meet for them?
What needs did they think he could meet for them?
We're going to need horror to help us process that information. We're going to need it to answer questions about our own humanity, what we value and how we make sense of the world together.
Sheil says, "When someone tells me now that they can’t understand people who like horror, I tell them that I feel the opposite – I can’t understand anyone who doesn’t."
Those of us who avoid horror stories are also avoiding the questions they force us to ask about ourselves.
Those of us who avoid horror stories are also avoiding the questions they force us to ask about ourselves.
As @StephenKing wrote in 1981's DANSE MACABRE:
"We make up horrors to help us cope with the real ones. A good horror story is one that functions on a symbolic level, using fictional (and sometimes supernatural) events to help us understand our own deepest real fears."
"We make up horrors to help us cope with the real ones. A good horror story is one that functions on a symbolic level, using fictional (and sometimes supernatural) events to help us understand our own deepest real fears."
