By Ola Smith HORROR GENRE

ORIGINS AND DEVELOPMENT  Originated from early folklore (about vampires, werewolves, monsters, etc.)  Written horror genre started with Shakespeare  The Victorians created both the horror and the ghost story, and Charles Dickens perfected the connection of the two genres  Spiritualism caused the topic of the dead returning to confront the living  Novel form of horror only began in the mid 1970s, whereas before, it was all in short story form

CHARACTERISTICS  Expect the unexpected  Setting has a sense of dread  Atmosphere is intense, pace is fast  Supernatural elements involved sometimes  Ending can leave reader with the feeling that the threat still lingers  Main focus is emotions, the fear of the main character  The main character is usually a good person

H.P. LOVECRAFT  Howard Phillips Lovecraft, born on 20 August 1890  Started writing fiction in 1917, but wrote articles in scientific newspapers before  Author of horror, fantasy, and science-fiction, especially the sub- genre of “weird fiction”  His main belief was what he called “cosmicism” or “cosmic horror”: the idea that life is unfathomable to the human mind and that the universe is hostile to humankind’s interests  Was inspired by his own nightmares. His study of the scientific progress made him see the human race as unimportant, helpless, weak creatures overpowered by the universe  Notable books: The Tomb, The Tree, The Alchemist, Dagon, Beyond the Wall of Sleep, Hypnos, The Nameless City 2/27/Lovecraft1934.jpg

STEPHEN KING  Stephen Edwin King, born on 21 September 1947  Wrote articles in the local newspaper in 1959  Interest in horror writing began in 1959, but his first professional sale was in 1967  Called the “Master of Horror”  Has published over 50 books and sold more than 350 million copies  Author of contemporary horror, suspense, science-fiction and fantasy  Influenced mainly by Richard Matheson, H.P. Lovecraft, Bram Stoker and Ray Bradbury  Notable books: The Shining, Misery, The Stand, Salem’s Lot, It, Carrie, Desperation, Bag of Bones, Night Shift X1UIk30litE/T8wt4KxyUKI/AAAAAAAABb8 /YI9B- UasGWM/s1600/stephen_king_writer.jpg

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION  “Believe only half of what you see and nothing that you hear.” Edgar Allen Poe  “Alone. Yes, that’s the key word, the most awful word in the English tongue. Murder doesn’t hold a candle to it and hell is just a poor synonym.” Stephen King  “Ultimate horror often paralyses memory in a merciful way.” H.P. Lovecraft  Notable horror novels:  Dracula – Bram Stoker  Frankenstein – Mary Shelley  Interview With the Vampire – Anne Rice  I am Legend – Richard Matheson  The Silence of the Lambs – Thomas Harris  The Exorcist – William Peter Blatty

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