Form and Function in Horror
It’s September, which means it’s basically October, which means I have license to dive face-first into my first and foremost love: high-key creepy narratives.
In my (utterly biased) opinion, the narrative structures of horror stories are intertwined with the genre’s function, far more so than in other genres (except maybe comedy). The purpose of horror is to evoke feelings of terror, horror, revulsion, and empathy. Postmodern and contemporary horror, especially experimental narratives, bends and breaks narrative structures and audience expectation to add an extra level of oh god WHAT NO.
Really excellent horror doesn’t stay on the screen or the page, after all. It doesn’t allow the audience the safety of the fourth wall, of feeling removed from what’s happening. Horror in any media shakes the audience’s faith in their reality. It makes us aware of everything the shadows might conceal, and forces us to confront them head on. Authors, developers, artists, and filmmakers have created a multitude of different tactics to discomfit their audiences in new and unexpected ways. I barely need an excuse to nerd out about them for a while.
For the next while, I will be using this space to examine a bunch of different narratives in the horror and horror-adjacent genres. We’re also going to get into the gothic, uncanny, Weird, and camp. A little preview of some essays I’ve got in the works:
The infectious horror of Doki Doki Literature Club
Emily Carroll, Sleep No More, and navigating haunted spaces
The Autopsy of Jane Doe and whose trauma gets “centered”
Remakes, reboots, and sequels (oh my): who needs narrative closure, anyway?
Her Story, found footage narratives, and Gothic detectives
Stephen Gammell, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, and why we censor the grotesque
As usual, I’m going to be looking at all of these as both a reader and a writer. These essays will usually be a mix of enthusiastic gushing, critical analysis, and attempts to reverse-engineer what makes these stories work.
If there’s a horror/ish story, film, game, or topic that you want to hear my take on, please hit me up on Twitter (@ninocipri) or send me an email through my website.
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