Anubhav Gupta

Article 1

For this week’s research project, the first source I came across was a blog that discussed a student game called “Hush”. This game is set in Rwanda during the massacres between Hutus and Tutsis. The objective of the game is to play as a woman who is trying to silence her crying baby so that the invading soldiers do not find them. This is an interesting game because it is based on a real event, instead of a game that is based solely on fictional events and characters. Samyn states that “it’s fun to experience the threat of death and pain, to be overpowered by a massive and mysterious force, to be faced with a bleak and hopeless situation.” However, when you transition into a game that pertains to a real life threatening situation, it is not fun at all. Although you are not actually in that situation, simply imagining it is gruesome and non-pleasant. That being said, Samyn brings up the point about why we still like the genre, horror. He questions whether horror is really about being frightened because he knows experiencing real fear is not fun. Additionally, he mentions that maybe there is a chemical in our brain that is released as we express emotions in response to something scary. Furthermore, these chemicals may “act like an amusing drug” when the threat is faced in a comfortable situation, opposed to real life.

When comparing this to Carroll’s article, “Why Horror?”, I found a particularly interesting quote that ties into what Samyn is saying in response to the game, Hush. “Whatever distress horror causes, as a probable price for our fascination, is outweighed for the average consumer by the pleasure we derive in having our curiosity stimulated and rewarded” (290). This quote speaks to the fact that the horror genre attracts those who find it fascinating, which is driven by curiosity. I agree with the idea that people watch horror movies because they are curious to see what will happen in the plot. However, when they are faced with a similar threat in real life, they will be horrified. Samyn also stated that “it’s only fun when it’s fake” and I think this directly ties into what Carroll mentions here. People watch horror films and such because they find pleasure in satisfying their curiosity but when that particular instance of horror pertains to a real life situation, it is not fun at all. “That is, encountering things such as ghosts or Desdemona’s massacre in ‘real life’ would be upsetting rather than entertaining” (Carroll, 276).

Article 2

The second source I found was a blog on how to enjoy horror movies. This blog is called “Enjoying Horror 101” and provides many helpful tips for people who do not like the horror genre. The author begins by stating that these films often contain bad acting, a bad plot, and a bad setting. Furthermore, viewers seem to hold this against horror films more than they do for comedies, actions, romances, etc. He states that to truly enjoy a horror film, one has to look beyond the cheap costumes and visual/auditory effects in an attempt to become enveloped in the storyline. Overall, he emphasizes the point of empathizing with a movie to truly enjoy it. The emotions that the movie is trying to trigger need to be triggered. Finally, he states that the adrenaline rush that is provoked from such a film is natural and should be fully enjoyed.

Carroll states in her article “the horror genre gives every evidence of being pleasurable to its audience, but it does so by means of trafficking in the very sorts of things that cause disquiet, distress, and displeasure” (275). Disquiet, distress, and displeasure are all emotions that are triggered when someone watches a horror film. Even though these are emotions that are not necessarily desired under normal circumstances, the horror genre has the ability to make these emotions pleasurable to viewers. That being said, I think it is important to “empathize with a movie” like it was mentioned in the blog I chose to compare. If one does not experience the emotions that were meant to be triggered, they will not enjoy it.

Bibliography:

1. Samyn, Michael., May 15, 2009, “Enjoying Horror”, Tale of Tales, Online Article. Retrieved November 8, 2009, from http://taleoftales.com/blog/2008/05/15/enjoying-horror/

2. N/A, P. (2009, February 22). The Edge of Your Seat: Enjoying Horror 101. The Edge of Your Seat. Retrieved May 7, 2010, from http://theedgeofyourseat.blogspot.com/2009/02/enjoying-horror-101.html

This entry was posted on Sunday, February 15th, 2015 at 12:35 and is filed under Assignments, Unit 06. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.