There is nothing like a night dedicated to freaking yourself out watching horror movies. Coming from someone who lives for horror movies, I can fully say I enjoy getting scared. For this week’s personal reflection it was our job to find two sources with the search of “Enjoying Horror.” Being able to relate to loving and enjoying horror it was interesting to see the scientific reasons behind this.
The article, “Why Our Brains Love Horrors” written by Sharon Begley ties in greatly to this week’s artifact, horror. This article provides many examples from well-known scientist and even the most well-known author of contemporary horror Stephen King. Stephen King discusses horror like, “terror as the finest emotion, and so I will try to terrorize the reader.” In this article it gives us examples of why we enjoy horror films. One of those reasons is due to the fact that though we will be horrified during the film we know that we will still be alive and well after the film has ended.
This article also shows that horror movies are mostly viewed by younger adults, the audience that are interested in an intense experience to watch. Stuart Fischoff, a psychologist, states, “If we have a relatively calm, uneventful lifestyle, we seek out something that’s going to be exciting for us, because our nervous system requires periodic revving, just like a good muscular engine.” This quote stood out to me because I totally agree due to the fact I seek out movies that will excite or scare me for two hours and then go back to my ever so average life.
A theory that is brought up is the catharis theory who was made by Sigmund Freud which summed that it is appealing due to the fact that horror releases many thoughts and feelings that have been inhibited by the ego but thoughts and feelings that seem unclearly familiar to someone. Some believe that we cannot fully stick to the catharis theory because there is not actual evidence. In a study by Glenn Walters of Kutztown University who is a clinical psychologist, he states, “Control lost under the cover of darkness is rediscovered in the light of day; danger posed by things unknown is reduced by increased knowledge and predictability” (Walters 2004). This meaning that horror movies at times are very predictable and they appeal to teenagers and people in their young 20s because during this time they are learning the manage terror or be able to succumb to terror and horror. Horror films and shows relate to the basic instinct of fear.
The other source I found that related to “Enjoying Horror” is Why Do Some Brain Enjoy Horror? which goes over the science behind the ever so puzzling fact why do some people more than others love horror. No one actually wants to experience Freddy Cougar coming after you but many enjoy the natural high from watching these films. Studies have shown that there are chemical responses that differ in people. A connection this article made to the first one is that once the movie or show is over we know that the environment we are in is safe. We are not left in the middle of the woods fending for our life. This article used haunted houses as an example. Though we have a sense of horror and our hearts are pounding once it is done we are in a safe space.
One of the most interesting thing they talk about in this article is fear as a social construction. Does fear stay the same or differ across different cultures. It shows that each culture has their own superhero or villain that is widely portrayed across cultures. A shared fear across cultures is death, the not knowing exactly what happens when a human dies which then leads to certain “monsters.” The article states, “So while the compositions and names of the monsters are different, the motivations and inspirations behind their constructions appear across the globe.” Fear and horror is widely similar across different cultures.
In this week’s reading by Carrol she states, “thus, in order to account for the interest we take in and the pleasure we take from horror, we may hypothesize that, in the main, the locus of our gratification is not the monster as such but the whole narrative structure in which the presentation of the monster is staged” (Carroll, 2002). Meaning we are not just into what makes the movie scared we are into how the monster and the horror is portrayed throughout the film as well as the events that happen through the film or show. Not all love horror and fear but those who do know that this horror we are watching is not real and that once the ending credits come on we will be safe from any horror seen on the screen.
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