Aesthetics of Horror Artifact
To view the original post “Aesthetics of Horror,” click here.
Objective
- Explore the psychological and emotional curiosity for and impact of horror art on individuals and society
- Understand and utilize some basic principles of film and television analysis.
Reflection
The post “Aesthetics of Horror,” evaluated a horror culture classic, Rocky Horror Picture Show and how although horror is scary it can be aesthetic and enjoyable. The elements of gender and abjection theory also came up in regards to the movie and helped to support Noel Carroll’s ideas of horror. Abjection theory can also be applied to works of art that repulse yet intrigue our interest. Abject art is often disturbing and difficult to look at but you almost cannot stop looking because you are so curious about the inspiration behind such a piece. The study of abjection helps to re-inforce the course objective: explore the psychological and emotional curiosity for and impact of horror art on individuals and society.
Abjection theory falls into a similar category of horror and Noel Carroll explains horror by saying, “It [horror] engages its audience by being involved in processes of disclosure, discovery, proof, explanation, hypothesis, and confirmation”(p. 279). Another example of horror and abjection in art comes from Cindy Sherman, a well-known artist who portrays abjection in many of her photographs and multi-media installations. Below is one of Sherman’s portraits that shows a woman who appears to be recently dead. 
Julia Kristeva explains that the most abject thing is death because it blurs the borders between the idea of subject and object. So how does portraying things of horror in art cause us to feel? This is the type of question I strove to look at in this unit. Using Rocky Horror Picture Show, Carroll and Kristeva’s ideas I was able to analyze how something horrifying can become a timeless movie and fulfill the objective of film analysis. Carroll and Kristeva’s ideas of horror and abjection can be used to analyze what we find intrinsically interesting about the genre.
Future Directions
I was not particularly interested in the horror until getting a basic understanding of what can be aesthetic about it. In the future, I can view more horror films and art and understand what makes horror and why it can be enjoyable.
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Carroll, N. (2002). Why Horror?. In Neill, A. & Riley, A. Arguing About Art: Contemporary Philosophical Debates (2nd ed., Chap. 17). New York, NY: Routledge.
Kristeva, J. (1982). Powers of Horror: An Essay on Abjection. New York, NY: Columbia University Press.
Rocky Horror Picture Show [Motion picture on DVD]. (1975). United States: 20th Century Fox.