Seeking A Catharsis In Horror Movies

I find the topics we’re reading about in class extremely interesting because, unlike most people in this class, I have not seen most of these movies. I’ve never been a fan of “scary” movies, as I don’t really see the appeal in being scared, but this class is showing me more about why people watch them. The part I find most interesting is how people watch horror movies to basically soothe their anxieties, seeking a catharsis in horror films which I cannot seem to find myself. Horror films, for me, do exactly as they are made to do. They scare the shit out of me. Sorry to be frank, but it’s the truth. After watching a horror film, I tend to sleep with a light on, with all my windows locked and curtains pulled. They instill this irrational fear

The class seems to have this comradery that stems just from being fans of the same film, and while no one purposefully does it, I tend to feel left out in many discussions. The obvious answer may be to just watch the films, but I’m not sure just watching the films would make me a “fan” like the class seems to be. I attempt to make up for this lack of horror knowledge by doing the readings and trying to read up on the films we talk about in class. Either by watching a trailer or reading an article, I try to at least semi-understand a movie if it seems to be important to most of my classmates. Some have asked me why I even took this class if I don’t like the genre, the reason is the same reason for this paragraph: I wish that I could love them like everyone else seems to. There is this bond over the love of horror films that I will never understand because, for some reason, my brain refuses to let me enjoy them. It remains too frightened to enjoy any of the film, and so I often find myself backing out of plans to go see a film with my friend if it’s one of the horror variety. While I can find solace with friends who also don’t enjoy being scared, it doesn’t seem to add up to the bond between horror