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Stephen King's "Why We Crave Horror Movies" Reading Respons
stephen king fascination with horror
Stephen King's "Why We Crave Horror Movies" Reading Respons
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Not only is Stephen King’s essay, “Why We Crave Horror Movies”, a biased sample, but it also appeals to population and emotion. To further explain why we crave horror movies, King argues that “we are all mentally ill” (345). He expresses that we all make an independent decision to buy a movie ticket and sit in a theatre. King goes on the to explain our mental insanity through examples, such as, “sick jokes” (347). According to King, these “sick jokes” prove our insanity and our need to release that insanity through watching horror films. Although King does offer valid points and relative evidence that support his arguments, the points only pertain to a certain portion of the population. What about the people who don’t crave horror movies, or the ones who do not fit into the, we, of Why We Crave Horror Movies? There are many individuals who would object to the insanity of watching a movie that could possibly keep them from sleeping at night. Such individuals may be quite disturbed reading this essay, wondering how they got dragged into this stereotype of these human beings. King states, “The potential lyncher is in all of us” (346). Is it really though? The mention of everyone having that same personality trait embedded somewhere in their personality makes one question their identity. King is appealing to emotion here, failing to realize that there are many people who would rather be somewhere else, rather than in a huge, dark room watching a movie they will be scared to walk out of, because of the things that they‘ve just witnessed. While appealing to population King also appeals to the emotions of his readers. In doing so King suggests that the movies that we watch suit the way ... ... middle of paper ... ...vely to lack attention given to them. King lures his readers in by using an issue that is relative. By doing this, it automatically makes that reader think into the possibilities of all humans’ sanity, or lack thereof. “Why We Crave Horror Movies” includes valuable evidence that backs up its argument that “We are all mentally ill”. However, its argument would not be subject to opposition if it were specifically directed towards horror film viewers. King’s failure to specify his audience, falsely accuses some of his readers. While his argument of human insanity is justifiable, his argument generalizes, appeals to emotions, appeals to populations, and his are opinions are biased because Stephen King, himself, enjoys horror movies. Works Cited King, Stephen. “Why We Crave Horror Movies.” One Hundred Great Essays. Ed. Robert Diyanni.
...h leads to losing the imagery of the reader trying to get convinced and persuaded, interrupting the interest sometimes as well.
King is a man of many horrors but it’s easy to agree psychological destruction may just be his favorite cup of tea. That being said, let’s discuss his 1970 short story, Graveyard shift. It’s dark, the moon is up, and, a massive cleaning effort at the mill, called out his name. Hall. Warwick, his boss, takes him and his men to the basement to clean out a rat infestation. There, they find a sub-basement and the most terrifying things they’d ever laid eyes on. Throughout the story, King
flaw. It makes them seem closer and more human to who the reader. This is
Often times I wonder if people go to see horror movies for enjoyment, or is it something much more than that? I have mixed feelings about the idea that, “the horror film has become the modern version of public lynching” (King 562). Horror movies do promote violence and can influence the mindset of the audience, but sanity people is not based on the excitement we receive from watching a horror film. Instead, it is based on what is already within us, not what we witness on a movie screen, but what we experience throughout our lifetime.
Even though King uses pathos through his argument he connects to the reader. He also uses evaluating points to support his debate. When a writer uses a situation you can relate to, it makes you remember the situation and be able to learn from it. Though his argument his connects with the audience through emotion. By using the situation with his sister, he painted a picture that everyone in the audience could relate to. His argument was strong and made a powerful impact on the
Insanity: “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results” a quote by Albert Einstein that helps sum up humanity’s love for horror movies. People go see horror movies all the time, each time the graphics are clearer and more intense than the last. Are people expecting them to change? If not then why would anyone in their right mind, make a conscious decision to go see the next horror movie knowing what they know, understanding that someone will get stabbed, beaten, shot, or killed? Its simple humans crave them, we enjoy horror but why? In this essay Stephen Kings thesis “I think we’re all mentally ill; those of us outside the asylums only hide it a little bit better” (405). In that statement he provides a twisted example of “Why we crave Horror Movies” claiming it’s mainly because of our mental state. King explains there are many reasons for going to see them, he says we go to have fun, we go to dare the nightmare and we go to re-establish our since of normalcy. All of which I find are strong arguments were he states his case. With his use of urbane humor, he says “the potential lyncher is in almost all of us”(406). King uses practical wisdom to lead his audience to believe that without horror films, humans are all ticking time bombs set to explode from buildup of pathos, just waiting to become another “funny farm crazy” or “Jack the ripper” to some degree or another.
Therefore, they are more likely to commit violent acts. At the University of California, Berkeley there was a study done by Andres G. Martinez, Paul K. Piff, Rodolfo Mendoza-Denton, and Stephen P. Hinshaw on how ascribed humanity affects the perceived dangerousness of people with mental illness. It concluded that once the mental illness label was placed on someone, they were ascribed less humanity (Martinez, Piff, Mendoza-Denton, & Hinshaw, 2011). The “...targets may be animalistically dehumanized, in which they are rendered animal-like in terms of lacking such uniquely human qualities of constraint, complex emotional capacities, and refinement” (Martinez et al.). Stigma could be the reason that a majority of the public believes
“Why We Crave Horror Movies,” an essay by the legendary Stephen King, explains two challenging concepts to understand: why people like gory horror movies and how people are able to control their darkest desires. “I think that we’re all mentally ill; those of us outside the asylums only hide it a little better – and maybe not all that much better, after all.” King opens the essay by addressing the hard truth- we are all insane. People have dull lives, and often it’s the little bit of crazy within in us tha...
Modern day horror films are very different from the first horror films which date back to the late nineteenth century, but the goal of shocking the audience is still the same. Over the course of its existence, the horror industry has had to innovate new ways to keep its viewers on the edge of their seats. Horror films are frightening films created solely to ignite anxiety and panic within the viewers. Dread and alarm summon deep fears by captivating the audience with a shocking, terrifying, and unpredictable finale that leaves the viewer stunned. (Horror Films)
On another note, we crave horror to make us feel a sense of normality. We are able to express the violences, held deep inside us, by watching or reading the horror. In King’s article, Why We Crave Horror, he expresses that, “...we’re all mentally ill; those of us outside the asylums only hide it a little better…” (King, “Why We Crave Horror” 1). This one statement makes the reader think and after reading the rest of the article you're able to understand that the horror we feel keeps the mental illness inside of us. He also states, “As long as you keep the gators fed.” (King, “Why We Crave Horror” 4). This is the ending statement in his argumentative article, relates back to the opening statement. Us humans are the gators and if we are continued to be fed with horror our mental illness will stay inside us and locked away. By watching/reading the horror we are able to stay sane and not go
I don’t disagree with King in his opinion at all, but I feel that maybe this was a bit of a simple answer to a very loaded question. I mean can we really say this about all horror fans? Horror fans have all kinds of different occupations, personalities, and backgrounds so obviously this theory can’t apply to everyone, so in this case, I can only really say why I watch horror movies, and ask you to do some kind of self reflection on your own.
Throughout the many tropes which are correlated with the presence of the Horror Film Genre, there is always one underlying theme that is consistent over the lifespan of horror film development: The main protagonist(s), male and/or female, struggle to bring a sense of normality and uniformity back into a society that has turned into a chaotic domicile. We, then, must question and evaluate what obstacles conflict with the protagonist’s motives. These are, in terms of this analytical essay, the subject of the Other to whom possesses characteristics that can be equated to common symptoms of patients diagnosed as psychotic or similar psychopathology. In valuating this posed statement, Robin Wood’s theory, which is the concept of sexual repression
King used an appeal to pathos, in order to persuade his viewers to aid in the quest for equality. By using the power of human emotion, King established the connection needed to ...
In the essay “Why We Crave Horror Movie,” Stephen King describes that horror movies are beneficial for the people because we are all mentally ill. King explains that horror movie is a sort of release because everyone has a dark side in our body, so watching horror movie can keep the hungry alligators under control. People watch horror movie because they want to prove themselves that they are not afraid of a horror movie, and they are normal people too. King describes horror movie like a roller coaster, so people have enough courage to sit through the whole ride. People also enjoy seeing other people in danger. A horror movie can also keep the dark emotion down such as violence and aggression, and it allows people to remain happy and sane. A horror movie can
...es and causes it to become lost in the background at certain points of the novel.