Eyes enlarge as you watch from just a few feet away while a cannibalistic undead is ripping through its subsequent hapless victim. You are stuck with fear, but suddenly remember you are just watching this happen on the screen in front of you. Instilling heart pounding reactions are just one reason why society loves the grotesque and occasionally the psychological nature of horror that leaves its viewers with such a unique sensation. “Why We Need Horror on Television”, an article by Jasef Wisener, takes an interesting stance on the horror genre where he argues that society needs horror and specifically for it to be on prime time television. While Wisener’s article is not a scholarly paper, he executes a solid argument that leaves you believing …show more content…
It should come as no surprise that horror is not everyone’s favorite genre. What should come as a surprise though is as TV viewers have dwindled in numbers, the audience for horror on television has increased (Wisener 1). This inversely related trend shows that horror certainly has become popular amongst audiences today. Wisener also references plenty of horror shows past and new to display to readers that there are various shows on different networks to choose from. Furthermore, he touches on the topic of the psychology behind horror and to simply put it Wisener quotes esteemed horror master Wes Craven: “Horror films don’t create fear. They release it.” This safe way of releasing fear is what makes the horror genre so popular. The unique sensation fulfilled by watching a horror show is one that cannot be matched. By explaining this he appeals to both those who like or dislike horror in order to give the reader a better understanding of why horror could potentially be good for you. Not only is it the viewer who gets to release fear, but also its author. In this past Television Critics Association press tour Ryan Murphy, who created American Horror Story, disclosed that he used his own fears to aide in the production of the show (Wisener 2). This displays that whether it is film, television, or literature, it is a great outlet for the writer as well to release their fears. Another
I have provided a clear evaluation of his essay in an organized way using the appropriate standards of evaluation. In understanding why humans “Crave Horror Movies” even when some people get nightmares after watching them we find the importance of our emotions and fears. We find those emotions and fears form a body of their own which needs to be maintained properly in order to remain healthy. We see how emotions can be controlled though viewing horror movies. Stephen King’s “Why We Crave Horror Movies” is a well written essay with convincing analogies, comparisons, and urban humor.
Both Di Muzio (2006) and King (2007) make contradicting arguments towards the horror genre. Di Muzio (2006) provides a thought provoking piece regarding morality in horror films and provides his critique on the movie Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Whereas, King (2007) focuses his attention on the positives of the horror genre and ways it allows one to liberate from their sadistic thoughts, calling it as food “to keep the gators fed” in our psyche. (King, 2007, p. 458)
One of America’s famous actress film director and producer Katie Aselton once said,” I don’t love horror movies with something surreal happening. That doesn’t work for me. What’s terrifying is something that could actually happen to me and what I would do. I don’t know how to throw a punch, and I’ve never had to do it.” This quote shows connection to King’s article. I’m starting to consider that everyone has a crazy side. Why We Crave Horror Movies explains the reason people want to go see horror movies. The average person enjoys the horror movies because they are in a safe environment knowing they can not be harmed. By discussing the argumentative strategies such as ethos, logos,
The article Why We Crave Horror Movies by Stephen King distinguishes why we truly do crave horror movies. Stephen King goes into depth on the many reasons on why we, as humans, find horror movies intriguing and how we all have some sort of insanity within us. He does this by using different rhetorical techniques and appealing to the audience through ways such as experience, emotion and logic. Apart from that he also relates a numerous amount of aspects on why we crave horror movies to our lives. Throughout this essay I will be evaluating the authors arguments and points on why society finds horror movies so desirable and captivating.
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.
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)
The horror genre, which evolved from folklore, Greek and Roman mythology, and religion, offers thrills and chills. It has proven to be a popular genre for those who love to experience the apprehension of horror and the fight between good and evil. The existence of evil in humanity, in fact, is a common theme of the genre as shown in classics such as the movie Psycho, the television series The Twilight Zone, and the short story Tell Tale Heart, by Edgar Allan Poe. Throughout these films, texts, and television shows, the horror genre demonstrates that evil is not always evident; it hides among and within the human species. In fact, it is the evil that lurks within us that has the greatest impact on us. We distance ourselves from characters in
We all have cravings, be it for snacks or sweets, there is always something we desire. We crave horror in the same way. In Stephen King’s essay, “Why We Crave Horror Movies,” he argues that people need to watch horror films in order to release the negative emotions within us. King believes that people feel enjoyment while watching others be terrorized or killed in horror movies. King’s argument has elements that are both agreeable and disagreeable. On one hand he is acceptable when claiming we like the thrill and excitement that comes from watching horror movies; however, his views regarding that the fun comes from seeing others suffer cannot be agreed with because the human condition is not as immoral as he claims it to be.
Horror is one of many fears humans have. We all have many terrors, but horror is the one that gets the best of us. Some crave, while others resent, the feeling horror movies bring to our body and the emotions that we experience. In Stephen King’s article, “Why We Crave Horror,” he explains that it is a part of the “Human Condition,” to crave the horror. King gives many strong and accurate claims on why we crave the horror movies, such as; testing our ability to face our fears, to re-establish our feelings of normality, and to experience a peculiar sort of fun.
Penetrating into your subconscious, causing suspicion in mystery. Horror will encompass one 's mind, affecting their subconscious. Every horror genre does this through the psychoanalytic theme’s they implement into their films. Psychology is a major factor used in these films due to its easy ability to penetrate the viewer 's mind. The films tend to target; anxieties, fears, and fantasies which impose intruding thoughts and feelings into audience. The horror genre commonly exemplifies paranoid feelings through religion, mythical fiction, and relevance in our daily lives.
Stephen King, a very well-known writer and director, has a passionate voice when it comes to anything dealing with horror. In “Why We Crave Horror Movies,” King calls us out for knowing that we love the adrenaline rush and how we are so captivated by horror movies. He explains how we watch horror movies for the level of fun. King proposes that we go to defy ourselves; to see how far it can push us and that is what makes the experience so interesting. We lock our inner psycho from reality and feed it with the demonic, bloody violence found in horror movies. Doing this suggests that horror movies are our fix for our psychotic thoughts. Stephen King’s “Why We Crave Horror Movies” portrays that we are all insane in some weird way through
Would you rather be horrified beyond repair or thrilled to the point of no return? In horror, the main purpose is to invoke fear and dread into the audience in the most unrealistic way. Horror movies involve supernatural entities such as ghosts, vampires, teleportation, and being completely immortal. As thriller films are grounded in realism and involve more suspense, mystery, and a sense of panic. Though both genres will frighten the audience, it will happen in two different ways. Whether the horror thrills or the thriller horrifies, a scare is always incorporated.
A horror movie “makes people think, what if it was reality?” said by a thrill seeker person who was waiting to watch a horror movie. Experts also cite more various reasons about why people enjoy watching scary movies. For the thrill of it and also because it seems real for thrill seekers; these are some secretes reveled to show why thrill seekers enjoy horror movies. Feeling the sense of evil and being curious about understanding humanity’s dark side makes horror movies a perfect way of enjoying these feelings, and relieving the tension of curiosity about violent, blood and terrorism. Moreover, experts said that not only desirability to blood and fear could consider as an attraction to whose ...
Everyday is a challenge and we experience things that we like and we don’t like. There are things we always want to leave behind and move forward; however, we cannot. As humans if we are told not to do something, we want to try it anyway to see the outcome. In the same manner, if we are told about a movie being scary we go out of our comfort zone to experience it and then later be frightened. Stephen T.Asma mentions,“Monsters can stand as symbols of human vulnerability and crisis, and as such they play imaginative foils for thinking about our own responses to mence” (62). When we watch horror movies, we force ourselves to imagine the wrong and undesirable. These thoughts in our head cause us to believe that our own obstacles are likely to cause a threat or danger to ourselves. In the same manner, horror movies can be represented as obstacles in our life that we don’t want to go through and we do it anyway to feel good about our own situations that they are not as bad as others. Stephen King also depicts, “We also go to re-establish our feelings of essential normality; the horror movie is innately conservative, even reactionary.”(King 16). Horror movies may put us in a mindset where we feel safe and more comfortable with our own situations but explore our options in worse situations. It gives us an example of what people did in their fright time and how we should confront each and every
Lin, C. A., & Xu, Z. (2017). Watching TV Series with Horror Content: Audience Attributes, Motivations, Involvement and Enjoyment. Journal Of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 61(4), 638-657. doi:10.1080/08838151.2017.1375503