The King of Horror Why do you think we are drawn to witnessing death? We as a younger generation, all have some fear and whether it's reptiles, the dark or tight places, it will always haunt us with an intriguing, yet burning sensation. So...why are we drawn to this? In the article “Why We Crave Horror Movies,” Stephen King employs ethical appeal and a mysterious tone to justify why we strongly desire watching horror movies. The author uses ethical appeal throughout the text and creates a convincing and reliable argument. Ethos convinces the reader that the author is dependable and knowledgeable by using camaraderie. King uses supported evidence from the article to strengthen his reasoning for why we are drawn to this gruesomeness. …show more content…
King represents this as a roller coaster which has a “special province of the young; by the time one turns 40-50, one's appetite for double twists...may be considerably depleted”(King 1). He explains depending on age, you would relate to the feeling you get from a roller coaster differently. This is effective and relates to ethical appeal because it demonstrates why younger generations tend to be more captivated. The described “appetite”, depicts the specific reason why we slowly become dissatisfied with the intensity of the roller coaster over a long duration; which is why it's more uplifting to the youngsters. The author shares the belief that “we are daring the nightmare”(King 1) together, and some explanations are that we are simply not afraid to get a scream or two when taking a seat at the theater. Which shows that he is in relation to the audience and does not intend to harm us because as people, as a community, we all share a common sense of fear. This demonstrates ethos and shows …show more content…
The king of horror takes no credibility for himself because the article's main purpose of being published is merely a reflection of our own inner being and it’s based upon his perspective of humanity. He describes “I think we’re all mentally ill”(King 1); this explains his viewpoint and although it may appear as an outrageous statement, the truth is “we've all known people who talk to themselves [and]...people who all squinch their faces into horrible grimaces”(King 1) when they think no one is looking their way. The descriptive tone depicts the audience’s attachment towards taking a second glance and recognizing the dark humor and malicious association we all share, which is hidden throughout the whole article. King proves we all have a dark side by saying, “If we share the brotherhood of man, then we also share an insanity of man”(King 2). This employs the mysterious tone because it takes a deeper thought process in order to comprehend what King is actually trying to connote with. Whether it's a laugh or a grin, he demonstrates a provable point which emphasizes his understanding of horror and the persuasiveness behind it; which shows a mysterious tone. As you're drowning in the pages, he describes an anxious feeling or urge which nags at our chests, proving “we are still light-years from true ugliness”(King 1). He describes the unknown ugliness,
Jon Krakauer uses different methods to appeal to a variety of people. Logos makes sense to those who tend to use logic and reason to rationalize while Pathos is best used when convincing those who can be moved by emotions. Krakauer also incorporates Ethos to appease those who respond well to credibility. The purpose of using these multiple techniques is to convince a broader amount of readers that many people could actually relate to Christopher McCandless.
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.
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.
horror movies, King argues that “we are all mentally ill” (345). He expresses that we all
Overall, in Stephen King’s essay, “Why We Crave Horror Movies”, his suggestion that we view horror movies to “reestablish our feelings of essential normality” (562) and there is a “potential lyncher in almost all of us” (562) has brought forth many aspects that I have never really thought about. Why do we have so much excitement when it comes to horror films? Everyone has their own opinion, which will never end with one definite answer. Stephen King thinks there’s and evil in all of us, but I don’t think so. The evil only comes out if you make it, we do not need horror films for psychic
The true measure of success for any film lies in its ability to establish a relationship with its audience. Perhaps more than in any other genre, the horror film must be aware of this relationship and manage it carefully. After all, the purpose of a horror film is not necessarily to invoke thought, but rather to evoke an emotional reaction from its audience. Horror films of all types have used frightening images, disturbing characters, and thrilling sequences to inspire fear. Within the genre, 'tried and true' methods have become staples in evoking this response from the viewer. From serial killers 'around the corner' to monsters under the bed, the horror genre has employed these methods to guarantee a scare from its audience. The result is often a predictable film that only touches the surface of this relationship. Every once in a while, however, a film comes along that explores the possibilities and experiments with the depth of this relationship. Such films are presented in ways to attach themselves inside of the human psyche and remain there long after the film is over.
middle of paper ... ... The viewers pay money to watch their own race be butchered in order to “feed” or tame their inner beasts. In all, studying the horror genre and why humans react the way we do teaches humans things about themselves. It teaches people why they feel the way they do when they watch horror movies.
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)
“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...
King owes his success to his ability to take what he says are “real fears” (The Stephen King Story, 47) and turn them into a horror story. When he says “real fears” they are things we have all thought of such as a monster under the bed or even a child kidnapping and he is making them a reality in his story. King looks at “horror fiction...as a metaphor” (46) for everything that goes wrong in our lives. His mind and writing seems to dwell in the depths of the American people’s fears and nightmares and this is what causes his writing to reach so many people and cause the terror he writes about to be instilled in his reader.
King is right when he argues that people like the sudden excitement of watching a horror film. The horror genre keeps us on the edge of our seats and has us entranced with the overstimulation that comes with them. When he says “To show that we can, that we are not afraid, that we can ride this rollercoaster” he is implying that a horror movie is similar to riding a rollercoaster (King 1). The analogy lets the reader know he is saying people revel in the emotion of a horror movie, even if it scares them. People enjoy riding roller coasters because of the excitement and the rush that comes with it, just like people enjoy horror. The
We crave horror movies simply for “the fun of it” in agreeing with Stephen King Why We Crave Horror movies. King gave multiple examples in his story as to why we crave horror movies and I can agree with just about each and every one of them. After watching a few horror movies for yourself, you will understand why it is easy to agree with King. If you have watched movies such as the 2004 movie Dawn of the Dead, The Purge, or The Conjuring you will also be able to relate to Chuck Klosterman My Zombie, Myself “Zombies are just so easy to kill.” Klostermans theory of zombies are extremely useful because it sheds insight on the difficult yet exciting problem of zombies in the real world. Klosterman’s argument that the repetition of modern life is
In his essay, he explains how people need horror films to feed our dark thoughts that we have drag around without actually doing it. By saying this, he compares people based on how insane they are. King compares the adrenaline rush of rollercoasters to horror movies by saying, “To show that we can, that we are not afraid, that we can ride this roller coaster… And horror movies, like rollercoasters, have always been the special province of the young.” King then compares the feeling of doing something for the first time to doing it multiple times and being immune to what is happening. That’s where he compares youth to horror movies and says, “… by the time one turns 40 or 50, one’s appetite for double twists or 360-degree loops may be considerably depleted.” Both rollercoasters and youth relate to horror movies because of the excessive sense of thrill and adrenaline of doing anything for the first
When reading or watching a horror story there is a feeling you get from it that may to some seem weird if your supposed to be horrified from the story. The feeling comes as terror and fulfillment that we experience in us. But, why do we want to experience these feelings when we can be happy just playing a game? Also, why do we want to? Everyone who watches and reads horror will do it for one main reason: that they experience more pleasure from the actual pain which can sound confusing because you do not normally hear those to words together. Really, if you break down horror you can understand this idea better along with an example in real context. The first topic you need in order to understand horror is what horror actually is and what draws us to it.
For many people, horror movies are a frightful experience. If this is true, then why is horror such a successful movie genre? Do people like to be scared? In this essay, the answer to this question will be investigated, as well as what businesses can do to enhance the movie experience based on the answer.