Horror Media Essay

What is common between most horror films and texts? They all use similar types of codes and conventions. These codes and conventions differ between genre and can be easily identified. These also reflect the values of the audience they are intended for. The 1993 stop-motion animated film, ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’, directed by Henry Selick, and the 1845 poem, ‘The Raven’, written by Edgar Allan Poe, are both a part of the horror genre, as they follow the codes and conventions of that genre. They use similar visuals, sounds, characterisation, and themes. Using these and other conventions, audiences can identify a genre, which influences their opinions and feelings about the genre.

Since it’s infancy at the beginning of the eighteenth century, horror has followed certain conventions that results in an awakening of the senses, evoking intense emotions of fear and terror in the audience. Horror feeds off triggering the primal fears embedded within all of humankind, creating a sense of menace that is the very substance of this genre. Furthermore, the central menace of a piece tends to enlighten the human mind to the world of the paranormal and the enigmatic, dark side of the unknown. The movie “Psycho” directed by Alfred Hitchcock is a perfect example. Infamous for its shower scene, but immortal for its contribution to the horror genre, “Psycho” was filmed with great tact, grace and art in regards to horror conventions.

With a huge time gap between the two mediums, much diversity can be found between them. Horror was able to maintain its presence in society, but continues to develop at a rapid pace. This is evident in the remake of Carrie, showing how the themes of gore and violence have been pushed in more recent adaptations. We see

Close Reading Assignment The wilderness is a vast area, and only a certain type of person urges to be one with nature. The passage starts as a narrative. It’s explaining the vastness of the wilderness.

To Kill A Mockingbird, a coming of age novel written by Harper Lee, is set in a fictional small, southern town called Maycomb in the 1930s. From simple details in a childhood story, Lee apprises how the world is full of pain caused by prejudice. In early chapters of the novel, Atticus, the father figure in the novel, remarked that “You never understand a person until…”. However, people wouldn’t care less. So instead of understanding, they start judging.

By 1932, America was swallowed up by the Depression yet even though money was tight, thousands of people flocked to the movie theaters. The new craze of “talkies” had just arrived on the silver screen, with this, came the genre of film, horror. Universal had already had their first major success with Tod Browning’s 1931 film, Dracula. With this success under Browning’s belt, MGM studios wanted to join the horror bandwagon. They offered Browning the opportunity the director the film, Freaks, which was an adaption of Tod Robbins’s short story, Spurs.

After General Franco’s regime fell, a new wave of young directors such as Bigas Luna and Pedro Almodovar basked in their newfound freedom of expression to produce films that were unrestricted and independent. In the 21st century, a more mature Spanish film industry had returned to the horror genre in a big way. There have been many box office horror film hits produced outside of Spain with Spanish talent behind the camera, such as The Others. Spanish horror films had been designed to appeal to international markets

Horror movies allow us the experience of intense emotional excitement from the unacceptable actions and their consequences in the films.

Silent horror films continued throughout the early 20th century. Some of the most famous horror films of this era included; The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1919), The Golem (1920), and Nosferatu (1920). These films feature a mad doctor, a vampire, and a monster that is never seen. (Wilson) These monsters were some of the very first to be introduced to horror but certainly not the last.

The gothic or more commonly known “horror” genre has been around since the late 1700s. It is a piece of fantasy that is defined by elements of fear, horror, death and gloom. It can also include romantic themes such as nature, individuality, and high emotion. I want to explore the conventions of this genre and the effect it has on the audience, how people’s fears have changed and how the way they have been presented on the screen has changed over time. Film and cinematography has a very significant effect on viewers because of its social and emotional implications and its influence on the way we see reality. The three time periods I chose to research were the 1930s, the 1970s and present day. The 30s is often referred to as the golden age of

James Whale’s ‘Frankenstein’ (1931) was one of the biggest horror hits of the 30’s despite it starting off and a small movie idea based on the 1818 book by Mary Shelly. This could have been because of the newly introduced use of sound, ultimately turning it into a cultural phenomenon that changed the way all audiences saw horror movies from then onwards. (McCormick, 2011).

In the settings of shadows and eerie, the Universal horror films of the 1930’s are perhaps the best films that to shows the expressionist effect. Today’s horror films contain a lot of motifs, like for example, Todd Browning’s Dracula comprises all the characteristics of expressionist film

The early years of a child’s life are important for several reasons. One of these reasons is the early years are a very impressionable time. It is at this time the children are somewhat like sponges. Another reason is they are absorbing everything in their environment. A solid foundation in the early years can influence a child’s adult life. It is in the early years that a child’s brain is developing at a speedy pace (UNICEF, 2013). According to UNICEF (2013), “Early years of childhood form the basis of intelligence, personality, social behavior, and capacity to learn and nurture oneself as an adult”.

The horror movies of the past ten years of so have tended to be more violently graphic and visceral - a reflection of modern times, perhaps. Think of the blood and gore, of the violent deaths at regular intervals in such movies as the Friday the Thirteenth series, I Know

Horror is designed to scare, cause alarm and dread, while also entertaining the audience at the same time in a cathartic experience (Dirk, 2016). Horror films are meant for a specific type of audience that enjoy scary films. Dirks (Tim, 2016) approach to genre horror, is that films went back as 100 years ago, from the earliest days our vivid imagination in seeing ghosts in the shadows to be connected emotionally of the unknown, and fear things that are improbable. You watch a horror film, it makes you aware of the scary surroundings, the essence of fear itself, without actually being in any sorts of danger. Dirks argues that there is a fun and thrill factor in being frightened, or watching something disturbing. It gives you that feeling of an adrenaline rush, as well as having that feeling someone is actually next to you lurking in the dark (Dirk, 2016).