Development of horror representation with time and progression in technology By: Campbell Race
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Introduction
Horror has always been around it just may not be presented in the way most people think of horror. Because of technological advances and research within the horror genre, the genre continues to improve. Horror mainly started out as propaganda/ comics and news articles. As society has advanced we haven't gotten rid of scary news or horror-based political intentions but have started to focus on producing horror for enjoyment and fulfillment of human craved adrenaline. -
Introduction pt. 2
In this project I looked into how the different forms of horror had an effect on the consumer and how the different forms developed as time went on and technology became a factor. I incorporated many different types of products as I think it is important to see how horror can/ has come in many different forms each having a unique impact. Just like time plays a role on horror the representation of what is being shown/ classified as horror to the population has a major impact as well. -
A woman dropping her teacup in horror upon discovering the monstrous contents of a magnified drop of thames water revealing the impurity of London drinking water
As we can see in this picture horror can stem from something as simple as water. Seeing this drawing from 1828 shows how horror has always been around no matter the form. As we all know there were no phones or tv's in this era but that did not stop the horror from spreading. In order to present and publicize horrific news authors would have them published in newspapers and hung around town for passers to see. It may not be a photo but it captures the horror they were going through nonetheless. -
The horror of war, ghastly glimpse of Belgian wounded, Antwerp hospital
This photo is another example of everyday horror, not intentionally produced fiction. This time we have more advances with technology and have a picture instead of a drawing capturing the moment. In a way a photograph can have a larger impact as it is real life and forces you into knowing these situations are a reality. That being said as technology advances horror doesn't go away it becomes more real. Technology forces us into a new way of thinking when we cant accuse something of being fake. -
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
As more horror is being produced with these advances the observation is made that humans tend to crave horror. Because of that all types of horror started popping up more frequently, plays, movies, books, etc. It was no longer up to the news for people to get their rush of horror as fictional horror was becoming more and more popular. This play/ movie is one of the most popular pieces of horror and is now televised/ performed everywhere. Technology is much to thank for streaming productions. -
The naked and the undead
Just because technology is advancing along side horror this does not mean certain forms are getting left behind. If anything technology has improved the accessibility of horror. Now that we have millions of sources at the tip of our fingers we can read/ watch/ consume all the horror we want, like this book "The naked and the Undead." So not only has technology helped the spread of horror it has helped popularize it by making it accessible and wide spread and analyzing the genre as a whole. -
(Why) Do you like scary movies?
Technology has given us the chance to consume horror and scratch that human need but the question still stands on why we have the craving to consume horror, because technology is so public and horror is so popular a new sub-genre popped up; the research of horror, which once again can be found online for consumers to read. In modern years about everything horror related is online and now articles about the consumption of horror can be found as well as horror continues to take over the media. -
Citations
Heath, william. (1828). A woman dropping her tea cup in horror upon discovering the monstrous contents of a magnified drop of Thames water revealing the impurity of London drinking water . Library of Congress. cartoon, london; Mclean . The horror of war, ghastly glimpse of Belgian wounded, Antwerp hospital . (1915). photograph. -
citations pt. 2
20th century studios. (1985). The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Retrieved 2022. FREELAND, C. Y. N. T. H. I. A. (2019). Naked and the undead: Evil and the appeal of Horror. ROUTLEDGE. Martin, G. Neil. “(Why) Do You like Scary Movies? A Review of the Empirical Research on Psychological Responses to Horror Films.” Frontiers in Psychology 10 (2019). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02298. -
conclusion
As we can tell from these sources horror is everywhere but couldn't be the genre it is today without technology. Although we know horror would still be around technology or not, it is fairly obvious it could not have grown and flourished the way it did without tvs, computers and phones to help it. Whether it be watching a movie, reading an e-book or searching an article on why humans love horror technology has it all as it has been capturing horror from day one and will continue to do so.