Horror fiction - Revision history

Tgaitskell at 10:56, 27 February 2015

2015-02-27T10:56:57Z

Squashua at 16:23, 2 February 2006

2006-02-02T16:23:35Z

Squashua at 20:42, 31 January 2006

2006-01-31T20:42:49Z

PoC at 09:49, 10 January 2006

2006-01-10T09:49:01Z

New page

'''Horror fiction''' is, broadly, [[fiction]] in any medium intended to scare, unsettle or horrify the reader. Historically, the cause of the "horror" experience has often been the intrusion of an evil, or occasionally misunderstood, [[supernatural]] element into everyday human experience. Since the 1960s, any work of fiction with a morbid, gruesome, [[Surrealism|surreal]], exceptionally [[suspense]]ful or frightening theme has come to be called "horror." Horror fiction often overlaps with [[science fiction]] and/or [[fantasy]], all of which have sometimes been placed under the umbrella category [[speculative fiction]]. See also [[supernatural fiction]].

== Early horror fiction ==

[[Fictional character]]s have found themselves in horrifying situations from the earliest recorded tales. Many [[myth]]s and [[legend]]s feature scenarios and [[archetypes]] used by later horror writers. Tales collected by the [[Grimm Brothers]] are often quite horrific.

Modern horror fiction found its roots in the [[gothic novel]]s that exploded into popularity in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, typified by [[Ann Radcliffe]]'s ''The Mysteries of Udolpho'' and [[Horace Walpole]]'s ''The Castle of Otranto''. A variation on the Gothic formula that remains one of the most enduring and imitated horror works is [[Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley]]'s novel ''[[Frankenstein]]'' (1818, revised version 1831). ''Frankenstein'' has also been considered [[science fiction]] or a [[philosophy|philosophical]] novel by some literary historians. Later gothic horror descendants included seminal late 19th century works like [[Bram Stoker]]'s ''[[Dracula]]'' and [[Henry James]]'s ''[[The Turn of the Screw]]''. Early horror works used mood and subtlety to deliver an eerie and otherworldly flavor, but usually eschewed extensive explicit violence.

Other early exponents of the horror form number such luminaries as [[H. P. Lovecraft]] and [[Edgar Allan Poe]], who were considered to be masters of the art. Among the writers of classic English [[ghost]] stories, [[M.R. James]] is often cited as the finest. His stories avoid shock effects and often involve an [[Oxford]] [[antiquarian]] as their hero. [[Algernon Blackwood]]'s ''The Willows'' and
[[Oliver Onions]]'s ''The Beckoning Fair One'' have been called the best ghost stories.
Lovecraft and [[Sheridan le Fanu]] called some of their writing '''weird fiction''' or '''weird stories'''.

Some stories in highbrow literature could arguably be regarded as horror fiction: examples include
[[Franz Kafka]]'s ''[[The Metamorphosis]]'' (''Die Verwandlung'') and ''[[In the Penal Colony]]'' (''In der Strafkolonie'').

== Contemporary horror fiction ==

Modern practitioners of the genre have often resorted to progressively greater extremes of violence, often recalling [[grand guignol]] theatre. (''See'' [[splatterpunk]]) This has given horror fiction a stigma as base entertainment devoid of [[literary merit]]. Other writers, such as [[Ramsey Campbell]] and [[Thomas Ligotti]], are cited as rejecting such violence in favor of more subtle, psychological writing.

Nevertheless, contemporary writers such as [[Clive Barker]] in ''[[The Books of Blood]]'' and [[Stephen King]] in his more considered works, such as ''[[Misery]]'', are capable of bringing off the horror effect without the excessive violence that characterises much of the current mainstream of this genre.

The rise of the [[Internet]] has allowed horror authors and fans to create new subsets of the genre. Numerous Web-based [[fanzine]]s and [[podcast]]s have provided a market for both amateur and professional writers, which is unfettered by the tastes and judgments of the professional publishing houses.

== See also ==

* [[Horror film]]
* [[List of horror fiction authors]]
* [[Ghost story]]
* [[Psychological horror]]
* [[Body horror]]
* [[Internet Speculative Fiction DataBase]]

==External links==
* [http://www.horrorreader.com Horror Reader, blog and podcast dedicated to horror fiction]
* [http://www.movie-monsters.co.uk "Monsters in film" Details of cinematic monsters]
* [http://gaslight.mtroyal.ab.ca/superhor.htm "Supernatural Horror in Literature" essay by H. P. Lovecraft on horror fiction antecendents]
* [http://www.theharrow.com The Harrow horror zine]
* [http://www.ihgonline.org International Horror Guild Awards]
*[http://book.awardannals.com/genre/horror/ Most Honored Horror Books] at [http://book.awardannals.com/ Book Award Annals]
*[http://freezenerve.proboards32.com/ Carnival of Wicked Writers]
*[http://www.somethingawful.com/articles.php?a=3289 ''The Modern Monster'' or ''The Dismantlement of Old Monster Archetypes'']
*[http://www.storytellersunplugged.com/ Storytellers Unplugged: 30 Horror novelists combine to create one interesting blog]

[[Category: Speculative fiction]]
[[Category:Horror|*]]
[[Category:Literary genres]]

Original Wiki source: [http://en.wikipedia.org/ Wikipedia]

@@ Line 43: / Line 43: @@
 *[http://www.storytellersunplugged.com/ Storytellers Unplugged: 30 Horror novelists combine to create one interesting blog]
-[[Category:Literature]]
+[[Category:Fiction]]
 Original Wiki source: [http://en.wikipedia.org/ Wikipedia]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-'''Horror fiction''' is, broadly, [[fiction]] in any medium intended to scare, unsettle or horrify the reader. Historically, the cause of the "horror" experience has often been the intrusion of an evil, or occasionally misunderstood, [[supernatural]] element into everyday human experience.  Since the 1960s, any work of fiction with a morbid, gruesome, [[Surrealism|surreal]], exceptionally [[suspense]]ful or frightening theme has come to be called "horror."  Horror fiction often overlaps with [[science fiction]] and/or [[fantasy]], all of which have sometimes been placed under the umbrella category [[speculative fiction]]. See also [[supernatural fiction]].
+'''Horror fiction''' is, broadly, fiction in any medium intended to scare, unsettle or horrify the reader. Historically, the cause of the "horror" experience has often been the intrusion of an evil, or occasionally misunderstood, supernatural element into everyday human experience.  Since the 1960s, any work of fiction with a morbid, gruesome, surreal, exceptionally suspenseful or frightening theme has come to be called "horror."  Horror fiction often overlaps with science fiction and/or fantasy, all of which have sometimes been placed under the umbrella category speculative fiction. See also supernatural fiction.
 == Early horror fiction ==
-[[Fictional character]]s have found themselves in horrifying situations from the earliest recorded tales. Many [[myth]]s and [[legend]]s feature scenarios and [[archetypes]] used by later horror writers. Tales collected by the [[Grimm Brothers]] are often quite horrific.
+Fictional characters have found themselves in horrifying situations from the earliest recorded tales. Many myths and legends feature scenarios and archetypes used by later horror writers. Tales collected by the Grimm Brothers are often quite horrific.
-Modern horror fiction found its roots in the [[gothic novel]]s that exploded into popularity in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, typified by [[Ann Radcliffe]]'s ''The Mysteries of Udolpho'' and [[Horace Walpole]]'s ''The Castle of Otranto''.  A variation on the Gothic formula that remains one of the most enduring and imitated horror works is [[Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley]]'s novel ''[[Frankenstein]]'' (1818, revised version 1831). ''Frankenstein'' has also been considered [[science fiction]] or a [[philosophy|philosophical]] novel by some literary historians.  Later gothic horror descendants included seminal late 19th century works like [[Bram Stoker]]'s ''[[Dracula]]'' and [[Henry James]]'s ''[[The Turn of the Screw]]''.  Early horror works used mood and subtlety to deliver an eerie and otherworldly flavor, but usually eschewed extensive explicit violence.
+Modern horror fiction found its roots in the gothic novels that exploded into popularity in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, typified by [[Ann Radcliffe]]'s ''The Mysteries of Udolpho'' and [[Horace Walpole]]'s ''The Castle of Otranto''.  A variation on the Gothic formula that remains one of the most enduring and imitated horror works is [[Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley]]'s novel ''[[Frankenstein]]'' (1818, revised version 1831). ''Frankenstein'' has also been considered science fiction or a philosophical novel by some literary historians.  Later gothic horror descendants included seminal late 19th century works like [[Bram Stoker]]'s ''[[Dracula]]'' and [[Henry James]]'s ''[[The Turn of the Screw]]''.  Early horror works used mood and subtlety to deliver an eerie and otherworldly flavor, but usually eschewed extensive explicit violence.
-Other early exponents of the horror form number such luminaries as [[H. P. Lovecraft]] and [[Edgar Allan Poe]], who were considered to be masters of the art. Among the writers of classic English [[ghost]] stories, [[M.R. James]] is often cited as the finest. His stories avoid shock effects and often involve an [[Oxford]] [[antiquarian]] as their hero. [[Algernon Blackwood]]'s ''The Willows'' and
+Other early exponents of the horror form number such luminaries as [[H.P. Lovecraft]] and [[Edgar Allan Poe]], who were considered to be masters of the art. Among the writers of classic English ghost stories, [[M.R. James]] is often cited as the finest. His stories avoid shock effects and often involve an Oxford antiquarian as their hero. [[Algernon Blackwood]]'s ''The Willows'' and
-[[Oliver Onions]]'s ''The Beckoning Fair One'' have been called the best ghost stories.
+Oliver Onions's ''The Beckoning Fair One'' have been called the best ghost stories.
 Lovecraft and [[Sheridan le Fanu]] called some of their writing '''weird fiction''' or '''weird stories'''.
 Some stories  in highbrow literature could arguably be regarded as horror fiction: examples include
-[[Franz Kafka]]'s ''[[The Metamorphosis]]'' (''Die Verwandlung'') and ''[[In the Penal Colony]]'' (''In der Strafkolonie'').
+[[Franz Kafka]]'s ''The Metamorphosis'' (''Die Verwandlung'') and ''In the Penal Colony'' (''In der Strafkolonie'').
 == Contemporary horror fiction ==
-Modern practitioners of the genre have often resorted to progressively greater extremes of violence, often recalling [[grand guignol]] theatre.  (''See'' [[splatterpunk]])  This has given horror fiction a stigma as base entertainment devoid of [[literary merit]]. Other writers, such as [[Ramsey Campbell]] and [[Thomas Ligotti]], are cited as rejecting such violence in favor of more subtle, psychological writing.
+Modern practitioners of the genre have often resorted to progressively greater extremes of violence, often recalling grand guignol theatre.  (''See'' splatterpunk)  This has given horror fiction a stigma as base entertainment devoid of literary merit. Other writers, such as [[Ramsey Campbell]] and [[Thomas Ligotti]], are cited as rejecting such violence in favor of more subtle, psychological writing.
-Nevertheless, contemporary writers such as [[Clive Barker]] in ''[[The Books of Blood]]'' and [[Stephen King]] in his more considered works, such as ''[[Misery]]'', are capable of bringing off the horror effect without the excessive violence that characterises much of the current mainstream of this genre.
+Nevertheless, contemporary writers such as [[Clive Barker]] in ''The Books of Blood'' and [[Stephen King]] in his more considered works, such as ''Misery'', are capable of bringing off the horror effect without the excessive violence that characterises much of the current mainstream of this genre.
-The rise of the [[Internet]] has allowed horror authors and fans to create new subsets of the genre.  Numerous Web-based [[fanzine]]s and [[podcast]]s have provided a market for both amateur and professional writers, which is unfettered by the tastes and judgments of the professional publishing houses.
+The rise of the Internet has allowed horror authors and fans to create new subsets of the genre.  Numerous Web-based fanzines and [[Podcasting|podcast]]s have provided a market for both amateur and professional writers, which is unfettered by the tastes and judgments of the professional publishing houses.
 ==External links==