Category: Week 6 Questions – Horror

According to Joshi (2007), a tale from the Cthulhu Mythos has several defining features that occur regularly throughout Lovecraft’s work. What are these features and how are they used in The Shadow Over Innsmouth? Furthermore, can you see any of these features being used in The Colour out of Space?

The Cthulhu Mythos has several defining features which Joshi (2007) surmises in to four main elements. These elements are:

A topography based on a ‘vitally realized but largely imaginary’ New England (Joshi, 2007). 17th century New England is characteristic of religious fanaticism and fear of witchcraft, also known for The Salem Witch Trials in Massachusetts in the latter part of the century. This was a time where the growing fear of the unknown and unfamiliar outside of civilization was heightened, making the history of this area fundamental to the root of many horrors. New England is also known for it’s Atlantic coastline, which has inspired the marine-heavy thematic throughout Cthulhu Mythos tales. The opening sentences of The Shadow Over Innsmouth (1931) identify a New England setting immediately in the imagined seaport town of Innsmouth, Massachussets. Throughout the story references are constantly made to figures with sea creature features such as rough, scaly skin and ‘slopping-like’ voices, as well as the restrictions on access to marine life by outsiders.

A growing collection of both ancient and modern occult books, accompanied by scholars who seek out these texts in an attempt to utilize or combat them (Joshi, 2007). Other historical sources of information, such as jewellery in The Shadow Over Innsmouth, is of particular interest to humans despite their unpleasant experiences with and depictions of Innsmouth folk . The ‘normal’ human’s interest in these unique pieces are paired with descriptions that compare these strange but beautiful objects to known and familiar objects, in an attempt to understand what they are. These objects are held in the museum and cared for by specialists like Miss Tilton, consistent with the need to gather as much knowledge as possible about this strange race of beings.

Their ‘gods’ and their ‘monstrous minions or accolytes’ (Joshi, 2007). These gods are also known as the Great Old Ones, a group of powerful and ancient out-of-Earth deities. Although they do have human followers, their servants are typically extra-terrestrial in appearance, of which are not always so easily described due to the limitations of the human mind – attempting to make sense of these beings, whether with your own eyes or by word of mouth, can lead to insanity (Jones, 2020). Rumours and mutterings about Innsmouth and it’s inhabitants are done so in a secretive but incessant way. Depictions of these beings can come off as frantic or never-ending because of the fact that words aren’t enough, and that people who have encountered Innsmouth folk face to face can not comprehend what they have seen. This again alludes to mankind’s fear of the unknown thus fueling the need to accumulate knowledge.

And lastly “a sense of the cosmic, both spatial and temporal” linking Mythos to science fiction as opposed to supernatural (Joshi, 2007). This element focuses on the larger scheme of intergalactic existence, highlighting mankind’s fear of their insignificance (Jones, 2020). The unpleasant and varying depiction of Innsmouth folks as “rough, scabby… [with] queer narrow heads and flat noses… Bulgy, stary eyes that never seem to shut” with unnatural voices that sounded slopping-like (Lovecraft, 1931), paired with many references of the people and their belongings as that of another planet, coalesce to shape this fear and apprehensiveness of accepting the existence of these things. We can see consistently the palatable human interpretation of Innsmouth natives and artifacts do not always make sense due to the limitation of the human mind.

In Colour Out Of Space (2019) these elements are also present. The main setting of the Gardner family property in Arkham, Massachusetts, gradually changes after the landing of the meteorite, in ways that might not be astonishingly shocking, such as the appearance of new flowers and insects (the creature that Jack witnesses at the well). Then there is the increasing amount of technicolour hues over and around the property as time passes, which again is strange, but seems to just be brushed off as the family continue on with their lives. Even when they begin to acknowledge that strange things are happening both spatially and temporally, there is difficulty in not only believing but also explaining what they’re feeling and seeing. The closing scene is paramount to this underlying philosophy – “What touched this place can not be quantified or understood by human science. It was just, a colour… out of space. A messenger from realms whose existence stuns the brain and numbs us, with the gulfs that it throws open before our frenzied eyes” (Ward, closing scene – Colour Out Of Space, 2019).

References

Cthulhu Mythos. (n.d.). Retrieved September 2, 2020, from https://lovecraft.fandom.com/wiki/Cthulhu_Mythos

Jones, N. (2020) Lovecraftian Horror Video Lecture. Retrieved from AUT Blackboard

Joshi, S. T. (2007). The Cthullu Mythos, in Icons of horror and the supernatural: An encyclopedia of our worst nightmares. Greenwood Publishing Group.

Lovecraft, H. P. (1931). The Shadow Over Innsmouth.

In this blog, I will be discussing Reyes’s description of body horror as being a “fictional representation of the body exceeding itself or falling apart, either opening up or being altered past the point where it would be recognised by normative understandings of human corporeality.” (Reyes, 2014) And how they do The Colour out of Space and Lovecraft’s The Shadow Over Innsmouth make use of this definition to explore themes of the unknown?

H.P. Lovecraft was in clear terms a bigot who held bigoted views against those different to him (Jones, 2020). As a writer like most, he brought those views within his works. So, when looking at body horror as described by Reyes in regard to the story The Colour out of Space by H.P. Lovecraft one could say it was used to express Lovecraft’s bigotry as the story does depict the fear of the other and its effects. Within the story, the meteorite is immediately different from other meteorites as it still glows unlike the scientifically factual meteorite (Lovecraft, 1927) the never seen before colours of the meteorite further shows its difference (Lovecraft, 1927). Initially thought of as a possible blessing this other seems to be dispersing of possible fears “The pears and apples slowly ripened, and Nahum vowed that his orchards were prospering as never before. The fruit was growing to phenomenal size and unwonted gloss, and in such abundance, those extra barrels were ordered to handle the future crop.” (Lovecraft, 1927) however right after this the other once again reveals itself to be a poison as the literal fruits it bares are thought of as poisonous (Lovecraft, 1927). From a body horror perspective, the humans affected by the meteorite become much like the fruits and animals and become altered until they are nothing but grey ash (Lovecraft, 1927). By introducing the meteorite as the other H.P. Lovecraft depicts what he expects would occur if the other is allowed to continue to exist, far worse situations could occur as explained by his expectation of what would occur if promiscuity were to become less judged by the public. His escalation goes from sodomy, or homosexuality, as he calls it being slowly accepted until finally bestiality is allowed (Jones, 2020). In H.P. Lovecraft’s words he is drawing out the steps of escalations which he expects will occur if others are welcomed into the fold it starts with fruits and escalates towards humans. Thus, I believe the theme of the unknown within the colour of out of space is that of fear for the unknown.

In The Shadow Over Innsmouth, Lovecraft creates body horror through the depiction of characters degenerating until their humanity if stripped and they resemble fish creatures rather than humans. This body horror though getting a different reaction from its character as in the end the narrator accepts these half human half fish creatures and accepts himself as one of them (Lovecraft, 1936) still depicts the acceptance of the status quo because at the beginning the narrator is the other and because of this he is hunted however as the story progresses it is revealed he is, in fact, a descendant of the Innsmouth residences and as such when he embraces them all his passed decisions he made as another is nearly all but a few forgiven(Lovecraft, 1936). To the narrator, the humans are the other as they are not like him and the deep ones are now the ones who make sense (Lovecraft, 1936).

 This is what I feel describes bigotry and to an extent Lovecraft’s bigotry the other is that which the narrator is not connected to and as such, there is always another and there is always a place where bigots can fit in.

References

Jones, N. (lect). (2020). Lovecraftian horror and weird fiction. retrieved from https://blackboard.aut.ac.nz/bbcswebdav/pid-5273120-dt-content-rid-12699658_4/institution/Papers/ENGL602/Publish/Lovecraftian%20Horror%20Lecture.mp4

Lovecraft, H.P (Auth). (1927). The colour of out of space. United States: Amazing Stories

Lovecraft, H.P (Auth). (1936). The shadow over innsmouth. United States: Visionary Publishing Company

Reyes, X. (2014). Body Gothic: Corporeal Transgression in Contemporary Literature and Horror Film. University of Wales Press.

Question (2): What is the philosophy of cosmicism and how is it used to convey a sense of dread in both The Shadow Over Innsmouth and The Colour out of Space? 

The literary philosophy of cosmicism was brought into being by the American author H. P. Lovecraft. Lovecraft wrote horror stories, he specifically liked writing about occult phenomena, including such themes as spirit possession and alien miscegenation. This philosophy of cosmicism encapsulates this idea around humans being fairly insignificant compared to a much larger intergalactic existence. This knowledge causes humans to face just how unimportant and small they are compared to the entire universe and that realisation instills fear which typically causes a psychological transformation or breakdown to occur (Wikipedia, n.d.). Stableford (2007, p. 66) states “At first glance ‘‘cosmic’’ seems to be used here merely as a replacement term for ‘‘supernatural,’’ but the substitution also implies a particular psychological attitude to the supernatural”.    

This philosophy of cosmicism is used to convey a sense of dread in the 2019 film adaptation of Lovecrafts ‘The Color Out of Space’. This film utilizes an unknown force simply named ‘the color’. This unknown force begins to control the Gardner family, making them act and do things that are unexplainable. For example, when Theresa is preparing dinner she absentmindedly chops off two of her fingers (Stanley, 2019). Many more inexplicable things happen, and due to unknown knowledge this leads to the family and extended town folk becoming more and more fearful for their lives. At the peak of the film ‘the color’ finally reveals itself as a thing that originates from another planet which is inhabited by intergalactic beings (Stanley, 2019). This narrative follows closely the philosophy of cosmicism and that sense of dread that the unknown brings. As Lovecraft (1934) once famously stated “The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown” (The H. P. Lovecraft Archive, n.d.). 

This philosophy of cosmicism also extends throughout many other works of Lovecraft’s notably ‘The Shadow Over Innsmouth’. In ‘The Shadow Over Innsmouth’ Lovecraft utilizes the same kind of celestial beings that are unknown to the rest of the world but only known to residents of Innsmouth. The town of Innsmouth came upon some tough times and they began to sacrifice townspeople to ‘the deep ones’ as they are referred to in exchange for economic stability. However, these sacrifices were abolished and ‘the deep ones’ became angry and killed over half the village’s population. This led to the production of hybrid offspring (Wikipedia, n.d.). This is another common theme of Lovecraft’s cosmicism philosophy. This idea of cultic worshiping and the fraternisation between human and celestial (Stableford, 2007). Following on, after the main character learns the truth of this forbidden knowledge he manages to escape Innsmouth. It is not till much later in his life that he learns that he too has ‘the deep ones’ blood within him (Wikipedia, n.d.). This deliberately slow transition from human to celestial into something unknown is fear inspiring. This theme of the unknown instilling fear into the characters involved in his narratives is common of Lovecraft’s cosmicism philosophy.             

References

Stableford, B. (2007). The cosmic horror. Icons of Horror and the Supernatural, 66-96. 

Stanley, R. (Director). (2019). Colour Out of Space [Film]. SpectreVision.    

The H. P. Lovecraft Archive. (n.d.). Supernatural horror in literature. Retrieved, September 2, 2020, from https://www.hplovecraft.com/writings/texts/essays/shil.aspx  

Wikipedia. (n.d.) Cosmicism. Retrieved September 2, 2020, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmicism#:~:text=The%20philosophy%20of%20cosmicism%20states,face%20of%20an%20incomprehensibly%20large  

Wikipedia. (n.d.). The shadow over innsmouth. Retrieved September 3, 2020, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shadow_over_Innsmouth 

What is the philosophy of cosmicism an how is it used to convey a sense of dread in both The Shadow Over Innsmouth and The Color Out of Space?

In Stableford’s (2007) article, it is defined that “cosmic horror” is a term closely associated with H. P. Lovecraft and his work involving weird fiction and horror. Lovecraft’s fascination with the concept of the cosmos and supernatural fiction has been apparent throughout his work, and regarding his essay on supernatural horror literature (written between 1924-1926), the philosophy of cosmicism can be further understood.

In his essay, when describing his own work, Lovecraft differentiates the “literature of cosmic fear” from the literature regarding “physical fear and the mundanely gruesome.” The term “cosmic” adds onto the supernatural themes portrayed in his stories in a more psychological way. Lovecraftian fiction has been known to have an essence of horror that originates from the idea that knowledge is too much to bear, and that the ultimate kind of knowledge is related to “unplumbed space,” in his terms, over the common concepts of horror such as ghosts, curses, and human evil. In ways to go beyond the limitations of supernatural horror, Lovecraft attempted elements of “cosmic horror,” which would be carefully concentrated and regarded as a type of over-arching kind of entity.

Furthermore in Lovecraft’s essay, he argues that the roots of “cosmic terror” are very ancient. Using references from varying ancient folklore, he associated it with a hypothetical pagan cult of “nocturnal worshipers,” whose ideas had been driven out by organized religions. The fundamental and central argument that Lovecraft created in the making of cosmic horror is that it it looks at the universe outside of the associations to humanistic activities, that the classical times had often overlooked the repression of awareness of the magnitude and horrors of the universe in which humans only resided in. Lovecraft’s philosophy also disregarded most organized religions as part of the process, as cosmicism mostly stemmed from the presence of the unknown over concepts such as gods, and divine beings that were present in religious literature. Another one of Lovecraft’s arguments explained that the most artistic and effective works of modern weird fiction cannot be found in the form of an absolute belief but in the form of an “aesthetic response.” An example of a kind of aesthetic sensation is often regarded as “the Sublime,” in his works.

In both “The Shadow Over Innsmouth” and “The Colour Out of Space,” Lovecraft’s cosmic horror is portrayed through the over-arching and atmospheric gloom and dread that is apparent in the narrative. Joshi (2007) describes the atmosphere of The Shadow Over Innsmouth as a claustrophobic sense of doom and decay which can be seen through his evocative prose. The Colour Out of Space also expands on the theme of cosmicism as for the entirety of the film, there is no exact “monster” or evil in a physical form but instead, the distress and outcomes of the unknown evil is shown as it takes its effect and toll on the family. Going back to Lovecraft’s note on the “aesthetic response” in cosmic horror, much of that can be experienced in the Colour Out of Space as it is a very visually appealing film and the overall sensation you get from the visuals can be unnerving and mysterious. Because it is hard to know what the exact horror is, there is a constant feeling of dread from not knowing. The meteorite that crashed on the family’s farm in the film is the only clue to the haunting evil, and the horrific creatures it induced, but overall you do not see what the exact terror was, only the result of it.

References

Joshi, S. T. (2007). The Cthulhu Mythos. Icons of Horror and the Supernatural, 98-128.  

Stableford, B. (2007). The Cosmic Horror. Icons of Horror and the Supernatural, 66-96.  

1.  Reyes (2014), describes Body Horror as being a “fictional representation of the body exceeding itself or falling apart, either opening up or being altered past the point where it would be recognised by normative understandings of human corporeality.” How do The Colour out of Space and Lovecraft’s The Shadow Over Innsmouth make use of this definition to explore themes of the unknown? 

Reyes description above of “Body Horror” offers a sound foundation of this sub-genre of horror when the human body is attacked and mutates out of control, usually in a painful and hideous way.  

We consider our body ours alone, so how do we defend against something inside of us taking over. Lovecraft saw the body as a fragile shell that could be harmed or influenced by outside forces with our spirit still alive trapped inside but aware of the changes going on. The fear factor for Lovecraft is when the body we consider ours is seized, taken over, changed, as is the case with mutation, which comes from the genetic code and carries the curse of our ancestors which cannot be escaped because it is embedded in our tissue (Lovecraft, 2013). 

We can understand this better when we consider the Mutation Theory (1901), Hugo de Vries (1848—1935), a Dutch botanist (Samiksha, 2020) who believed the following: 

1. Mutations or discontinuous variations are the raw material of evolution. 

2. Mutations appear suddenly. They become operational immediately. 

3. Unlike Darwin’s continuous variations or fluctuations, mutations do not revolve around the mean or normal character of the species. 

4. The same type of mutations can appear in several individuals of a species. 

5. All mutations are inheritable. 

6. Mutations appear in all conceivable directions. 

7. Useful mutations are selected by nature. Lethal mutations are eliminated. However, useless and less harmful ones can persist in the progeny. 

8. Accumulation of variations produce new species. Sometimes a new species is pro­duced from a single mutation. 

9. Evolution is a jerky and discontinuous process. 

In The Shadow over Innsmouth, the narrator (Robert Olmstead) goes to Innsmouth and finds the citizens are physically mutating into horrible grotesque foul-smelling fish-frog-human hybrids and near the end discovers he has Innsmouth blood in his veins too and mutates into the creatures he was repulsed by. Interestingly, he accepts his own fate, which contrasts with his initial fear and repulsion of transforming into something hideously unrecognizable. 

In The Colour out of Space (2019) directed by Richard Stanley, a strange alien lifeform is transported to Earth when a meteorite crashes in the front yard of the Gardner family (5 members) who live on a farm in rural New England. Nothing happens at first, but then this alien entity, that emanates strange colors, starts to mutate with organisms it finds contaminating the water, plants vegetables, alpaca’s and the family, like morphing together the mother and youngest son into a hideous blob thing.  

The Shadow over Innsmouth and The Colour out of Space are both good examples of Reyes (2014) description of Body Horror highlighting Lovecrafts trademark of grotesque, horrifying mutations and helplessness when faced with overpowering forces, casting an atmosphere of dread and fear of the unknown for the viewer/reader (Lovecraft, 2013). 

REFERENCES  

Lovecraft, H. (2013). Supernatural horror in literature. The Palingenesis Project. (Wermod and Wermod Publishing Group). Retrieved from https://blackboard.aut.ac.nz/ 

Lovecraft, H. (2020). The Colour out of Space. Gothic Digital Series @ UFSC. Retrieved from https://blackboard.aut.ac.nz/ 

Reyes, X. (2014). Body Gothic: Corporeal Transgression in Contemporary Literature and Horror Film. University of Wales Press. Retrieved from https://blackboard.aut.ac.nz/ 

Samiksha, S (2020). Mutation Theory: Mutation Theory of Evolution by Hugo De vries’ 

Retrieved from https://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/mutation/mutation-theory-mutation-theory-of-evolution-by-hugo-de-vries/12255 

What is the philosophy of cosmicism and how is it used to convey a sense of dread in The Colour out of Space? 

According to Stableford (2007), Lovecraftian horror is essentially horror that comes from knowledge too great and incomprehensible to bear, and deals with the unchartered aspects of space rather than the mundane human world and the pedestrian evil humans are capable of. Ralickas (2008, page 364) describes cosmic horror as the “fear and awe we feel when confronted by phenomena beyond our comprehension, whose scope extends beyond the narrow field of human affairs and boasts of cosmic significance.”  

The two main philosophies of cosmicism that are used to convey a sense of dread, or fear and anticipation, in The Colour out of Space are how the horror within the story is largely unknown and abstract, and how little we really understand about the cosmos and our own insignificance in it.   

One of the ways that cosmicism is used to convey a sense of dread in The Colour out of Space is through its unknown horror. The horror within cosmicism isn’t necessarily seen, but its presence is felt, and its abstract nature and difficulty in describing its horror makes it that much more terrifying (Stableford, 2007). In the short story, the reader is never told exactly what the evil force is. All we know is that a meteor crashes into the Gardner’s property, after which some sort of blight effects the surrounding soil, poisoning the vegetables, animals, trees and eventually everything around it, turning it into dust. Eventually the whole family is driven to madness and subsequently perish. The Colour out of Space leans heavily on the limited amount of information about the cosmic entity to make it appear more incomprehensible and dangerous to the human protagonists (Slåtten, 2016). Throughout the story we are never told if the meteor brought a single or group of alien entities, the physical characteristics of the alien, or whether it is sentient and came to earth with any purpose (Slåtten, 2016). In the 2019 film adaptation, while we do see the physical form of the alien entity, or the ‘Colour’, it is still portrayed as an obscure threat that we cannot touch. For example, Nathan Gardner is able to shoot and kill the monster his wife and son have turned into, however, the Colour is still present and able to wreak its havoc. The unknown and untouchable nature of the Colour is hugely effective in conveying dread, as it allows the imagination to take over. The creations of our own imagination are often far more horrifying than what we see with our own eyes, and so the fact that the Colour is so obscure makes it even more terrifying (Halldórsson, 2010). 

Another philosophy of cosmicism is our limited understanding of the cosmos, and that humans are ultimately helpless and insignificant in the grand schemes of the universe (Stableford, 2007). We see this in The Colour out of Space, as the Colour is brought from a meteor from another cosmos and serves as a reminder that there are unknown forces and entities that exist outside of Earth. According to Slåtten (2016), the Colour is proof that a cosmic reality exists that is both foreign and horrifying to humans. The knowledge of this reality is not met with positive amazement or fascination, but rather insanity and fear (Slåtten, 2016). The Colour literally turns members of the Gardner family insane until they perish, and rather than investigating and coming to understand the Colour, the people of the town want to flood the area it infected with a dam to try and cover it up. The Colour represents a hostile cosmic force that humans have very little understanding of, and therefore is something they fear (Slåtten, 2016). Halldórsson (2010) argues that the Colour and the events it causes are not acts of evil, but rather go beyond that and are meant to be further than the comprehension of the reader, operating on a different set of laws. All the horrible things that happen to the Gardener family are merely side products of the cosmic force – it didn’t have a specific intention to terrorize this family in particular – reinforcing the insignificance of humans within the cosmos and how we are merely a means to an end (Halldórsson, 2010). All of this perfectly conveys a sense of dread. The revelation of our own insignificance in comparison to the universe is a frightening thought, as we are reminded how futile and powerless we are against forces we have a very limited understanding of (Halldórsson, 2010). 

The Colour out of Space leaves us with unanswered questions about our place in the universe and if we’re ever truly safe from unknown evil. The fact that it leaves us unsure if we ever defeated the evil is truly terrifying, heightening our sense of dread and fear for what’s to come.  

References 

Halldórsson, K. R. (2010). HP Lovecraft. The Enlightenment and connection to the world of Cosmicism [Doctoral dissertation, University of Iceland]. Skemman. https://skemman.is/handle/1946/6241 

Ralickas, V. (2007). “Cosmic Horror” and the Question of the Sublime in Lovecraft. Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts, 18(3), 364-398. 

Slåtten, K. Ø. (2016). Humans in a hostile cosmos: Science, cosmicism and race in HP Lovecraft’s Cthulhu mythos [Master’s thesis, University of Stavanger, Norway]. University of Stavanger. http://hdl.handle.net/11250/2400445  

Stableford, B. (2007). The cosmic horror. In Joshi, S. T. (Eds.), Icons of Horror and the Supernatural: An Encyclopedia of Our Worst Nightmares (pp. 65-96). Greenwood Publishing Group. 

2.What is the philosophy of cosmicism and how is it used to convey a sense of dread in both The Shadow Over Innsmouth and The Colour out of Space?

The philosophy of cosmicism is that there is no such thing as the divine being, such as the Gods, that we can recognize in this universe, and that humans are not particularly significant on a vast scale at the intergalactic level. So in Lovecraft’s Cosmic Horror, humans face a vast universe that is incomparable to them. As a result, they fail to accept their meaninglessness and become terrified and insane. “At first glance ‘‘cosmic’’ seems to be used here merely as a replacement term for ‘‘supernatural,’’ but the substitution also implies a particular psychological attitude to the supernatural. The text refers to ‘‘that most terrible conception of the human brain—a malign and particular suspension of those fixed laws of Nature which are our only safeguards against the assaults of chaos and the daemons of unplumbed space’’(Stablefold, 2006). Also, cosmicism tends to emphasize the meaninglessness of human being itself and all human actions. In Lovecraft’s Cthulhu mythology, it is only cosmic beings who can leave a significant mark, and humans can never understand the meaning or intention contained in their actions. So it maximizes the fear of humans.

This philosophy of cosmicism is faithfully reflected in The Color Out of Space. The merits of this movie are visualized tension, which expresses the sudden presence of the unexplored universe and the fear of human beings exposed to death unprotected. As Lovecraft(2013) said, “The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown”, the work expresses the unknown from the transcendent existence of the universe in color, showing human fear of it and human helplessness toward destruction and endings.

These cosmicism philosophies also appear in The Shadow over Innsmouth. Lovecraft’s works tend to arouse readers’ fear of something else, often describing unknown as a terrible threat to the rest of humanity. In The Shadow over Innsmouth, the main character learns the truth about Innsmouth and runs away, but finds out that there is Insmmouth blood in his bloodline, and as the day goes by, he feels that he is turning into something other than himself. It shows a sense of dread that a human being turns into an unknown identity, a monster. So this is linked to cosmicism in that it shows the futility of man and the fear of being unknown.

References

Lovecraft, H. P. (2013). Supernatural horror in literature. The Palingenesis Project (Wermod and Wermod Publishing Group).

Stableford, B. (2006). The cosmic horror. Icons of Horror and the Supernatural: An Encyclopedia of Our Worst Nightmares, 1, 65-96.

Stanley, R. (Director). (2020). Colour Out of Space [Film]. SpectreVision.

1. What is the philosophy of cosmicism and how is it used to convey a sense of dread in both The Shadow Over Innsmouth and The Colour out of Space?

Cosmicism is the scholarly way of thinking created and utilized by the American writer H. P. Lovecraft in his works of “weird” fiction. Lovecraft was the creator of thoughtfully extraordinary stories of horror that included themes and ideas of what was deemed out to be “mysterious marvels”, such as for instance the concepts  like astral projection and alien miscegenation, and the topics of his fiction after some time added to the advancement of this philosophy (“Cosmicism,” 2006). When comparing cosmicism to humanism, the idea of the two are incompatible. The being of cosmicism imparts numerous qualities to the thoughts of nihilism. Anyway it is to take note of that one noteworthy contrast is that cosmicism will when all is said in done underline the unimportance of humanity and its doings, as opposed to immediately dismissing the conceivable presence of some higher reason (or purposes); e.g., in Lovecraft’s Cthulhu stories, it isn’t the nonattendance of implying that causes dread for the heroes, as it is their revelation that they have definitely no capacity to transform anything in the tremendous, apathetic universe that encompasses them. In Lovecraft’s accounts, whatever importance or reason might be put into the activities of the grandiose creatures is totally difficult to reach to the human characters. In spite of the fact that cosmicism shows up profoundly skeptical, H.P. Lovecraft thought of himself as neither a person who was deemed optimist or even pessimistic for that matter.  However, he instead saw himself as a logical (per say, scientific) or “cosmic” indifferentism. This a topic communicated in his fiction as a means of expression (Lord dunsany, H. P. Lovecraft, and Ray Bradbury, 2014). That being said, the theory of comicism is a Lovecraft’s fiction give a decent material in a conjured up universe, for example, baffling articles, prohibited privileged insights, experiences desert, the disclosure of repulsions in a city in terms of the horrors that were present, metaphases, stunning disclosures, the concept/ ideas of dream and reality, outsider creatures, inestimable beasts, and so forth (Menegaldo, 2019). For instance, the use of cosmicism is used to convey a sense of dread in The Shadow Over Innsmouth (1931) demonstrated the comic to the commonplace; The comic’s components are introduced under the surface to show their capacity. A dispossessed hero who goes by the name Robert Olmstead he was never actually named in the story yet however the name was present in Lovecraft’s story notes (Joshi, 2006), is an extraordinary incredible grandson of Obded Marsh and a Deep One, whom would eventually transform into one of the land and/or water types of “amphibian” whom miscegenation between outsider fish-frogs like he observes in the rotting Massachusetts city of Innsmouth. In ‘the Innsmouth look” is a sign that let them know something is going on in their initial being of place, something that is of a large and significant physiological and mental change that will come and frequent them in essentially everlasting and stay perpetually in their undersea urban communities (Joshi, 2006). This same applies for ‘The Colour out of Space’ and this is when something from above falls down onto their backyard with bright intense colour, that this then is a sign for them to believe it or not. Some characters in the movie believe that this is a seemingly unlucky sign and that they need to leave from there before it is too late too. Despite that, some did not believe in it. They continue to stay in the house they were at yet horrible things continue to happen making it so they can not leave from there any more. Taking a look at all this, the one thing that was common in: The Shadow Over Innsmouth’ and “The Colour out of space” is where they dwell in terms of lets say where the aliens used to hide themselves before they decided to make moves and scare people which also then further led to  making people start to lose their mind. The overall concept of aliens is one that can be deemed to be that is unpredictable and unexplainable even with the use of science. A greater audience of people tend to believe in the beings of aliens but many still do not. “The colour out of space” goes as far as showing the audience that at the end of the day it is really up to humans whether they chose to believe such things or not. 

References:

Cosmicism. (2006, April 9). Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved August 29, 2020, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmicism

Lord dunsany, H. P. Lovecraft, and Ray Bradbury: Spectral journeys. (2014). Choice Reviews Online, 51(12), 51-6626-51-6626. https://doi.org/10.5860/choice.51-6626

Menegaldo, G. (2019). HP Lovecraft on screen, a challenge for filmmakers (allusions, transpositions, rewritings). Brumal. Revista de investigación sobre lo Fantástico, 7(1), 55. https://doi.org/10.5565/rev/brumal.591Joshi, S. T. (2006). The Cthulhu Mythos. Icons of Horror and the Supernatural: An Encyclopedia of Our Worst Nightmares, 1, 97-128.

Joshi, S. T. (2006). The Cthulhu Mythos. Icons of Horror and the Supernatural: An Encyclopedia of Our Worst Nightmares, 1, 97-128.

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What is the philosophy of cosmicism and how is it used to convey a sense of dread in both The Shadow Over Innsmouth and The Colour out of Space?

Philosophy of comicism is a Lovecraft’s fiction provide some contempt for nascent medium. His works often relating to an imaginary world such as mysterious objects, forbidden secrets, adventures desert, the discovery of horrors in a city, metaphases, shocking revelations, dream and reality, alien beings, cosmic monsters, etc (Menegaldo, 2019).

In that cosmic perspective, man has a dire consequence of losing his mind if he fails to get the messages or cannot understand the mysteries of the universe (Menegaldo, 2019) (Joshi, 2006). In Cthulhu Mythos that Lovecraft was the ancient Philistine god Dagon in “Dagon” (1917), it was only in “The Call of Cthulhu” (1926) that the Cthulhu Mythos have come into genuine existence and the four subsidiary icons such as typography, occult love, gods and cosmicism that are conjoined into a coherent whole (Joshi, 2006). “A professor unearths evidence that a race of extraterrestrial entities, led by a creature called Cthulhu, came to earth from the depths of space millions of years ago, building a geometrically bizarre city called R’lyeh” (Joshi, 2006). Lovecraft’s stories up to this point had exemplified as his signature conception with all of the element of cosmicism that is evident only in a small number of tales.

‘The Shadow over Innsmouth” (1931) showed the comic to the mundane; the comic’s elements are presented under the surface to show their power. A bereft protagonist name Robert Olmstead (never named in the story but name in Lovecraft’s story notes) (Joshi, 2006), is a great great grandson of Obded Marsh and a Deep One; he soon will become one of the amphibious monsters whom miscegenation between alien fish-frogs like he witness in the decaying Massachusetts city of Innsmouth. In ‘the Innsmouth look” is a sign the tell them for something is happening in their place, something is big and profound physiological and psychological change that will come and haunt them in virtually immortal and dwell forever in their undersea cities (Joshi, 2006). Same for ‘The Colour out of Space’ when something falls into their backyard with an intense colour that is a sign for them whether they believe or not. Some of the characters in the movie believe that it is an unlucky sign, and they need to get out of there before it is too late, but some people do not believe in it. They keep staying in the house and many horrible happen; they cannot leave that area anymore. One thing in common in ‘The Shadow Over Innsmouth’ and “The Colour out of space” is that they have dwell where the alien use to hide there before they haunt and make people lose their mind.

Philosophy of comics is where the existence of two or more galaxies, alien from different galaxies and humans in the earth where we are living now accidentally meet or see extraordinary things happen like alien and they are different from us humans. That aliens come from others galaxies, and they often bring fair to human, and they are something that is unpredictable or cannot explain to the science now and hardy to believe if the sciences do not see it by themselves. Many people believe in these aliens, but many not. “The colour out of space” shows the audience something hard to understand or cannot explain in science and it is up to human whether they believe or not.

“The colour out of space” want to show audience that the aliens is exists and it is a nightmare for human. Seeing how aliens with no form like us, it is basically just a colour harm humans and turn them into a monster like two characters in Gardner family. Everything happen in the movie is a sense of dread that I think everyone who is watching the movie will feel the same fear. The movie leave an no answer questions to everyone who watches it. I feel unsure about what is actually happening and terrified of what is happening in the movie.

Reference:

Omeragić, E. (2016). A Study of Horror Elements in HP Lovecraft’s Short Stories of the Cthulhu Mythos (Doctoral dissertation, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek. Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. Department of English Language and Literature.).

Menegaldo, G. (2019). HP Lovecraft on screen, a challenge for filmmakers (allusions, transpositions, rewritings). Brumal. Revista de investigación sobre lo Fantástico, 7(1), 55-79.

Joshi, S. T. (2006). The Cthulhu Mythos. Icons of Horror and the Supernatural: An Encyclopedia of Our Worst Nightmares, 1, 97-128.

1. Reyes (2014), describes Body Horror as being a “fictional representation of the body exceeding itself or falling apart, either opening up or being altered past the point where it would be recognised by normative understandings of human corporeality.” How do The Colour out of Space and Lovecraft’s The Shadow Over Innsmouth make use of this definition to explore themes of the unknown?

The concept of body horror is closely associated with the horror genre as another way to instil a sense of fear within the viewer. Seeing that the objective of the genre is to accomplish this, it is an effective way of making the viewer feel disgusted. Body horror is a broad term however and can cover a wide variety of different ways that the body can be changed, Reyes (2014, p. 11) describes body horror as being a “fictional representation of the body exceeding itself or falling apart, either opening up or being altered past the point where it would be recognised by normative understandings of human corporeality.” This definition relates closely to the cosmic horror genre as it uses imagery and concepts that are incomprehensible to our understanding of human corporeality. Colour Out of Space (Stanley, 2020) uses Reyes’ definition of body horror to explore a key theme in cosmic horror which is the unknown.

Within the Lovecraft mythos, a way in which the unknown is depicted is the presence of extra-terrestrial beings that arrive on earth and begin to influence the world from the shadows, Joshi (2007, p. 99) states that the Lovecraft mythos “depicts the incursion of immensely powerful forces from the depths of space labelled as gods by the human beings who either combat them or seek to gain a sliver of reflected power by worshipping them.” This is where body horror can appear in cosmic horror as these beings have appearances that are incomprehensible to the human mind. Also, as their influence over the world spreads further it can begin to affect people who remain close to them, body horror can take effect when this happens. This is how Colour Out of Space depicts its extra-terrestrial being and uses themes of the unknown as neither we nor the characters in the film can understand what its motivation is, where it came from, why it is here, or what it even is. Body horror also affects the characters in various ways that further explores the themes of the unknown.

As mentioned, body horror covers a lot of different attacks on the body, Reyes (2014, p. 52) mentions that “the general understanding seems to be that, if a text generates fear from abnormal states of corporeality, or from an attack upon the body, we might find ourselves in front of an instance of body horror.” This is certainly true for Colour Out of Space as there is a clear intention to generate fear from the viewer and this fear comes from how the characters are affected. It both scares the viewer and explores the unknown as they are transformed in ways, we cannot comprehend. The most obvious example of body horror is when Theresa and Jack are fused into an amorphous blob that is incomprehensible to our minds, as it is unknown why or how they were morphed together. The same body horror happens with the Llamas and family dog. Another example of body horror is when Ezra’s body seemingly collapses in on itself, presumably because he had been granted some form of insight. In every example of body horror in Colour Out of Space, the characters are transformed beyond human recognition, and by using body horror in this way the film explores the unknown as we cannot understand why or how their bodies have been morphed. It makes the viewer fear the unknown as they cannot understand the body horror nor the being responsible for it.

References

Joshi, S. (2007). The Cthulhu Mythos.

Reyes, X. (2014). Body Gothic: Corporeal Transgression in Contemporary Literature and Horror Film. University of Wales Press.

Stanley, R. (Director). (2020). Colour Out of Space [Film]. SpectreVision.