Analyse af Stephen Kings 'Why We Crave Horror Movies'

Non-fiction essay: Stephen Kings Why We Crave Horror Movies (1982)

The article Why We Crave Horror Movies (1982) is written by the famous author Stephen King. Stephen King has numerous theories as to why people crave horror movies. For some it generates perspective on people’s own lives, reassuring that although you might feel sorry for yourself, it compares nowhere nearly to those lives of the victims in the movies. For some it takes away the shades of grey and allows people to become children again, seeing things purely in black and white. Stephen King drags parallels between the “sick” joke and the horror movie, saying that both let the vilest instincts free, even if it is just for a second. And for what? Because it keeps those instincts from getting out.

The article Why We Crave Horror Movies (1982) written by the famous author Stephen King deals with Stephen Kings own theories about people’s obsession with horror movies. In the essay Stephen King presents 5 different beliefs as to why people crave horror movies, ranging from simple to very complex theories, the first and most simple being daring the nightmare. Here he compares horror movies to roller coasters, with the motivation being: “To show that we can, that we are not afraid, that we can ride this roller coaster” (p. 1, l. 13-14). Another theory that is presented is: “We also go to re-establish our feelings of essential normality” (p. 1, l. 21). Stephen King believes that the fate of the main characters in the horror movies creates a I’m-happy-that-wasn’t-me-felling. The third theory is: “we go to have fun.” (p.1, l. 26). Stephen King discusses the view of the horror movie as the modern version of the public lynching. The fourth theory is: “horror movies provide psychic relief on this level because this invitation to lapse into simplicity […] is extended so rarely” (p. 1, l. 35-37). Stephen Kings believes that the horror movie offers variation to everyday life’s complexity, saying that when watching horror movies, we become children again. The final and most central theory of the article is connected to theory no. 3 and is the belief of the horror movies as being exercise for the Id (Freud’s model of the personality): “anticivilization emotions don’t go away, and they demand periodic exercise.” (p. 2, l. 66) and “Why bother? Because it keeps them from getting out” (p. 2, l. 84). Stephen King shares Freud’s view of the personality as being split into the Superego (Our conscience, the morals taught by society) and the Id (The selfish needs), with the Ego balancing it all out. The main argument presented by Freuds model of the personality is, that if the Id has been repressed, it will come to light as evil or uncanny elements, and this is why, as Stephen King argues, it needs “periodic exercise”. This view of the human personality being split into the Superego and the Id, is also why Stephen King begins the essay with quite the extraordinary sentence. “I think that we’re all mentally ill” (p. 1, l. 3).