The Philosophy of Horror : Or, Paradoxes of the Heart

For Decades, The Horror Genre Has Been A Major Popular Entertainment And Has Dominated The Publishing And Film Industries. Yet There Exists No Philosophical Examination Of The Genre - The Time For Its Aesthetic Analysis Is Ripe. Noel Carroll, Film Scholar And Philosopher, Offers The First Serious Look At The Aesthetics Of Horror. In This Book He Discusses The Nature And Narrative Structures Of The Genre, Dealing With Horror As A Transmedia Phenomenon. A Fan And Serious Student Of The Horror Genre, Carroll Brings To Bear His Comprehensive Knowledge Of Obscure And Forgotten Works, As Well As Of The Horror Masterpieces. Working From A Philosophical Perspective, He Tries To Account For How People Can Find Pleasure In Having Their Wits Scared Out Of Them. What, After All, Are Those Paradoxes Of The Heart That Make Us Want To Be Horrified? The Nature Of Horror. The Definition Of Horror ; Fantastic Biologies And The Structures Of Horrific Imagery ; Summary And Conclusion -- Metaphysics And Horror, Or Relating To Fictions. Fearing Fictions ; Character-identification? -- Plotting Horror. Some Characteristic Horror Plots ; Horror And Suspense ; The Fantastic -- Why Horror? The Paradox Of Horror ; Horror And Ideology ; Horror Today Noel Carroll. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. The nature of horror -- The definition of horror -- Fantastic biologies and the structures of horrific imagery -- Metaphysics and horror, or relating to fictions -- Fearing fictions : on the paradox thereof and its solution -- Character-identification? -- Plotting horror -- Some characteristic horror plots -- Horror and suspense -- The fantastic -- Why horror? -- The paradox of horror -- Horror and ideology -- Horror today First Published in 1990. Noel Carroll, film scholar and philosopher, offers the first serious look at the aesthetics of horror. In this book he discusses the nature and narrative structures of the genre, dealing with horror as a "transmedia" phenomenon. How can we be genuinely frightened of vampires, though we know they don't exist? How is it that people find pleasure in being scared out of their wits? Carroll presents the first philosophical and aesthetic analysis of horror.