Phillips explores the reasons why various horror stories created for television have remained popular for centuries, and why they were necessary. According to text in the book, fear is part and parcel of our being; it is embedded in our culture. Therefore, the depiction of that impulse, albeit exaggerated presented a way to explore it neatly. That element, coupled with the aspect of adrenaline that arises from suspense about what happens next, laid down an unusual opportunity that evolved to indulge other issues such as superstitions. The films do not “create fear but rather, resonate collectively to the wider society” (Phillips, 2005). All things are linked together, as Kendall illustrates in the book considering the historical occurrences at the point at which the films were created. For example, the horror of witnessing or having experienced the civil war spurred belief in spirituality and illusions. He cites "Whatever resonance may develop between broad cultural anxieties, and a particular filmic monster will be inflected through the specific rhetorical style of a given filmmaker" (Phillips, 2018). The technological advancements at the time, e.g., the hydrogen bomb have a lot to do with the evolution of cinematography. It is because individuals harbor fear over things that are beyond their understanding and that's technology in layman terms. He explores the rhetoric sides by picking apart the devices and styles appropriated to a particular film to portray its message. Often, there is a “thin line between reality and the world of illusion in which our various repressed desires reemerge as phantoms and dreams” (Phillips 2005) and these films aim to trigger a response to what is going on in society.
Rather than assigning the origin of horror popularity to “our love of fear” (King, 2013), I believe that it rests extensively on our curious nature. It is essentially, a way to fill a void- in a manner of speaking. We have learned of the existence of pure and evil forces as ‘just how the world works’ to maintain a balance of things. True, the situations we experience and especially to do with technological evolution have been directing factors towards the popularity rise. They resonate with us, as Philip says though I believe it is out of wondering ‘so what happens next’ instead of just alluding it to “fears we possess, e.g., fear of death” (King, 2013). In addition to using experiences as a guiding factor, I think that the polarity is as a result of the fictional nature of the films. The knowledge that it is not a true account gives power to those watching it, and the effect is always awe and more question of ‘what if?' The reaction is very different when watching documentary films of dictatorial leadership- because there is the knowledge that it happened. I’m in agreement that the films “portray responses, emotional or otherwise” (King, 2013) of the society at that particular time to incidents that occurred. The author should have considered that the films may also be interpreted as a foreboding of delicate times to come such as the war between nations, pestilence especially with considerable advancements in biological weaponry. Therefore, they are cautionary mechanisms to keep governments in check against such calamity.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Kendall is curious as to why the place of horror is essential in society and is mesmerized at how people are receptive of it. He delves to find out the reasons that it is so and why horror films continue to be consumed increasingly. The book is reflective of where we come from as a society and that we have built up these greater evils to cope with the ones we face.
References
King, C. S. (2013). Dark Directions: Romero, Craven, Carpenter, and the Modern Horror Film by Kendall R. Phillips (review). Rhetoric & Public Affairs 16(4), 798-801. Michigan State University Press. Retrieved February 4, 2019, from Project MUSE database.
Phillips, K. R. (2005). Projected Fears: Horror films and American culture . ABC-CLIO.
Phillips, K. R. (2018). A Place of Darkness: The Rhetoric of Horror in Early American Cinema . University of Texas Press.
