Supernatural Horror in Literature H P Lovecraft 9781232461319 Books
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Supernatural Horror in Literature H P Lovecraft 9781232461319 Books
HP Lovecraft was a serious student of the work done within his chosen genre, and this book is evidence. Though written long, long ago, and discussing some works that are long (and undeservedly)-forgotten, the tenets that the Old Gent sets forth in this treatise still hold true to this day. Anyone seeking to work within the horror genre MUST have it. Those who wish to further their understanding of that genre, or of the Cthulhu Mythos specifically, SHOULD have it. The book itself is well-written in HPLs inimitable florid style, slim, and easily digestible, with the chapters clearly marked off so that you can take your time chewing on the concepts discussed therein.Product details
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Supernatural Horror in Literature H P Lovecraft 9781232461319 Books Reviews
The reader who wants to know what atmosphere to expect from old tales like the Book of Enoch, which might be in some Bible if you find it online, could start at the beginning of Lovecraft's guide to scaring readers. I started by finding Lord Dunsany in the index, because I like to find a strange world of fantastic beauty, pledged to eternal warfare against the coarseness and ugliness of diurnal reality.
My original copy had a long introduction by a literary critic whose name escapes me. One of his primary points was that this is a review of horror in literature by one of the 20th century’s greatest writers of the genre. He also pointed out that Lovecraft had written it as a favor for a friend, for free! Finally, he pointed out that Lovecraft had the gift of summarizing other writers’ works while conveying what makes the story work-Lovecraft’s summaries convey the sense of fear that the writers conveyed. If nothing else, this is a brilliant reading list for anyone interested in following the development of the supernatural element in European literature. To be sure, Lovecraft’s innate racism, unfortunately common in his time, causes him to largely ignore writings from other cultures. However, given the circumstances of the work, that limitation probably prevents the subject from becoming impossible to handle. This work is a must for any student of European fiction and a real gift for the student of literary criticism. And it is also a fantastic resource for anyone who wants to know what is available out there. This work lead me to MR James, Algernon Blackwood, Arthur Machen...Thanks, Lovecraft! Without you I would have never known about some supremely gifted writers.
Considered to be Lovecraft's longest & only stand-alone 'book'; Supernatural Horror in Literature is roughly 106pgs. Though Lovecraft is a deft writer & outlines aspects often overlooked, this is not like his other writings in that it is not inspirational. I'm sure there are more definitive & authoritative works on the subject however, this little book is a must-have for any true Lovecraft fan, just to see him write something other than his 'Weird-Fiction' & delineate some of his important literary influences.
I first read Howard Phillips Lovecraft's _Supernatural Horror in Literature_ (1945) when I was in high school. But in truth, I was only familiar with a few of the authors that Lovecraft discussed. There was Poe, of course, to whom Lovecraft devotes an entire chapter. And I had read a few stories by Clark Ashton Smith, Lord Dunsany, William Hope Hodgson, and Nathaniel Hawthorne. But the majority of the names, novels, and stories were unfamiliar to me.
On rereading the Dover reprint of Lovecraft's essay, now that I have read most of the stories and novels that he discusses, I am impressed with how sharp Lovecraft's critical judgement remains over time. He perhaps underestimates Henry James a bit, but his evaluation of James as a writer of ghost stories is sound. And he was probably one of the first critics to call attention to Charlotte Perkins Gilmans' "The Yellow Wallpaper" ( though, of course, he does not give it a feminist interpretation). Lovecraft interprets Guy de Maupassant's "The Horla" as a tale about a supernatural monster that could be "the vanguard of a horde of extra-terrestrial organisms" (49) ready to invade Earth. The story _could_ be read this way. Or it could be read as the story of a madman's delusions.
There are three chapters on the development of the Gothic novel. Lovecraft's discussions of Horace Walpole, Ann Radcliff, Matthew Lewis, Charles Maturin, William Godwin, Mary Shelley, and William Ainsworth are all still dead on target and relevant today. He disapproves of Robert Louis Stevenson's "tendency toward jaunty mannerisms" (43), but he approves of "The Body Snatcher" and _Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde_.
The chapter on Poe is very fine-- an excellent reminder (in spite of modern critical snobbery) why we should still value Poe and why supernatural literature owes a great debt to him. There is also a discussion of the _Undine_ (1814) myth from continental Europe (in this case, Germany). I had once read the opening portions of a French play about this myth in high school. It was about the love between a water nymph and a young knight. We were told that the story ended tragically. But we were not told any details. It was not until I reread Lovecraft that I learned the full story.
The final chapter, on Modern Masters, is also useful as long as you keep in mind that they are what we would now call Old Masters Arthur Machen, Algernon Blackwood, Lord Dunsany, and M.R. James.
Some readers have claimed to find evidences of Lovecraft's racism and anti-semitism in the text of this essay. Lovecraft was not without his prejudices, but I sometimes wonder if we don't read too much into the text. I can find little in this essay that smacks of offensive racial or ethnic bias or stereotyping. I _had_ expected to find Lovecraft's argument that materialists make better writers of the supernatural than True Believers. But that wasnt there, either.
_Supernatural Horror in Literature_ was first published in the 1927 issue of _The Recluse_, a fan magazine edited by Lovecraft's friend, W. Paul Cook. It went through several revisions in the 1930s, and was serialized in _The Fantasy Fan_ in the early 30s-- but the magazine folded before the serial was complete. The first full-length publication of the revised essay was in _The Outsider and Others_ in 1939-- two years after Lovecraft's death. The first separate book edition was in 1945. The Dover edition follows the 1945 version.
HP Lovecraft was a serious student of the work done within his chosen genre, and this book is evidence. Though written long, long ago, and discussing some works that are long (and undeservedly)-forgotten, the tenets that the Old Gent sets forth in this treatise still hold true to this day. Anyone seeking to work within the horror genre MUST have it. Those who wish to further their understanding of that genre, or of the Cthulhu Mythos specifically, SHOULD have it. The book itself is well-written in HPLs inimitable florid style, slim, and easily digestible, with the chapters clearly marked off so that you can take your time chewing on the concepts discussed therein.
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