YouTube user Michael Stevens has been making videos in response to questions asked by his audience. While many of the questions he gets sound ridiculous at first, he finds a fun and educational answer for the questions he finds interesting. The above was his response to the question "Why are things creepy?"Via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEikGKDVsCc | Clarkson Assistant Film Professor Brian Hauser made a class devoted to the genre. Have you ever read a story that just wasn't right? Like, thinking about it before going to bed will make you turn on a light and text your mom to make sure all of your family members are okay? And it's not necessarily a feeling of terror. The feeling that this story produces is something closer to confusion or uneasiness. Or maybe this story produces a sensation of the unknown which I for one get uncomfortable feeling. That is what gets us in the end. And authors like H.P Lovecraft and Edgar Allan Poe produced this exact feeling in their readers. We define this feeling as cognitive dissonance and an entire genre named Weird Fiction was created for those stories which weren't quite horror and weren't quite science fiction. They were just so creepy. |
I bring this up because Clarkson Assistant Film Professor Brian Hauser made a class devoted to the genre. LIT229, "American Weird Fiction", has been taught by Dr. Hauser every Fall semester since 2013. I was in the first semester of the class. I had plans to transfer out of Clarkson at the time and thought that it would be good to enter a liberal arts college with a Literature class in my arsenal. Two things happened since that decision. First, I obviously stayed at Clarkson. Second, I fell in love with this genre because of Dr. Hauser's class. I was freaking ecstatic about Weird Fiction and everything it had to offer my thirst for new literary styles. Not to say that this was the primary factor in me staying at Clarkson; there were a lot of opportunities in future studies that kept me here. But Weird Fiction was so intriguing to me. And apparently it showed since some of my essays in the class were the pieces that won me the Ilse B. Shaw Award last year. The award was given to a Humanities & Social Science Sophomore who exhibited award-winning qualities (whatever those may be) in their writing and in his or her academics. And of course I attribute this to the inspiration I found in Weird Fiction.
According to Dr. Hauser, this type of speculative fiction has existed for over a century. H.P. Lovecraft is considered one of the major pioneers in the genre and began publishing in the early 1900's. The Weird can even be found in earlier writing such as Edgar Allan Poe's use of cognitive dissonance. The popularity of this genre faded in lieu of more conventional literature. However, there has been a recent increase in the presence of The Weird, or as Weird Fiction fans call it, "The New Weird". Dr. Hauser attributes this to the richness of the genre. He always wanted to create a class enriched by a body of literature such as The Weird. And after Clarkson approved Dr. Hauser's plans for the class, "American Weird Fiction" became a reality.
According to Dr. Hauser, this type of speculative fiction has existed for over a century. H.P. Lovecraft is considered one of the major pioneers in the genre and began publishing in the early 1900's. The Weird can even be found in earlier writing such as Edgar Allan Poe's use of cognitive dissonance. The popularity of this genre faded in lieu of more conventional literature. However, there has been a recent increase in the presence of The Weird, or as Weird Fiction fans call it, "The New Weird". Dr. Hauser attributes this to the richness of the genre. He always wanted to create a class enriched by a body of literature such as The Weird. And after Clarkson approved Dr. Hauser's plans for the class, "American Weird Fiction" became a reality.
The class was centered around a couple texts and films that Dr. Hauser felt illustrated The Weird. He used The Weird - a compendium of Weird Fiction stories edited by Jeff and Ann VanderMeer - as well as H.P. Lovecraft's At the Mountains of Madness for the class's written sources. For film, Dr. Hauser harnessed The Weird by showing The Thing and Lost Highway. The former was based on the novella by John W. Campbell titled Who Goes There? influenced by At the Mountains of Madness. Dr. Hauser believes that all literature - and for that matter, all art - has a creator that determines the mood of the experience. He chose these art pieces because of their superb use of The Weird. During my tenure in the class, I was thoroughly disturbed by a select couple of short stories in The Weird compendium. Take for example Bloodchild (1984) by Octavia Butler; it describes an undefined period in human history, potentially on a different planet, in which humans are used as live incubators for a race of centipede-looking aliens. And while this sounds like forced surrogate birth, the humans hosting these parasites have a close relationship with their alien egg donor. The dissonance found in this short story presents itself when the narrator begins questioning his relationship with the alien planning to inseminate him. While his brother presents an alternative to this life as a host (running away), he ends up staying in order to protect his sister from the same fate. | Find The Weird on Amazon |
The Weird that disturbed me also evoked such a feeling in my fellow classmates and subsequent Weird Fiction analysts. But like me, most of them loved it. Talking with Moira Becker, senior Physics major and current student in "American Weird Fiction", the genre intrigued her after finding the class in the offered Literature classes and doing a bit of research. There was a definite passion that Becker picked up from the professor. Most of her classes are lecture-based, so she found the discussion-based dynamic of the class compelling. Being the class she most comfortably and actively participates in, Becker doesn't feel like she has to take notes since the discussion is so memorable. She also doesn't get a chance to write anything down since the conversation keeps her so occupied.
According to Becker, the class helped her both examine her favorite authors and her view of Literature. As a new member of The Weird cult, she enjoys Lovecraft's writing as well as the controversy the subject matter brings up. By controversy, Becker meant the lack of closure and comfort you can find in most stories; however, this is what distinguished Lovecraft from other writers and what created a niche genre for The Weird. Becker also actively follows the work and activism of author Neil Gaiman (featured story in the compendium titled "Feeders and Eaters"). She reviewed his tale in the compendium for a literary analysis paper. And unlike many other (and this is me using this term, not Moira) hoity-toity authors, Becker finds his down-to-earth attitude accessible compared to a lot of other literature. And, in the spirit of such brilliant authors, Moira Becker says that the best part about the stories that they read are the questions that outnumber the answers. If that isn't dissonance, I don't know what is.
According to Becker, the class helped her both examine her favorite authors and her view of Literature. As a new member of The Weird cult, she enjoys Lovecraft's writing as well as the controversy the subject matter brings up. By controversy, Becker meant the lack of closure and comfort you can find in most stories; however, this is what distinguished Lovecraft from other writers and what created a niche genre for The Weird. Becker also actively follows the work and activism of author Neil Gaiman (featured story in the compendium titled "Feeders and Eaters"). She reviewed his tale in the compendium for a literary analysis paper. And unlike many other (and this is me using this term, not Moira) hoity-toity authors, Becker finds his down-to-earth attitude accessible compared to a lot of other literature. And, in the spirit of such brilliant authors, Moira Becker says that the best part about the stories that they read are the questions that outnumber the answers. If that isn't dissonance, I don't know what is.
"The things that keep coming back are the things I'm interested in." - Dr. Brian Hauser | Since I was in the class, Dr. Hauser has changed a couple of things. He added Sauna (just a warning, that trailer is graphic) to the in-class movies and took out Lost Highway. Dr. Hauser didn't just bring in new movies, but also the potential for Weird authors to come in to talk with the class as well as new texts. This seemed like a priority to Dr. Hauser because of the recent rise in "The New Weird". Just recently, the editor of The Weird Jeff VanderMeer created a trilogy called Southern Reach, adding to The Weird genre, specifically "The New Weird". This and more are reasons why Dr. Hauser is excited to teach this class. The Weird is rising up and going places in today's culture. |
While Sauna could be classified as a horror film, its presence in Dr. Hauser's class implies a level of cognitive dissonance that is a requirement in The Weird. According to Dr. Hauser, the quality of Weird Fiction is what brought about this "New Weird". Cultures bring back old concepts when a said concept is still attractive to the participants of the culture. Take for example the three waves of Feminism that most historians identify when discussing the development of modern Feminism. It was a feeling of necessity for feminist theory that created a counter-culture that broke away from the masses multiple times in history. While Weird Fiction is yet again popular in literature, it is popular because it is of great quality.
Dr. Hauser finds recurring cultural phenomena the most interesting because there is always a reason that we keep coming back to them. And Weird Fiction is back yet again because it has a readership and an impressive portfolio of Weird stories. But why is Weird Fiction so attractive to Dr. Hauser, Moira Becker, and I? As explained by the video at the beginning of this blog post, we have instincts that make the unknown (i.e. ambiguity or cognitive dissonance) terrifically confusing to our bodies. Should we be scared? Or should we just play along until we see how it ends? What if it doesn't end? This sort of dissonance creeps out most if not all people. But for those who are part of The Weird cult, there is something exciting - dare I say terrific - about being creeped out. And now we can all go to bed tonight knowing that there may in fact be someone outside our window. Or maybe there isn't. Those of us who read Weird Fiction look forward to finding out.
The Social Scientific Method will be updated once a week with posts involving the happenings on campus, in the HSS department, and my experience as a student. Please comment, share, and enjoy for many weeks to come!
"Why are things Creepy?" video by VSauce:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEikGKDVsCc
Info on H.P. Lovecraft:
http://www.hplovecraft.com/
Edgar Allan Poe's role in The Weird:
http://www.eapoe.org/papers/psblctrs/pl20121.htm
The Weird on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Weird-Compendium-Strange-Stories/dp/0765333627
At the Mountains of Madness on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/At-Mountains-Madness-H-Lovecraft/dp/1495227553/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1416881606&sr=1-1&keywords=at+the+mountains+of+madness
Trailer for The Thing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ftmr17M-a4
Trailer for Lost Highway:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvGvjnqSKF8
Info on Who Goes There by John W. Campbell:
http://thing.popapostle.com/html/episodes/Who-Goes-There.htm
Info on "Bloodchild" by Octavia Butler:
http://www.encyclopedia.com/article-1G2-2695300013/bloodchild.html
Neil Gaiman's role in The Weird:
http://weirdfictionreview.com/2011/11/exclusive-interview-neil-gaiman-on-the-weird/
Info on "Feeders and Eaters" by Neil Gaiman:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/05/books/review/Itzkoff.t.html?pagewanted=print
Trailer for Sauna:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=si8IqpZc8Fo
Info on Southern Reach trilogy by Jeff VanderMeer:
http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/books/2014/09/jeff_vandermeer_s_southern_reach_trilogy_acceptance_annihilation_and_authority.html
Info in Three Waves of Feminism:
http://womenshistory.answers.com/feminism/what-are-the-three-waves-of-feminism
Note that any writing or opinions on this blog do not reflect the views of the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences or Clarkson University.
Dr. Hauser finds recurring cultural phenomena the most interesting because there is always a reason that we keep coming back to them. And Weird Fiction is back yet again because it has a readership and an impressive portfolio of Weird stories. But why is Weird Fiction so attractive to Dr. Hauser, Moira Becker, and I? As explained by the video at the beginning of this blog post, we have instincts that make the unknown (i.e. ambiguity or cognitive dissonance) terrifically confusing to our bodies. Should we be scared? Or should we just play along until we see how it ends? What if it doesn't end? This sort of dissonance creeps out most if not all people. But for those who are part of The Weird cult, there is something exciting - dare I say terrific - about being creeped out. And now we can all go to bed tonight knowing that there may in fact be someone outside our window. Or maybe there isn't. Those of us who read Weird Fiction look forward to finding out.
The Social Scientific Method will be updated once a week with posts involving the happenings on campus, in the HSS department, and my experience as a student. Please comment, share, and enjoy for many weeks to come!
"Why are things Creepy?" video by VSauce:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEikGKDVsCc
Info on H.P. Lovecraft:
http://www.hplovecraft.com/
Edgar Allan Poe's role in The Weird:
http://www.eapoe.org/papers/psblctrs/pl20121.htm
The Weird on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Weird-Compendium-Strange-Stories/dp/0765333627
At the Mountains of Madness on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/At-Mountains-Madness-H-Lovecraft/dp/1495227553/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1416881606&sr=1-1&keywords=at+the+mountains+of+madness
Trailer for The Thing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ftmr17M-a4
Trailer for Lost Highway:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvGvjnqSKF8
Info on Who Goes There by John W. Campbell:
http://thing.popapostle.com/html/episodes/Who-Goes-There.htm
Info on "Bloodchild" by Octavia Butler:
http://www.encyclopedia.com/article-1G2-2695300013/bloodchild.html
Neil Gaiman's role in The Weird:
http://weirdfictionreview.com/2011/11/exclusive-interview-neil-gaiman-on-the-weird/
Info on "Feeders and Eaters" by Neil Gaiman:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/05/books/review/Itzkoff.t.html?pagewanted=print
Trailer for Sauna:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=si8IqpZc8Fo
Info on Southern Reach trilogy by Jeff VanderMeer:
http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/books/2014/09/jeff_vandermeer_s_southern_reach_trilogy_acceptance_annihilation_and_authority.html
Info in Three Waves of Feminism:
http://womenshistory.answers.com/feminism/what-are-the-three-waves-of-feminism
Note that any writing or opinions on this blog do not reflect the views of the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences or Clarkson University.