The part that really got me thinking was the comparison to Joseph Campbell’s monomyth. I am a great fan of the man’s work, and the idea of Lovecraft as an inversion of that is intriguing. It makes me wonder if a good horror plot might be the opposite of a good adventure plot. It makes me want to go back and study the hero’s journey, deciding what the reverse of all the stages would be. It also makes me want to pay more attention to that aspect the next time I read Lovecraft. ::goes to find JC book::
Exposed to information about the hardships and causes from their own and other nations, global issues press in. It can be so overwhelming that we, like Lovecraft, find ourselves dwarfed by the vastness of the world around us, and the daunting impossibility of imposing any meaningful changes upon it. And, like Lovecraft, often we shield ourselves, armored within comfortable worlds of our own making.
Wonderful point, and very well stated. I hadn’t thought of the parallels before.
Yet these obstacles can be more comfortably approached through the palliative effects of humor. In a strange way, Lovecraft served as a prophet for the kind of nihilism and isolation that has become a societal norm in the twenty-first century, and current generations are courted by a looming sense of hopelessness which shares its origins with the despair that instilled itself in Lovecraft during the Depression. And, like Lovecraft, ours is the choice between giving in to apathy and resignation in the face of things larger than ourselves, or striking out against them in creative revolt, even if we're just whistling in the dark.
::Applause:: That was outstanding. I love and totally agree with your point about using humor to get us through this overwhelming world we live in. Putting Lovecraft as prophet made me remember what you revealed earlier about his life. His physical isolation combined with active correspondence. That does sound like many people’s lives today, isolated from friends and family, finding comfort and connection on the internet. This was a wonderful read that got me thinking of all kinds of things. Thanks for posting this! I so hope you’ll post it to Terror.
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The part that really got me thinking was the comparison to Joseph Campbell’s monomyth. I am a great fan of the man’s work, and the idea of Lovecraft as an inversion of that is intriguing. It makes me wonder if a good horror plot might be the opposite of a good adventure plot. It makes me want to go back and study the hero’s journey, deciding what the reverse of all the stages would be. It also makes me want to pay more attention to that aspect the next time I read Lovecraft. ::goes to find JC book::
Exposed to information about the hardships and causes from their own and other nations, global issues press in. It can be so overwhelming that we, like Lovecraft, find ourselves dwarfed by the vastness of the world around us, and the daunting impossibility of imposing any meaningful changes upon it. And, like Lovecraft, often we shield ourselves, armored within comfortable worlds of our own making.
Wonderful point, and very well stated. I hadn’t thought of the parallels before.
Yet these obstacles can be more comfortably approached through the palliative effects of humor. In a strange way, Lovecraft served as a prophet for the kind of nihilism and isolation that has become a societal norm in the twenty-first century, and current generations are courted by a looming sense of hopelessness which shares its origins with the despair that instilled itself in Lovecraft during the Depression. And, like Lovecraft, ours is the choice between giving in to apathy and resignation in the face of things larger than ourselves, or striking out against them in creative revolt, even if we're just whistling in the dark.
::Applause:: That was outstanding. I love and totally agree with your point about using humor to get us through this overwhelming world we live in. Putting Lovecraft as prophet made me remember what you revealed earlier about his life. His physical isolation combined with active correspondence. That does sound like many people’s lives today, isolated from friends and family, finding comfort and connection on the internet. This was a wonderful read that got me thinking of all kinds of things. Thanks for posting this! I so hope you’ll post it to Terror.