Roland Finger (Cuesta College)
rola@****.com (Log-in to reveal)

Dark times call for dark and demonic stories. Deep and dark works and our fixation on them provide apocalyptic, devastating, and shocking revelations about individuals, society, and nature. While works of horror tear audiences away from realistic norms and social acceptability, they confront us with extreme embodiment, emotion, and intellectual crisis. Norms of decency, sensitivity, and reason are in decline but simultaneously acquire added value. This session investigates the meaning and importance of horror, terror, and monstrosity through the study of film, graphic fiction, and literature. What do these works demand from us?

These are frightening times: parasites, invasions, and climate crisis threaten humanity; political assassinations, antagonistic nationalisms, and mass shootings blast our attention; xenophobia, racism, and sexism mutate into new forms; authoritarianism, cover ups, and cyber assaults imperil democracy. The future seems to be in the balance, if it has not already tipped and gone. Power attempts to cripple resistance, critical thought, and even hope. How do narratives address the disruptions and shocks to our sensibilities, values, and equilibrium?

Dark times call for dark and demonic stories. Films, graphic novels, and fiction provide compelling ways to examine the horrors, terrors, and monstrosities in our world. Deep and dark works and our fixation on them provide apocalyptic, devastating, and shocking revelations about individuals, society, and nature. While works of horror tear audiences away from realistic norms and social acceptability, they confront us with extreme embodiment, emotion, and intellectual crisis. Chilling whispers and screams beg to be heard even if we are conditioned not to hear them. Norms of decency, sensitivity, and reason are in decline but simultaneously acquire added value. Monstrosity is not just a grisly spectacle but is a message demanding our attention. This session investigates the meaning and importance of horror, terror, and monstrosity through the study of film, graphic fiction, and literature. What do these works demand from us?