Imaginaires effrayants Cours

Scary stories have existed since the beginning of storytelling, starting with myths, Greek myths in particular, and fairy tales. They were first told orally, and then written in different forms.

Scary stories (or horror stories) have always existed in storytelling. They were first popular in what we call "folk literature" which refers to the oral tradition of people who didn't have written language. Folk literature is transmitted orally, by people telling stories to others. It consists of prose and verse narratives: poems, songs, myths, proverbs, etc. Literature was oral until 4000 BC, before writing was invented and developed in Egypt and Mesopotamia. Oral stories were then written down and transmitted to future generations.

Horror stories were mostly popular in myths and fairy tales. Those two narrative structure were used to explain social or natural phenomenons, especially focusing on foundational tales, which were origin stories, meant to answer questions about where we came from and why.

Fairy tales usually feature supernatural entities: ghosts, fairies, dragons, talking animals or objects, witches, curses, and magic in general. They also incorporate psychological horror: murder, suspense, imprisonment, and so on.

The most famous fairy tale writers are the Brothers Grimm and Charles Perrault. Among their works, we can find Sleeping Beauty, Little Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, Bluebeard or Snow White. You might have seen fairy tales as animated movies, since they have been used and retold by Disney, which shows us that they are still relevant today. However, the originals were more violent than the movies, which were sanitized to appeal to bigger audiences.

English	French
Myth	Mythe
Fairy tale	Conte de fées
Scary, Horror	Effrayant, horrifique
Folk littérature	Littérature populaire
Oral tradition	Tradition orale
To transmit	Transmettre
To explain	Expliquer
Natural phenomenon	Phénomène naturel
Plot	Intrigue
Supernatural	Supernaturel
God	Dieu
Murder	Meurtre
Betrayal	Trahison
Entity	Entité

Gothic literature is a specific type of fiction. It is characterized by its medieval settings (castles or monasteries for instance), and its atmosphere of mystery and horror. It builds on the themes of melancholy, sadness and eeriness common theme in Romantic literature. The movement dates back to the 18th century, but a lot of writers have used it as an inspiration and written in a Gothic style since then. 

The style is called Gothic because of its specific settings, which are reminiscent of the Gothic style of architecture from the Middle Ages. In fact, buildings and architecture are very important in that literature. The stories usually take place in old houses, castles, or monasteries, whether it be in small towns with cobblestone streets or in the countryside. 

The first Gothic novel is considered to be Horace Walpole's Castle of Otranto (1795). It takes place in the Middle Ages, between the 11th and 12th century, and the themes present in the novel have remained staples of the genre. The novel deals with Manfred, a prince whose son disappears before his marriage. However, the marriage was meant to counter an ancient curse. Manfred is haunted by ghosts and driven crazy. The supernatural elements in this book were inspired by medieval novels but Walpole added realistic elements, which led to the creation of the Gothic genre, a new genre of fantasy which was grounded in reality, making it more plausible and therefore scarier. Walpole himself lived in a Gothic mansion, and claimed to see ghosts in this house.

In the Gothic genre, the themes are similar to those of current horror stories, although there is almost always a supernatural element. The plot devices and character types used by Walpole became common in Gothic literature: hidden identities and strangers, medieval castles and houses, secret passageways, supernatural forces, and damsels in distress.

The masters of Gothic literature are considered to be Shelley, Stoker, and Poe. There are three major Gothic works written by them: 

• Mary Shelley's Frankenstein;
• Bram Stoker's Dracula;
• Edgar Allan Poe's The Fall of the house of Usher.

English	French
Gothic	Gothique
Cobblestone	Pavé
Staples of the genre	Les essentiels/les basiques du genre
To counter	Contrer
To haunt	Hanter
Crazy	Fou
Medieval novel	Roman médiéval
Fantasy	Fantastique, imaginaire
Realistic	Réaliste
Grounded	Basé sur, fondé sur
Stranger	Étranger

Nowadays, scary stories are omnipresent. They can be found in various genres and various media. A new genre has emerged: science fiction. A lot of authors are inspired by the Gothic genre and horror stories. The most famous one is Stephen King. Some of them make pastiches of scary stories, that we can be in a wide variety of formats.

Some themes have evolved to reflect the new challenges of our civilization. The emergence of science fiction coincides with the technological progress made since the 19th century. Science fiction explores the consequences of innovations, which can be scientific or technological. It has become a literary form since the end of the 18th century. In fact, Edgar Allan Poe wrote a short story in 1835 which dealt with a trip to the moon. Jules Verne helped the genre gain popularity at the end of the 19th century, thanks to the scientific accuracy of his novels. This popularity developed into the 20th century. The most famous science fiction author of the 19th century is considered to be H.G. Wells. He wrote The War of the Worlds and The Invisible Man. 

However, the Golden Age of science fiction came later, in the middle of the 20th century, with authors such as Isaac Asimov, Ray Bradbury, and Philip K. Dick, who explored new themes. They introduced the "space opera" subgenre. The genre became more focused on space and computer sciences. The genre reflected on the ways new technologies were affecting our lives and our social interactions, and the effects they could have on people. It even had indirect effects on leaders in those industries, who started a reflection on the consequences of their actions.

On the other hand, there has also been a strong continuity between the Gothic period and modern scary stories. Even in the 21st century, the most popular stories have ancient roots.

In fact, a lot of contemporary horror writers are aware of their influences and reference previous works in theirs as an homage. Some of them make pastiches: a pastiche is a work of art that imitates another work of art.

So, horror is still a very relevant genre in our society. One of the most famous horror writers of the contemporary era is Stephen King. He has written around 60 books and 200 short stories. There have been dozens of adaptations of his works as movies and as tv shows. Stephen King represents the blended nature of horror genres. His influences are a mix of science fiction and Gothic influences. He credits science fiction writers Richard Matheson (I am Legend) and Philip K. Dick (Blade Runner) as his biggest influences. He also uses Gothic themes frequently.

English	French
Drama	Pièce de théâtre
Cop	Policier
Regular	Normal
Citizen	Citoyen
Pet	Animal domestique
Comic	Bande-dessinée
To evolve	Évoluer
To gain	Gagner
Subgenre	Sous-genre
Roots	Racines
Blended	Mélangé

Scary movies scare us with plot devices, but also by building an atmosphere that makes us uneasy. A lot of devices are used to convey an atmosphere of horror. They usually have to do with things that affect our senses, and especially our senses of sight, hearing, touch and smell. The settings in those stories are also meant to be frightening.

In scary stories, there are a lot of monsters. There have been common figures in scary stories throughout literary and cinematic history. We will separate them into two categories: 

• the supernatural monsters who represent unknown or unknowable things: death, disease, the potential violence of others (ghosts, vampires, zombies and werewolves);
• the real life monsters, that is to say the monsters we could encounter in everyday life.

Scary stories help making sense of what we cannot control or understand: our fears. They help us understand extreme societal issues like madness, power abuse, social faults or excesses. 

Watching horror movies is a way of controlling our fears. In horror movies we can watch from a distance as fictional people and experience the fears we have, but we can turn off the TV, close the book, or leave the movie theater. The monsters are contained within the work of fiction, and therefore, we control them. They are also a mirror of our own behaviors and fears. They enable us to understand better society. They explain various social and societal issues through allegorical figures.

Madness and mental illness are scary because they make us lose control of our faculties and change our behavior. We literally lose our mind. In scary stories, through the characters, we can explore the meaning of mental illness without going through it ourselves, and understanding something makes it less scary.

Political extremism and abuse of power are also often criticized in scary stories. They show us counter-examples of behavior, so we know the dangers of certain actions.

Social faults are also explored in scary stories: they show us the consequences of our actions.

The excesses of technology have also become a common theme in science fiction and horror. A lot of works explore the unanticipated consequences of new technologies. This theme became popular after World War II and the use of the nuclear bomb: scientists became aware that there was also a moral aspect to their work and that just because they could create or invent something, it did not mean they should, because it could hurt others.

Finally, as we have explained with the description of the common characters in scary stories, death and disease are the most common fears explored. They are the ultimate unknown: we have no control over them and we cannot prevent them.

English	French
Fear of the dark	La peur du noir
Fear of death	La peur de la mort
Vampire	Vampire
To spread	Se répandre, se propager
Contagion	Contagion
Religious	Religieux
Zombies	Zombies
To control one's fear	Contrôler ses peurs
Madness	Folie
Extremism	Extrémisme
Abuse of power	Abus de pouvoir
To warn	Prévenir
Dystopia	Dystopie (voir cours « Utopies et dystopies »)
Fault	Défaut
Excess	Excès
Disease	Maladie

Finally, scary stories are used to propagate normative views of behavior. What is scary in those stories should be avoided in real life. In that way, they propagate stereotypes. It is particularly the case with women who are often punished when they are independent in scary stories.

Scary stories are also used to regulate behavior. In his book about the psychology of fairy tales, Bruno Bettelheim explains that stories are meant to teach children how to act. First of all, Bettelheim explained that fairy tales were meant for children, and he had the theory that some of them served as sex education.

Nowadays, scary stories can also have moral or behavioral meanings.

However, since it is used to dictate behavior, if it is not handled well, it can lead to sexism and racism being perpetuated through metaphors. Women are often punished for being independent in scary stories. As Mona Chollet explains, the figure of the witch is actually used to demonize women who are free-thinking and behave the way they want. In a lot of horror movies, independent women who have sex and often some of the first ones to be killed. This has actually become such a cliché that modern horror movies have referenced it.

English	French
Normatives view	Vues normatives (normatif : qui émet des jugements de valeur)
Norm	Norme
Encounter	Tomber sur, rencontrer
Pond	Étang, mare
Stereotype	Stéréotype
To regulate	Réguler
Elders	Aînés
A tool	Un outil
To handle	Manier, s'occuper de
To lead to	Mener à
To dictate	Dicter
To demonize	Diaboliser
Racist	Raciste