After reading a review of The Classic Horror Stories: Lovecraft ((link) I realized that often this one crucial question is often neglected: How did Lovecraft, whose style and ideology were constantly criticized, outlasted other horror or SF writers, and came to be the master of modern horror?
My idea is that the originality of the world he created, as well as the dark and hopeless worldview appealed to the hidden pessimistic view of people's mind, but normally such traits would put people off(just look at all the anime and other SF where the heroes vanquish the Lovecraftian monsters. Even the admirers seem to be sick of his pessimistic worldview). And his works can be quite difficult to read due to the floods of adjectives and adverbs.
So what does make Lovecraft such enduring writer?
Interesting, this would make a huge article!
I'm no Lovecraft expert, but I'd like to say that it's the fears and issues of his period that remained a constant theme in everyday things (politics, philosophy, writing), and since then, the cultural momentum of the his creations have become unstoppable. This has probably already been said in a smarter way because there are lots of smart people who have written about this (probably), but that was just my 2 cents. – Austin9 years ago
I think that it is his more academic work (his history of horror) that helps his work endure. He cornered the market on weird fiction and really tied it in to the primal feeling of horror that we experience when confronting the unknown. He is one of the first authors to let these other-worldly creatures "win" or at least maintain a position of power throughout human history. His works are both entertaining fiction but also a commentary on human psychology and the way fear has persisted throughout humanity's existence – DClarke9 years ago
2013 marked the 25th anniversary of the publishing of "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho. The book is less than 200 pages, and encompasses many very common themes of finding one's destiny, following your heart, and believing in dreams. This short work seems to have only gained popularity over the years. What is it in this small book that draws in so many readers year after year? With the growing interest in yoga, meditation and even divination and gemstones- does this book become even more relevant today?
I heard recently that Idris Elba and Laurence Fishnirne were rumored to star in a film adaptation of The Alchemist. You could talk about If the book can be easily translated from book to film. – Aaron Hatch9 years ago
It seems that many stories are remade in multiple genres, from books to tv to musicals to film. I would love to see a comparison of what goes into making the same story into a film vs. musical vs. tv show, etc. It would also be interesting to touch on the pros/cons of telling the story in each medium, or talk about which medium was more successful criticially/financially. It could be an interesting case study.
Sherlock Holmes immediately comes to mind, only because I love the literature, am a great fan of the BBC TV series, and yet the Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law films and the American TV series leave something to be desired for me when watched with the literature in mind. Of course, the Sherlock Holmes stories are only one example of a piece of literature that has been translated into multiple mediums. There have also been both film and TV renditions of "Jane Eyre," for example. Or the fact that "Wolf Hall" is at least both a stage drama and a TV series. I'm sure there are endless possibilities for this topic! – Rachel Watson9 years ago
It might be interesting to chose a specific story (Sherlock Holmes, or even something like a fairytale, which have been adapted many times in many ways) and compare the various adaptations, see what can be found out about the creative processes in each case, etc. Storytelling varies hugely by medium, as you mentioned, and I think the best way to do this sort of article would be to focus in an analyze closely, rather than writing more broadly and generally. That's just my preference, though. – MissjuliaMiriam9 years ago
This topic could not only be about the same story told across different mediums but over different time periods and by different cultures. Therefore, stories like fairytales (Red Riding Hood told via literature, several films (Red Riding Hood, Hoodwinked, etc. etc.). It would be interesting to define the point about when it stops being "the same story" and if making it with different mediums or slight twists in the tale makes it less of itself. – Matthew Sims9 years ago
You speak of musicals which brings Sound of Music and Phantom of the Opera to mind. The former was based off a real story but the latter was based off a book. Examining both could prove to be very interesting indeed. – SpectreWriter9 years ago
Both the Marquis De Sade and E.L. James have garnered attention for their explicit sexualized literature. The Marquis crafting perverse pieces in the late 18th century and James writing hers in the 21st. Each of these authors claiming the reason behind their writing is liberation; the Marquis for liberation from an oppressive regime and James liberation from oppressive masculine hegemony. But who did it better? This is not an uncritical question of who had the more titillating stories, but who used their literature to best define sexual politics in their time. Is one more eloquent than the other? Do they share a common ground of exploration? Does the sublime play a role in both of their writings? These questions not only point to the changing relationship society has with sexuality but also how sexual politics continues to be a major source of debate.
Having read portions of both authors work, I'm not sure if this topic has much to go with except for the fact sex and bondage show up with more frequency then they do in say The Old Man and the Sea. De Sade would be as offensive today, and perhaps even more so, then he was in his day. (I thought about including an example, but if you want to know just google "De Sade Juliette", which is not even his most "ambitious" work) James on the other hand, is perverse to people who've never seen an R rated movie and is probably offensive to people who've actually had sex. James seems to have a lot of fondness for the themes of female purity civilizing the Byronic man, sacrificing one's self for love, and pursuing monogamous, heterosexual marriage as telos. For a series of books that's all about taking a turn into the sexual wild side, it's pretty vanilla in its moral sensibilities. If De Sade had to read the Shades trilogy, he'd think it was the dumbest dumb thing in the history of dumb things. He'd then probably write some angry fanfiction where James is subject to the kind of experiences De Sade typically makes his female characters endure, all the while having a stand-in for himself calling her stupid from the side lines. (De Sade would probably cast himself as some kind of heckler who James, in her delusion, believes to be her inner Goddess/Sadist) Quite honestly, each author's body of work is tough to "swallow", but for different, unpleasant reasons. James is in terrible need of an editor and De Sade follows the literary conventions of the 18th century, which doesn't always sing to contemporary ears. Before we even talk about the content in their works, just arguing for which is the more eloquent writer is like saying whether a pigeon or pterodactyl would do better swimming across the English channel. It's amusing to think about, but dreary to pursue.
– rj2n9 years ago
I find the particular selection of these two writers very odd. Why wouldn't compare two writers with more in common (epoch, language, style, philosophy, etc.) besides the fact that they write about eroticism? There is more logic in selecting French authors form the 18th century similar to Sade (there are many of them). – T. Palomino2 years ago
An analysis of films or literature that was set in the future when it was written, but is now our past/present. You could look at how accurate it is, or speculate if anything is a self-fulfilling prophecy (such as the Big Brother shows named after Orwell's book.)
I think this sort of writing is done fairly often, but what separates the forgettable from the memorable are the ones that identify why different works got the future right/wrong. Those that present this sort of analysis generally have a good understanding of the "present" era in which the story was written. Because, for most people, the future is an extension of how they things today. So for example, 2001. For all of Kubrick's attention to detail, the future looks like the 1960s in space. The modernist chairs, the short skirts on Pan-Am Stewardesses on space shuttles, and the non-collapse of the Soviet Union. People still use phone booths, but at least they have video. Using sci-fi stories as a way to get at the hopes of the era it was produced as well as hopes of the creators, would be one way to frame the issues. – rj2n9 years ago
This sub-genre of sci-fi has roots in early twentieth century Russian and Irish writing also. The best, shorter work, in the Irish side of the genre is Flann O’Brien's “Díoghaltais ar Ghallaibh ‘sa Bhliain 2032!” which Jack Fennell recently translated into English (“Revenge on the English in the Year 2032!”). It appeared in The Irish Press on January 18, 1932. You can find it in a recent collection though: “Revenge on the English in the year 2032!” in The Short Fiction of Flann O’Brien, eds. Neil Murphy and Keith Hopper, trans. Jack Fennell. 23–28. Champaign, IL: Dalkey Archive Press, 2013. It's a brilliant speculative piece of fiction set in an entirely Gaelic-speaking Ireland in the year 2032. The narrator arrives in this world by way of futuristic ship which is reminiscent of We (in Russian: Мы), the a dystopian novel by Yevgeny Zamyatin from 1921. – ChristopherMcCarthy9 years ago
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep was originally set in 1992! It offered a bleak view of the world, would work great here. – Samantha Leersen4 years ago
What sort of America is represented in F.Scott Fitzgerald's literature?
Since work on Fitgerald often evaluates the era he was writing in, it would be intriguing to read an article that veers off in an odd, fresh direction. – jennewymore9 years ago
Fitzgerald's depiction of America is the representation of old money and new money through the glitz and glamour of clothing, parties and automobiles. It gives the readers the image that America is a shallow society that gives attention to consumerism. – maricsat9 years ago
Flappers and WWI comes to mind – crispychips9 years ago
Most of his texts focus on his own lifestyle and the people he associated with. How about talking about Meyer Wolfsheim (hint: Arnold Rothstein)? – mimz39 years ago
How does fiction represent the fears and talking points of society at a certain time? Why do certain topics appear inflationary in popular culture in a short time span? (E.g. dystopian literature in the past few years). How are adaptations/remakes of older stories changed to fit the needs of the current audience? (E.g. Sherlock Holmes – Hound of the Baskervilles (film) from 1939 in comparison to Sherlock – Hounds of Baskerville (BBC episode) from 2012). Just a few approaches to the topic of societal issues in fiction.
Could Orwell's 1984 have a part in this topic? After all, people refer to 1984 today as in relation to current political policies, etc – Ryan Errington9 years ago
With millions of books sold, and a widely successful movie adaptation, Fifty Shades of Grey is undoubtedly a popular series. However, the subject matter is not without controversy.
While the books and movie have helped to bring the BDSM culture into a more popular light, the depictions of consent within the book are arguably sub-standard.
Should the appallingly inaccurate, and possibly dangerous, depictions of consent within the series be ignored? Should such matters take a back seat to the discussions of the popularity and profits of the series, or should the discussion shift now that the series is part of popular culture?
The popularity and "racy" subject matter of the books and movies are indeed topics to discuss, ones that will always illicit a response. However, should those topics be the focus, or should they be used as an introduction to a much more important discussion on consent and its depiction in the media?
Also of note, James' is releasing a new book, Grey, on June 18. It will be the same story, only told through Christian Grey's POV. This will no doubt open some new discussions, so it may be worth it to wait to write on this topic until after its' release. – AloraP9 years ago
"Grey" from "His" perspective? good lord how much aping does E L James have to do? this was literally the leaked book from Twilight author Meyer. The fifth book was to be "Midnight Sun" a retelling of Twilight from Edward's perspective. :facepalm: -- that said there are books that cover consent. Such as the [I got it free on Amazon] Gynocracy. While on it's surface it's a book about a space crew trying to rescue one of their own from an amazon planet. When you actually read it's. It's just a primer on the BSDM lifestyle. Plenty of chapters dedicated to consent and the safety sane thing that BSDMers are always saying in interviews about their lifestyle. – wolfkin9 years ago
I read all 4 books. In a glimpse of a second. They were captivating, seducing, challenging and inspiring. I think we have kept the BDSM culture into darkness for way too long, allowing our society to let us believe it's wrong. There is a limit to every thing, but when performed the right way, it could add a lot of spice into a dull relationship. I think we all have a dark fantasy weather we want to say it out loud or hide behind masks that our society gives us. There is so much more to discover when we let ourselves free and let our imaginations go. I am tired of prudes, I am tired of boring people surrounding me every day. I don't think these "racy" topics should be hidden and not talked about, I think they should be up and on the front row of every couple's sexual life and discussions.
– elizadim9 years ago
