TRY NOT TO SCREAM:
HORROR AND THE HUMAN CONDITION
ENGLISH 290
JAN TERM 2017
KATE DURBIN
KDURBIN@WHITTIER.EDU
CLASS BLOG: http://janterm2017.blogspot.com
COURSE OVERVIEW
“We
make up horrors to help us cope with the real ones."
-Stephen
King
For a long time, horror was circumscribed as lowbrow, a less
important genre than “literary fiction” or “serious cinema,” despite being an
incredibly popular form of entertainment in the US and abroad. This has changed
in recent years, with more scholars such as Jack Halberstam and Jeffrey Jerome
Cohen taking it seriously, although prejudices against the genre still persist.
Our course looks at horror as a window into the human
condition, and as an important literary and artistic genre in its own right. I’ve
long said that horror is the most honest genre, as it does not shy away from
the existential and bodily terrors we face as human beings in a world where
violence is only sometimes out in broad daylight. Horror is not afraid to look
at the monsters inside us all; it doesn’t hesitate to get its hands bloody.
Horror is not pure fantasy (no such thing exists of course;
even fantasy narratives mirror our world). Rather, the horrors of our everyday
lives serve as fodder for this most compelling artistic genre. The monsters
that inhabit our waking nightmares represent our cultural condition, the hidden
fears and desires that possess us. They are our projections. When read through the lens of gender studies, critical race studies,
Marxist theory, and other socio-political lenses, we begin to discover important
knowledge about the world we inhabit—it’s injustices, it’s traumatic histories,
its demons that cannot be exorcised. Perhaps most importantly, we start to
understand our (often unconscious) role in creating the conditions in which we
live, and we can begin to imagine alternatives.
In this course, we will look at horror novels, electronic
literature, films, and video games spanning the last fifty years (particularly
focusing on more contemporary works), from the US to China to Japan to Sweden. We
will cover topics as diverse as teen girls and the devil to vampires and
bullies to serial killers and capitalism, and we will discuss the ways in which these topics intersect and overlap, just as horror media intersects with other horror media.
For those of you interested in writing horror fiction,
making horror films, or creating horror video games, this course will feature a
creative component in the form of a Twine digital storytelling project.
There will also be analytical writing in the form of
journals as responses to the books, films, and games you will be
reading/watching.
TWINE DIGITAL
STORYTELLING PROJECT
In partnership with the Digital Liberal Arts Lab, students
will develop their own horror Twine narratives that mirror, amplify, and embody
the horrors of our world today. Twine is a digital storytelling platform, ideal
for narratives that are interactive and non-linear. I’ve chosen Twine for our
project because it reflects the human centipede-like nature of the horror genre
(horror novels that inspire films that inspire novels; novels that inspire
films that inspire video games). And perhaps more importantly, we will all be
reminded that we are not passive spectators of horror, either as
readers/viewers or as citizens, but instead active participants.
In
addition to the Twine project, students will be expected to submit a 5-7 page
analysis discussing the aesthetic chocies and real life issues that inform their
Twine narrative. They will discuss which class works inspired the project, and
how their work is in conversation with the works they read/watched in class. This paper will also require outside, library-based research. More details about this project will be covered in class.
REQUIRED BOOKS
The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty
Let Me In by John Ajvide Lindqvist
American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
Out by Natsuo Karino
ONLINE MEDIA
The following texts are online, and should be read as a precursor to your Twine project:
Twine Game/Narrative: SABBAT by ohnoproblems
Twine Game/Narrative: A Very, Very, Very Scary House by Anna
Anthropy
STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
*This is a writing-intensive course, so to that end you will write journal entries that follow MLA guidelines and serve as close readings of the texts/films you are studying; you will also write an analytical essay to accompany your final project in the class
*You will create one creative horror narrative through the gaming platform Twine
*You will become familiar with the interactive gaming platform Twine and know how to use it functionally by the end of the course
*You will examine the horror genre as an interdisciplinary field or constellation of interrelated media
*You will be able to recognize various sub-genres of the horror genre in both literature and film, with some introduction to video game horror narratives as well
*You will make critical connections between real life horrors and aesthetic ones
*You will understand and offer a case for why horror is a unique and signficant aesthetic genre that has much to offer in terms of understanding the world and our own contributions to its condition
JOURNALS
Students will write-three page (double-spaced, typed) journal responses to two of the novels they read for the class, along with two of the films they watch
in class (students may choose which two they want to write about), and one of
either an electronic literature work/horror video game we cover in class.
This is for a total of five journal entries to equal fifteen or more pages of writing. Think of these entries as short papers, and treat them with the appropriate seriousness.
These journal responses should examine how each project’s
medium (digital literature, film, novel, etc.) influences its aesthetic effects, which
real life horrors influenced the imagined horrors of the story (here you should consider and look into specific political events and conditions that occured in real places and times such as "the recession of 2008" or "gender and economic disparity in middle-class Japan," not general things like "death" or "fear of the unknown"), and how
this work is in conversation with the other works you’ve been
watching/reading/playing for class or perhaps have seen elsewhere. Does the work fall into a particular sub-genre of horror, such as survival horror, or found footage horror, or exploitation horror? What about the particular sub-genre is compelling overall and in this instance; what real life problems does that specific subgenre of horror reflect and deal with in a particularly powerful way? For example, found footage horror deals with surveillance culture and survival horror deals with our fears related to climate change and the precarity of our economic systems.
Please include plenty of examples from the text (or film, etc) in your journal entry, and do a little research into some of the socio-political influences on the work. Use MLA formatting for each entry and include a Works Cited page at the end.
Please include plenty of examples from the text (or film, etc) in your journal entry, and do a little research into some of the socio-political influences on the work. Use MLA formatting for each entry and include a Works Cited page at the end.
The journals will be submitted electronically, in Moodle, and
all journal entries will be submitted on a weekly basis (due on Saturday by 11
pm).
Submit them as one file per week.
Please note that the week during which a novel is finished or a film has been watched is the week during which you should submit your response to it.
Submit them as one file per week.
Please note that the week during which a novel is finished or a film has been watched is the week during which you should submit your response to it.
READING QUIZZES
To ensure on time attendance and regular reading habits,
daily we will have reading quizzes that will function as a jumping off point
for discussion.
CLASS BLOG
I will update the course blog regularly with any updates to the course schedule, reading list, or if class is canceled for any reason. Please check it every day, twice a day (before and after class) to make sure you are abreast of the current schedule and updates.
CLASS BLOG
I will update the course blog regularly with any updates to the course schedule, reading list, or if class is canceled for any reason. Please check it every day, twice a day (before and after class) to make sure you are abreast of the current schedule and updates.
EMAIL ETIQUETTE
If you have any questions about the homework or reading, please ask a classmate. This is especially important to do if you need to miss a day of class for some reason. If your question is not sufficiently answered, or you have a question that a classmate cannot help you with, then please email me at kdurbin@whittier.edu.
I ask you to first ask your classmates before emailing me so that I can focus my time on preparing for our class time together and on grading your work. Thank you for your respect and help in this regard.
You can generally expect a response to your email within 24 hours. Please note that I do not respond to emails after 7 pm and am slower on the weekends.
There will be moments when I will lecture. Aside from these times, class should operate like a seminar. This means that it is imperative that you read the material--on time-and are prepared to discuss it in class. Part of your grade is participation-based, and it is required that you speak up in class in order to receive full credit with participation. You will also be quizzed regularly on the reading, and failing to do the reading will severely harm your class score.
Always be prepared, and always come to class on time. Two tardies count as an absence. More than one unexcused absence may result in a lower grade; more than three may result in a failing grade. Any absences at all can only mar your performance in the class.
All homework assignments are due via Moodle only unless otherwise specified in class. Please upload them in .doc, .docx, or pdf formatting.
I will regularly update the class blog with any announcements or information you need to know. Please get in the habit of checking it every day (before class and in the evening).
I will also make any changes to the Course Schedule on the blog.
PARTICIPATION AND ATTENDANCE
If you need to be excused for a medical reason, please let me know immediately (the day of the emergency) and bring verifiable proof from the doctor to excuse your absence. Please note that it is very difficult, if not impossible, to do make-ups for presentations since we have a tight schedule on those days and they occur at the end of the term.
CLASS POLICIES
No laptops unless I approve them for notetaking (ask first). I don’t want to see your phones out—if I do, I will take them away, no exceptions.
If we do brainstorming or workshop sessions for your Twine project, please make sure to bring the work with you. If you do not, you may be asked to take an absence for the day.
Please use the facilities and get drinks of water before class and during breaks. Please do not show up to class then ask if you can leave to get a drink of water or use the restroom. Of course, if you have a medical condition I need to be aware of, please have Disabilities services contact me (and of course feel free to chat with me directly).
Abiding by these policies will allow us a pleasant, productive class session.
POINTS BREAKDOWN
Journals--25
Participation (includes Workshops, Reading Quizzes, Group Work, and Class Discussions)--25
Final Project (Essay and Game)--50
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES
Journals--25
Participation (includes Workshops, Reading Quizzes, Group Work, and Class Discussions)--25
Final Project (Essay and Game)--50
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES
Students desiring accommodations on the basis of physical, learning or psychological disability for this class are to contact Disability Services. Disability Services is located in the Library building, first floor, room G003 and can be reached by calling extension 4825.
