Post 3: Eldritch beings and Lovecraft
Recently, I began reading some of the stories of H.P. Lovecraft, namely "The Colour Out Of Space", "The Call Of Cthulhu", and "The Dunwich Horror". All three stories are rather disturbing and frightening, with their vague and often horrifying descriptions of the otherworldly creatures chilling me to the core.
"The Call Of Cthulhu", widely regarded as one of Lovecraft's best works, concerns three separate incidents revolving around an ancient deity in the sea, Cthulhu, who has a cult dedicated to his revival. The statuettes of the monster and the cult's attempts to revive him, forms the centerpieces of the story. Cthulhu is only vaguely seen in the final incident, in which he is nearly accidentally woken by the crew of a passing ship, and this brief, succinct description of him and his abilities are enough to inspire a deep sense of terror.
"The Dunwich Horror", another one of his most beloved stories, chronicles the strange events surrounding the Whateley family in the small hillside town of Dunwich, Massachusetts. The father of Wilbur Whateley is unknown and his mother disappeared when he was 7. Wilbur was precocious in every way possible, and by 15 years old, he was 7 foot tall. His grandfather was some sort of sorcerer and taught him to use a certain spell in an occult book before dying of a heart attack while Wilbur and his grandfather were renovating their home to accommodate some thing. What follows is a gripping narrative in which a hellish abomination is unleashed upon the small town, and the terrible identity of Wilbur's father is revealed.
"The Colour Out Of Space" is Lovecraft's personal favorite, and is also my favorite Lovecraft story so far. It is about a surveyor who goes to a quiet town and, while there, inquires about the "blasted heath" so feared by the locals. This begins a narration regarding the formation of the area, courtesy of a meteor containing a strange substance that can only be described as some sort of unknown colour. This substance gradually inflicts the surrounding area, and detailed horrifying descriptions of the colour's effects ensue. What makes the story so effective is that it only describes the colour in the most vague of terms, as the existence of the colour is so divorced from the human experience that it is impossible to describe in any way, and this "other" inhuman object and what little information we are given about it is exactly why this story is so gripping and atmospheric, and remains one of Lovecraft's best.
All in all, all three stories are brilliantly written and give a creeping sense of dread through its vague yet terrifying descriptions of eldritch monstrosities that plague the narrative.
"The Call Of Cthulhu", widely regarded as one of Lovecraft's best works, concerns three separate incidents revolving around an ancient deity in the sea, Cthulhu, who has a cult dedicated to his revival. The statuettes of the monster and the cult's attempts to revive him, forms the centerpieces of the story. Cthulhu is only vaguely seen in the final incident, in which he is nearly accidentally woken by the crew of a passing ship, and this brief, succinct description of him and his abilities are enough to inspire a deep sense of terror.
"The Dunwich Horror", another one of his most beloved stories, chronicles the strange events surrounding the Whateley family in the small hillside town of Dunwich, Massachusetts. The father of Wilbur Whateley is unknown and his mother disappeared when he was 7. Wilbur was precocious in every way possible, and by 15 years old, he was 7 foot tall. His grandfather was some sort of sorcerer and taught him to use a certain spell in an occult book before dying of a heart attack while Wilbur and his grandfather were renovating their home to accommodate some thing. What follows is a gripping narrative in which a hellish abomination is unleashed upon the small town, and the terrible identity of Wilbur's father is revealed.
"The Colour Out Of Space" is Lovecraft's personal favorite, and is also my favorite Lovecraft story so far. It is about a surveyor who goes to a quiet town and, while there, inquires about the "blasted heath" so feared by the locals. This begins a narration regarding the formation of the area, courtesy of a meteor containing a strange substance that can only be described as some sort of unknown colour. This substance gradually inflicts the surrounding area, and detailed horrifying descriptions of the colour's effects ensue. What makes the story so effective is that it only describes the colour in the most vague of terms, as the existence of the colour is so divorced from the human experience that it is impossible to describe in any way, and this "other" inhuman object and what little information we are given about it is exactly why this story is so gripping and atmospheric, and remains one of Lovecraft's best.
All in all, all three stories are brilliantly written and give a creeping sense of dread through its vague yet terrifying descriptions of eldritch monstrosities that plague the narrative.
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