by Joseph Vanburen

Created on: April 11, 2011

The horror genre is a creative breeding ground for some of the most ridiculous possibilities and exaggerated grandeurs of fantasy. Still, when done well, horror seems to stick with us, sometimes causing us in real life to look over our shoulder or keep the lights on at night. Horror films have endured over the decades as a powerful means for our entertainment to keep us in touch with one of the most primal human emotions: fear.

It is a part of human nature to have fears. Some more than others, and some better able to control their reactions to them, but it is basically a universal experience. We have innate fears of things like the dark and threatening animals; throughout evolution, it was in our best interest to be afraid of these things in order for our species to survive. We also have learned fears - things we grow to be afraid of through our personal experiences and what we are taught by the culture we live in.

Then there is the big one: death. The great unknown. As living beings, we are typically afraid to die, for we know nothing about the other side, if there is anything to know at all. Horror movies can be based on a myriad of various plots and themes, but death is always a prevalent subject, for what better way to stir up fear within the audience than to make them think about the possibility of their demise?

So why do people willingly subject themselves to the unpleasant sensation of fear by watching horror movies? How does the thrill of being scared translate into pleasure for some? Perhaps it is practice for an animalistic state of mind that our evolved species rarely uses anymore, but that is still a part of us. It’s a way to induce a bit of a “fight or flight” response.

When we experience fear, it affects us on two levels. We react physiologically; as certain chemicals in our brain are produced, our heart rate and breathing increase and we perspire. We get a dose of adrenaline. There are also changes within us psychologically. We become alert to the possible danger, ignoring other things around us. Our thought process is altered as we prepare to make quick decisions. Does a horror movie really produce this effect on us? Maybe not as much as, say, a snarling rottweiler in a dark alley. As far as psychology and biology are concerned, however, the results are the same. It’s simply a matter of degree.

Now, we finally arrive at the answer to the actual question. What is the appeal of what now appears to be a masochistic act: watching a horror movie? Sure, genre fans will give you any number of aesthetic reasons, all of which are quite valid. But maybe, just maybe, there is a subconscious force at work as well. And the pleasure experienced from watching horror derives from the fact that, internally, the viewer just survived his/her own little horror, and lives to fight or flight another day.

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