Abstract
In Supernatural Horror in Literature, H. P. Lovecraft identifies weird fiction as a rarified form of supernatural horror, characterized by atmospheric effect and violation of natural laws. He correlates reader receptiveness to these elements with heightened sensitivity to the best fiction published in pulp horror magazines. Lovecraft’s views on the reception of weird fiction persisted for decades after his death, propagated by many authors, critics, editors, and publishers. Developments from the 1980s onward, including the hybridization and evolution of weird fiction, have led to a weakening consensus. Even as Lovecraft’s claims seem to weaken, however, ongoing debates about the character of weird fiction are reanimating them, with some writers celebrating the form’s specialness, even as other developments have devalued weird fiction as a meaningful label.
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Notes
- 1.
Carroll, Noël, The Philosophy of Horror, Or, Paradoxes of the Heart (New York: Routledge, 1990), 239; Joshi, S. T., H. P. Lovecraft: A Life, (West Warwick, RI: Necronomicon Press, 1996), 383; Wilson, Edmund, Literary Essays and Reviews of the 1930s & 40s, (New York: Library of America, 2007), 702.
- 2.
De Camp, L. Sprague, Lovecraft: A Biography, (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1975), 247; Bleiler, E. F., “Introduction to the Dover Edition,” Supernatural Horror in Literature, by H. P. Lovecraft (New York: Dover Publications, 1973), iii.
- 3.
Bleiler, E. F., “Introduction to the Dover Edition,” Supernatural Horror in Literature, by H. P. Lovecraft (New York: Dover Publications, 1973), vi.
- 4.
Page number references are to Lovecraft, H. P. The Annotated Supernatural Horror in Literature, commentary by S. T. Joshi, 2nd ed. (New York: Hippocampus Press, 2012).
- 5.
For discussion of Lovecraft’s repudiation of mundanity, see Nyikos, Dániel, “The Lovecraft Circle and the ‘Weird Class’: ‘Against the Complacency of an Orthodox Sun-Dweller,’” in The Unique Legacy of Weird Tales: The Evolution of Modern Fantasy and Horror, ed. Justin Everett and Jeffrey H. Shanks (Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield), 36–37. Readers’ receptivity to this idea is less important for Nyikos than their overall rejection of daily life and consequent openness to Lovecraft’s “truly weird.”
- 6.
Bleiler, E. F., “Introduction to the Dover Edition,” Supernatural Horror in Literature, by H. P. Lovecraft (New York: Dover Publications, 1973), vii.
- 7.
Moskowitz , Sam, The Immortal Storm: A History of Science Fiction Fandom (Westport, CT: Hyperion Press, 1974), 1.
- 8.
Machin, James, “Weird Fiction and the Virtues of Obscurity: Machen, Stenbock, and the Weird Connoisseurs,” Textual Practice 31, no. 6 (October 2017): 1065 and passim, doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/0950236X.2017.1358692
- 9.
Those interested in accessing the full history of Lovecraft publication and criticism, including works from this period, should seek out Joshi, S. T., H. P. Lovecraft: A Comprehensive Bibliography (Tampa, FL: University of Tampa Press, 2009).
- 10.
Angerhuber, E.M. and Thomas Wagner, “Disillusionment Can Be Glamorous: An Interview with Thomas Ligotti,” in The Thomas Ligotti Reader, ed. Darrell Schweitzer (Holicong, PA: Wildside Press, 2003), 53–54.
- 11.
Mamatas, Nick, “Why Write Lovecraftian Fiction?” SF Signal, November 18, 2014, http://www.sfsignal.com/archives/2014/11/guest-post-nick-mamatas-asks-why-write-lovecraftian-fiction/.
- 12.
Fawver, Kurt, “Why Weird, Why Now? On the Rationale for Weird Fiction’s Resurgence,” Thinking Horror 1 (2015): 149.
- 13.
Hantke, Steffen, “From the Library of America to the Mountains of Madness: Recent Discourse on H. P. Lovecraft,” in New Critical Essays on H. P. Lovecraft, ed. David Simmons and S. T. Joshi (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013), 139.
- 14.
VanderMeer , Jeff. “The New Weird: ‘It’s Alive?’” in The New Weird, ed. Ann VanderMeer and Jeff VanderMeer (San Francisco: Tachyon Publications, 2008), xiii.
- 15.
VanderMeer , Ann, and Jeff VanderMeer, The Weird: A Compendium of Strange and Dark Stories (New York: Tor Books, 2012), xvi.
- 16.
VanderMeer , Jeff, “Weird Tales, Ann VanderMeer, and Utter Stupidity,” The Southern Reach, August 20, 2012, http://www.jeffvandermeer.com/2012/08/20/weird-tales-ann-vandermeer-and-utter-stupidity/
- 17.
Stephen Graham Jones, e-mail message to the author, December 2, 2015. Molly Tanzer, e-mail message to author, November 6, 2015.
- 18.
Cruz, Lenika, “‘Political Correctness’ Won’t Ruin H. P. Lovecraft’s Legacy,” The Atlantic, November 12, 2015, https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/11/hp-lovecraft-world-fantasy-awards/415485/; Erikson, Steven, “‘Awards or Bust’ Guest Blog,” The Critical Dragon, November 14, 2015, https://thecriticaldragon.com/2015/11/14/awards-or-bust-guest-blog-by-steven-erikson/; Flood, Alison, “HP Lovecraft Biographer Rages Against Ditching of Author as Fantasy Prize Emblem,” Guardian US, November 11, 2015, https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/nov/11/hp-lovecraft-biographer-rages-against-ditching-of-author-as-fantasy-prize-emblem; Kiernan, Caitlín R., “I have seen what the darkness does,” The Online Journal of Caitlín R. Kiernan, November 11, 2015, http://greygirlbeast.livejournal.com/2015/11/11/; VanderMeer , Jeff, “Moving Past Lovecraft,” Weird Fiction Review, September 1, 2012, http://weirdfictionreview.com/2012/09/moving-past-lovecraft/; Wiggins, Troy L., “On the Shelving of HP Lovecraft’s Image,” Book Riot, November 16, 2015, http://bookriot.com/2015/11/16/shelving-hp-lovecrafts-image/.
- 19.
I believe that they were and are, given the field’s constitution in the twenty-first century, however much I personally appreciate the Gahan Wilson-sculpted likeness of Lovecraft. While the award has meant many things to many people in its 40-plus years, it has since come to signify excellence in many areas of fantasy. Lovecraft’s star has risen far enough that the removal of his likeness from the award does him no damage, and may do much good in terms of broadening the field.
- 20.
Barron, Laird, “We Are for the Weird,” in Year’s Best Weird Fiction, vol. 1., ed. Laird Barron and Michael Kelly (Pickering, ON: Undertow Publications, 2014), 15.
- 21.
Jones, Mark, “Tentacles and Teeth: The Lovecraftian being in Popular Culture,” in New Critical Essays on H. P. Lovecraft, edited by David Simmons and S. T. Joshi (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013), 228–230.
- 22.
Joshi, S. T., The Rise, Fall, and Rise of the Cthulhu Mythos (New York: Hippocampus Press, 2015); Poole , W. Scott, In the Mountains of Madness: The Life and Extraordinary Afterlife of H. P. Lovecraft (Berkeley, CA: Soft Skull Press, 2016).
- 23.
Eil, Philip, “The Unlikely Reanimation of H. P. Lovecraft,” The Atlantic August 20, 2015, https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/08/hp-lovecraft-125/401471/.
- 24.
Joshi, S. T., H. P. Lovecraft: A Life, (West Warwick, RI: Necronomicon Press, 1996), 645–646.
- 25.
Groth, Gary, “SCHULZ: At 3 O’Clock in the Morning,” The Comics Journal 200 (1997), 230.
- 26.
Groth, Gary, “SCHULZ: At 3 O’Clock in the Morning,” The Comics Journal 200 (1997), 259.
Acknowledgments
I am grateful for Sean Moreland’s collegiality at ICFA 36, invitation to this volume, and patience as I completed this chapter. Selena Chambers was my cheerleader and supporter, listening for hours as I maundered about the formation of the field of weird fiction. Conversations with Ann and Jeff VanderMeer helped my thinking about publishing networks and ecosystems. I am grateful for the support of VCU Libraries colleagues past and present, in particular Dennis Clark, Bettina Peacemaker, and Sara Williams. Finally, I am grateful to Kyla Tew for her patience, love, and encouragement as I have sought to write everything that I want to write.
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Glover, J. (2018). Reception Claims in Supernatural Horror in Literature and the Course of Weird Fiction. In: Moreland, S. (eds) New Directions in Supernatural Horror Literature. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-95477-6_9
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