Why We Crave Horror Movies

Why We Crave Horror Movies
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Why We Crave Horror Movies
The author argues that people love horror movies because they those movies help them have an innocuous release valve for those inner demons hiding inside their bodies. King argues that everybody, including those who are not in the asylum, is mentally insane, and points out an example of how people find themselves talking to themselves (King, 1981). Moreover, he argues that horror movies are like roller coasters, which human beings use to have fun. Although King’s article is quite enjoyable to read, I do not believe that horror movies can help humans maintain their sanity (King, 1981). From a personal perspective, widespread looking violence that is contained in the horror movies is likely to desensitize people and make them prone to act violently or ignore other those individuals with violent characters.
While the author argues that watching horror movies may help in controlling “hungry alligators,” I think that the use of violence desensitizes humans (King, 1981). Research indicates that people involved in most recent mass shootings have watched many violent movies that have triggered this part of their character. In this case, watching horror movies is likely to trigger young people to start acting violently just like they saw the actors in the violent film. Although King claims that people would act out of violence if they are exposed to intermittent outlets such as the horror movies, I still believe that violent movies can provoke craziness in people, and when one is exposed to pretend violence, he or she can end up being involved in real violence.

From the analysis of the piece, King is a great writer who has capitalized on his excellent use of language and tone to keep the audience engaged while reading. What I like most about his work is his use of various rhetorical phrases such as; “When we pay our four or five bucks and seat ourselves at..” (King, 1981) Moreover, I like his use of metaphors to show some relation such as comparing the horror movies to roller coasters that humans use to have fun, and using “alligators” to show the inner dark side of humans (King, 1981). From a personal perspective, this is an excellent piece of literature that I would recommend to anyone. I like and agree with his statement that the potential of evil is in all humans. However, I believe that violent movies such as horror movies should not be used to nature that potential.

Reference
King, S. (1981). Why we crave horror movies. Short Essays for Composition, 524.