Page 26 - A Handbook Genre Studies in Mass Media

PROCESS

shows us the humanity that lies within that otherness, and helps us
make peace with the hidden and the monstrous side of ourselves. It’s
an antidote to the rest of the media, which only shows the chirpier
side of life.” 7
Genres can even help people cope with these primal emotions. Genres
provide a controlled environment that enables individuals to confront
these elemental emotions in relative safety. The horror genre externalizes
the vague sources of fear that are beyond human control. But the more
people experience fear without real danger to themselves, the more they
tame its effects on the psyche. By knowing that the danger is not real,
people can take the experience of fear to new levels of imagination and
understanding. Dr. Michael Otto, associate professor of psychology at
Harvard Medical School, observes, “If you see a snake in a movie or
someone dressed up as a snake for Halloween, you know the snake can’t
bite you. It’s the anxiety that bites you. And if you’re lucky, after a while
you realize that anxiety doesn’t hurt.” 8
Thus, Wes Craven, director of the Scream horror series, describes his
films as “boot camp for the psyche.” The horror genre touches primal
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emotions, but under non-threatening conditions. Reporter Holly Selby
refers to this as “reasonable fear”:

By watching a frightening film, you are, in a certain sense, re-enacting
your childhood fears. If you can sit through the whole thing, you have
conquered those fears, and that feels good.
There’s no question feeling safe—and in control—contributes to the
pleasure I get when watching scary movies. Part of the fun is knowing that
it isn’t real. I can leave the theater any time I want. I assume I’m safe here,
in this theater, surrounded by (I suppose) nice, law-abiding citizens. . . .
You’ve arranged it so that you’ll get the maximum amount of reasonable
fear. You have set things up so you know ‘this is scary movie, but I’m safe
at home and the doors are locked.’ 10

The popularity of occult, horror, and science fiction films may be
an expression of feelings of powerlessness within the culture. Steven
Spielberg commented that his production of War of the Worlds (2005)
was a response to the traumatic effects of the events of 9/11 on American
culture. Spielberg explains: “It’s certainly about Americans fleeing for
their lives, being attacked for no reason, having no idea why they are
being attacked and who is attacking them.” 11
At the same time, however, genres can provide a healthy emotional

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