Horror Movies

BOOOO!
Outline
Thesis: The audience members cannot get enough of watching them for the excitement, the memories of a simpler life and the attraction to the known, even though the effect of watching them is a series of goose bumps and cold chills down their backs and major negative effects on the brain.

I. What causes people to watch horror movies?
A. People watch horror movies to fulfill a need for excitement.
B. People tend to live through the movie and forget their duty-bound lives.
C. People are attracted to the known and the predictability in movies.

II. What are the effects of horror films on people?
A. One person’s thrill and interest is another’s demise.
B. Research has shown that the brain can perceive such movies negatively.

BOOOO! Shrieking screams, bloody scenes, and suspenseful music are all the main ingredients for a scream filled tormenting movie referred to as a horror movie or a scary flick. Horror films are movies that are purposefully created to provide a feeling of fright, unease and panic among the people viewing them. The audience members cannot get enough of watching them for the excitement, the memories of a simpler life and the attraction to the known, even though the effect of watching them is a series of goose bumps and cold chills down their backs and major negative effects on the brain. One might think why horror films are so popular and why so many of us pay money to be scared and feel horrified? Well, audience members flock to watch the latest horror movies for a variety reasons. One main reason is the thrill and enthusiasm that people feel from the fear filled scenes and the suspense. “For the majority of consumers of violent imagery, the violence is a means to ends; an acceptable device valued more for what it does than for what it is”(Goldstein, 226). According to Goldstein, the violence is enjoyed since it has a purpose whether it is to save the hero’s girlfriend or to give the movie a little bit of spice. An enjoyment or a thrill a lot of people watches horror movies just for that. Another reason for this love of fright is the effect it has on people and how they view their lives in the aftermath of viewing such movies. In the opinion of Stephen King, viewing horror movies causes us to regress to a happier childlike state. “It urges us to put away our more civilized and adult penchant for analysis and to become children again, seeing things in pure blacks and whites. It might be that horror movies provide psychic relief on this level because this invotation to lapse into simplicity, irrationality and even outright madness is extended so rarely" (King 295).
According to Stephen King, horror films help people interpret life as it is without any of the complications that it may have. They revert into a humble life free from all their duties and worries. The final cause that makes people view or even crave watching horror movies is the likelihood that comes with these movies. Although a movie might include enough flesh and blood to make anyone feel sick it still ends happily. The audience can easily foresee that the villain will be caught at the end no matter how graphic the film scenes are. Knowing what will happen eases the minds of the audience members, according to Sharon Begley. “Horror films thus appeal to people who like predictability and neat ends, hold the ethical relativism: in these movies, there is no question about who the bad guy is.” (Begley). The suspenseful music and the dim lighting alert the viewers and give them a sense of relief. On the other hand, the effects of horror movies on people are immense. What one person accepts as a thrill another perceives as a frightful image that will never be erased from his or her brain. According to Goldstein, the trauma caused by certain horror movies has an everlasting effect on the brain. “Individuals differ in their need for excitement and tolerance for stimulation. Those with a greater need for sensation are apt to find portrayals of violence more enjoyable than those with a lesser need” (Goldstein 227). There are some images or catch phrases that elicit frightening imaginings in people’s brain. To elicit further, a freakish smile of a doll might remind you of the movie Chucky or a simple closing of the bathtub curtain can remind you of the stabbing scene in the movie Psycho. Research has shown that watching movies has a long lasting effect on people and their daily lives. “They found that 90% of the participants (more than 150 college students at Michigan and Wisconsin) reported a media fright reaction from childhood or adolescence. Moreover, about 26% still experience a "residual anxiety."(SCARY MOVIES). Whether it is never closing your eyes once you take a shower or always glance twice at any human like doll, the ordeal some of us have due to a horror movie will never go away. Horror movies not only scar people’s well-being but they also have a negative effect on the brain. Although after the movie, people tend to forget what they just viewed; however a certain image is etched in our brain only to appear when we least expect it. “People internalize a scary moment and suffer effects for years afterward” (Evans). The brain reads the information received from the horror flick and interprets it directly by causing the person to feel fear. However it truly interprets it later on in a different format. “People suffering major mental trauma after viewing disturbing images, while at the same time, digesting a disturbing story line is more the exception rather than the rule. “(Hinson). Although some people might argue that just viewing a horrid image does not cause such trauma, others argue that it might cause a certain amount of stress or according to Hinson “Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)”. (Hinson). When this effect has a special scientific name, then it truly is a serious issue that several people might suffer from.

To watch or not to watch horror movies is something irrelevant at this point in time. People nowadays are much more advanced in the way they think and in the way they perceive events in their lives. Some will always remain true fans of this movie genre and others would not step close to a theater playing such movies. Horror movies or other genres of movies should always add on something to people’s lives. "Entertainment should be for fun and should leave you in a better place than when you started," (Evans). The main question everybody should ask once they leave the theater is,” Am I a better person for viewing this movie?” Or “Does my life make sense now?”
To each his own!

Work Cited

Begley. Sharon. “Why Our Brains Love Horror Movies” The Daily Beast. 25 Oct. 2011. Print.
Evans, Whitney. “Why Do We Watch Scary Movies?” Deseret News. Thursday, 25 Oct., 2012. Web.
Goldstein, Jeffrey.” Why We Watch: The Attractions of Violent Entertainment”. New York: Oxford University Press1998.Print.
Hinson, Heather. “Do Horror Movies Have a Negative Effect on Mental Health?”. Examiner.com. 11 March, 2011. Web.
King, Stephen. “Why We Crave Horror Movies.” Short Prose Reader. Ed.Gilberth.
Muller and Harvey S. Wiener. 13ed. New York: McGraw Hill, 2013. 294-97. Print . “SCARY MOViES AND TV PROGRAMS HAVE LONG-LASTiNG EFFECTS.” USA Today Magazine. Apr2000, Vol. 128 Issue 2659. Print.

Cited: Begley. Sharon. “Why Our Brains Love Horror Movies” The Daily Beast. 25 Oct. 2011. Print. Evans, Whitney. “Why Do We Watch Scary Movies?” Deseret News. Thursday, 25 Oct., 2012. Web. Goldstein, Jeffrey.” Why We Watch: The Attractions of Violent Entertainment”. New York: Oxford University Press1998.Print. Hinson, Heather. “Do Horror Movies Have a Negative Effect on Mental Health?”. Examiner.com. 11 March, 2011. Web. King, Stephen. “Why We Crave Horror Movies.” Short Prose Reader. Ed.Gilberth. Muller and Harvey S. Wiener. 13ed. New York: McGraw Hill, 2013. 294-97. Print . “SCARY MOViES AND TV PROGRAMS HAVE LONG-LASTiNG EFFECTS.” USA Today Magazine. Apr2000, Vol. 128 Issue 2659. Print.