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American Fears: H.P. Lovecraft and The Paranoid Style

Why is H.P. Lovecraft still relevant? That is the one the questions put forward by this thesis. Lovecraft is known for his creation of Lovecraftian horror, also known as cosmic horror. However, his bigoted view on race and class muddies this legacy. What this thesis seeks to explore is how Lovecraft’s work demonstrates the fears and anxieties central to the America psyche. The paranoid style can be found in American discourse throughout history but it can also be found in the works of Lovecraft himself. Lovecraft was a prejudiced and paranoid man, and his prejudices and paranoia are a major part of his works. The fear that Lovecraft felt and wrote, is the same fear that continues to guide and shape America itself. This work explores four of Lovecraft’s work “The Call of Cthulhu,” “The Dunwich Horror,” “The Shadow Over Innsmouth;” as well as a lesser-known poem by Lovecraft “Providence 2000 A.D.”

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:ETSU/oai:dc.etsu.edu:honors-1861
Date01 May 2022
CreatorsMarvel, Bailey
PublisherDigital Commons @ East Tennessee State University
Source SetsEast Tennessee State University
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typetext
Formatapplication/pdf
SourceUndergraduate Honors Theses
RightsCopyright by the authors., http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/

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