Usually we try to avoid what scares us. But why then do many voluntarily agree to experience fear again and again, buying a ticket to a horror movie screening? How can one explain the popularity of such content and why there are always fans to tickle their nerves?
The desire to experience pleasure is easy to understand, but is it really possible to enjoy something that frightens? American psychologists Eduardo Andrade and Joel Coen came to the conclusion that people are able not only to experience both negative and positive emotions at the same time, but even to enjoy the fear itself, and not just the relief that follows. They note that the most pleasant moments can be the most terrible.
This is confirmed by a study in which computer gamers took part. Video games, unlike horror films, offer the player not only to watch, but also to take part in frightening scenes. It would seem that an even greater level of fear could scare away, but the number of players around the world, as well as a study by psychologists Nicole Martins and Teresa Lynch (Indiana University), indicate the opposite. Video games did evoke stronger emotions than movies or shows, but almost half of those surveyed (44,1%) said they enjoyed feeling fear.
Many try to fill the lack of thrills with the help of extreme sports. A parachute jump, a perilous mountain climb or a scuba dive allow you to experience emotions that are rarely available to us in ordinary life. Horror films can perform the same function: watching what is happening on the screen, we can be scared as much as if we really were in danger.
At the same time, the “horror” is much more harmless than rafting on a mountain river, because at any moment you can stop – close your eyes, plug your ears, or even turn off the TV. So horror films or video games become an opportunity to experience tension, to test your abilities in a safe environment. It is a way to get to know your fears, to learn more about the nature of your feelings, and also to take your mind off some obsessive experiences. So, fear helps to numb the pain of a failed relationship.
What and why are we challenging?
The first thing that comes to mind when thinking about a horror movie is monsters, zombies, ghosts, and other characters that don’t really exist. However, in order for a film to make you scared, it is not necessary to show something that is not in reality. Some people are afraid to watch films about the war, and sometimes even the news release can scare us, especially if what is happening affects us personally.
According to a study conducted by the Finnish University of Turku, scenes close to real events cause the greatest horror. Professor Lauri Nummenmaa from the University of Turku notes that two types of fear can be distinguished. The first is the horror that occurs when we suspect that something suspicious is going on, but so far we have no clear confirmation of our guesses. And the second is an instinctive reaction to the sudden appearance of something frightening, for which we were not ready.
“Horror films as a genre appeal to our archetypal fears,” said Paul Patterson, an assistant professor of psychology at Saint Joseph University. “Throughout history, every generation has defined “horror” in its own way, but to a large extent, this concept is associated with the idea of something threatening that is beyond our understanding.”
Analyzing literature and cinema, Patterson notes that, as a rule, the fears of a generation are present in works of art – sometimes they look distinct, sometimes they appear in the form of images. However, despite the influence of historical context, our fears have much in common. Existential psychotherapist Irvin Yalom considers the fear of death to be an experience that everyone has to face.
Horror films, as well as extreme sports, can become a way of flirting with death, trying to symbolically win over it. “Today, many teenagers oppose this fear with their virtual personality: in cruel computer games, they feel like the masters of death. Others get cocky, sneer at death, sing songs that make fun of death, watch horror movies,” writes Irving Yalom in Staring at the Sun. Life without fear of death.
“In early adolescence, I went to the cinema twice a week near my father’s store,” continues Irving Yalom. – Together with friends, he screamed in fear at the “horror” screenings and stared again and again at the screen, on which the horrors of the Second World War came to life. I remember shuddering with fear: what if I had been born not in 1931, but four years earlier, like my cousin Harry, who died during the Normandy operation?
Despite the universality of the fear of death, it tends to choose a form depending on the historical context. What are horror films? Simple entertainment, an opportunity to get away from annoying thoughts, or a way to resolve an existential dilemma? The answer to the question is more difficult than it seems.