Japanese Horror
Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things
Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things
Since I had formerly read Murakami’s, “A Wild Sheep Chase”
I chose to read, “Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange
Things by Lafcadio Hearn. I read the pdf form Google books posted on the
syllabus. After I read it I went on Amazon and ordered a copy for myself
because I loved the stories so much!
I had no expectations of what Japanese
horror literature would be, but I found it much more captivating and twisted
than some western horrors I have previously read.
Perhaps it was that some stories would end abruptly leaving you, the reader be pondering what just happened. Typically in western horror a viewer or reader knows there is going to be shocking scene and the ending will be neatly wrapped up so that and every single little detailed is explained to you. Unlike in the story, “Mujina” where the man sees a woman sobbing terribly and he asks her what was wrong and she turns around and has no face and he runs away frantically to a soba man for help and the soba man asks him if her face looked like ‘this’ and he reveals himself and he too doesn’t have a face either and the story ends. Just like that.
Another the aspect of Japanese horror differs that western horror is in western horror it’s always good versus evil and that anything supernatural is also evil and everything evil must be abolished, whereas in Japanese horror, good and evil coexist with other supernatural elements. The horror is the unknown, that people or things may not be as they seem. And people; good people just live amongst them, and avoid the evil happenings as much as possible It also becomes difficult to tell what is or isn’t supernatural, or if something is or isn’t real and its up to the reader or viewer to decide. Having a more personal relationship with the story I thinking is an integral part of Japanese horror that western horror lacks. Both share the shock, gore and suspense of classical horror elements.
Perhaps it was that some stories would end abruptly leaving you, the reader be pondering what just happened. Typically in western horror a viewer or reader knows there is going to be shocking scene and the ending will be neatly wrapped up so that and every single little detailed is explained to you. Unlike in the story, “Mujina” where the man sees a woman sobbing terribly and he asks her what was wrong and she turns around and has no face and he runs away frantically to a soba man for help and the soba man asks him if her face looked like ‘this’ and he reveals himself and he too doesn’t have a face either and the story ends. Just like that.
Another the aspect of Japanese horror differs that western horror is in western horror it’s always good versus evil and that anything supernatural is also evil and everything evil must be abolished, whereas in Japanese horror, good and evil coexist with other supernatural elements. The horror is the unknown, that people or things may not be as they seem. And people; good people just live amongst them, and avoid the evil happenings as much as possible It also becomes difficult to tell what is or isn’t supernatural, or if something is or isn’t real and its up to the reader or viewer to decide. Having a more personal relationship with the story I thinking is an integral part of Japanese horror that western horror lacks. Both share the shock, gore and suspense of classical horror elements.
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