Matching Items (8)
Filtering by
- All Subjects: Horror
- Creators: Mack, Robert
- Member of: Barrett, The Honors College Thesis/Creative Project Collection
Description
Drawing on existing scholarship as well as primary analytical materials, the research within this report demonstrates Wile E. Coyote's character is reliant on human connectivity and is evocative of the human condition, reflecting his disciplined and stylized design he possesses. Comprised of literary, film/media, and rhetorical elements, this report illustrates how Wile E. is an individual whose character holds various influences that provide dimensionality to his existence. The research within this report is both primary and secondary through observational recordings about the cartoons Wile E. appears in and through thorough analysis of texts elaborating on the elements comprising Wile E.'s character. Primary research from the initial observational recordings provides direction for the secondary research after viewing multiple cartoons and films containing Wile E. Coyote in his Warner Brothers Studios appearances and noting unique moments in his cinematic career. The notes from this viewing of Wile E. in his natural "habitat" drive the secondary research to focus on specific aspects of Wile E.'s character through the analysis of supporting texts which ultimately leads to the findings within this report. Research in the fields of literature, film/media studies, and rhetoric shape the analysis of Wile E.'s character as this report studies the various components compiled within the cartoon coyote. As a multifaceted individual, Wile E. illustrates a complexity within a stylized character that allows viewers to connect to his plights and to identify with his struggles. Through his emulative form, Wile E. embodies vital elements of character creation that allow him to become a memorable and prominent character that resonates in viewers and artists. From Wile E. Coyote's example, future generations of story tellers, regardless of their medium, can learn how to create similarly iconic and timeless characters within their works. Such stories can then contribute significant additions to popular narrative and characterization.
ContributorsGarza, Christopher Aaron (Author) / Baldini, Cajsa (Thesis director) / Mack, Robert (Committee member) / Sandler, Kevin (Committee member) / Department of English (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
Horror films are typically comprised of three specific features: jump scares, gore, and suspense shots of a shadowy figure creeping up on an unaware victim. These three elements are some of the hallmarks of what defines the horror genre as they are methods that have proven successful in eliciting a bodily response within audience members, which is crucial to a horror movie being considered successful. However, these elements are also very polarizing. Individuals that enjoy horror often like these three things, while those who don’t appreciate the genre often cite over the top gore, distain for jump scares, and the anxiety that accompanies those suspenseful shots as primary reasons for avoiding horror. Due to the fact that those spectators who like horror tend to be in the minority, horror tends to have a very weak crossover appeal, thus limiting the audience interest while also being very unpopular among critics as well.
Interestingly, three recent horror films have achieved both critical acclaim and popularity among all audiences, horror and non-horror fans alike. Get Out, A Quiet Place, and It Follows are all noticeably lacking in the three features that commonly make a horror film “successful”, and yet it would be difficult to argue that they aren't successful horror films given that they have received critical acclaim, impressive box office returns, and have a strong crossover appeal. Therefore, they must use alternative methods to achieve the bodily response of fear that is necessary to be successful in the genre. I argue that these films put the audience member in a position that mirrors what Forced Lacanian Hysteric Neurosis and that this positioning produces the bodily response that is necessary for a horror movie to be successful. This manifestation has the additional benefit of allowing those spectators who do not like the fundamental aspects of horror (jump scares, gore, and suspenseful shots) to find the pleasure of horror without experiencing on-screen events that might cause them notable distress.
Interestingly, three recent horror films have achieved both critical acclaim and popularity among all audiences, horror and non-horror fans alike. Get Out, A Quiet Place, and It Follows are all noticeably lacking in the three features that commonly make a horror film “successful”, and yet it would be difficult to argue that they aren't successful horror films given that they have received critical acclaim, impressive box office returns, and have a strong crossover appeal. Therefore, they must use alternative methods to achieve the bodily response of fear that is necessary to be successful in the genre. I argue that these films put the audience member in a position that mirrors what Forced Lacanian Hysteric Neurosis and that this positioning produces the bodily response that is necessary for a horror movie to be successful. This manifestation has the additional benefit of allowing those spectators who do not like the fundamental aspects of horror (jump scares, gore, and suspenseful shots) to find the pleasure of horror without experiencing on-screen events that might cause them notable distress.
ContributorsStevens, Summer Charis (Author) / Mack, Robert (Thesis director) / Miller, April (Committee member) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / Department of Economics (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
Whether fights to the death, or a masked murderer chasing an unwilling teen, viewers are seemingly drawn to human suffering. This thesis will examine the blurring of lines between traditional horror and crime films to better understand how both films provide a similar experience, as well as apply traditional film theories on pleasurable viewership to both genres, in an attempt to discover viewers’ attraction to the perverse.
ContributorsBenavidez, Markus A (Author) / Miller, April (Thesis director) / Mack, Robert (Committee member) / School of Criminology and Criminal Justice (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-05
Description
An analysis of the relationship between haunted house films and economic anxieties of different cultures and time periods.
ContributorsRobertson, Travis (Author) / Miller, April (Thesis director) / Mack, Robert (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Comm (Contributor) / The Sidney Poitier New American Film School (Contributor)
Created2022-05
Description
Academic debates are a core sense-making mechanism of scientific and democratic societies that serve the purpose of educating the public and helping society to achieve further clarity on debated topics. This research seeks to understand why manifestations of the shadow may occur in academic debates on YouTube and how the shadow plays a role in making these debates less productive while breeding divisiveness. The scholarly debate genre on YouTube is an extension of the recognized television genre of televised debate and a description is given about the ways that the YouTube medium may influence the performance of and the viewing of academic debates. An analysis of ten videos that reflect the scholarly debate YouTube genre is done and explained through the dimensions of aggression, dismissiveness, avoiding, and logical fallacies. Shadow manifestations stand in the way of productive debates by distracting the debaters and the audience from the pursuit of the truth, confusing viewers with the use of logical fallacies, and promoting divisiveness that stands in the way of achieving consensus.
ContributorsPires, Louis (Author) / Mack, Robert (Thesis director) / Kwan, Sau (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor)
Created2022-05
Description
This story ---Under Still Faces--- is a horror fiction story. It is influenced primarily by classic, gothic literature with themes from the horror and true crime genres. The story includes critical/theoretical concepts, literary devices, and techniques from gothic literature primarily including Freud’s Uncanny, uneven framing, and an unreliable narrator. It employs themes from Edgar Allan Poe’s novels as well as his thesis regarding plot in The Philosophy of Composition. Particular descriptive themes in conjunction with the use of gothic elements surprise the reader about the story’s true ending similar to Poe’s The Oval Portrait. Included is an analysis of the literary decisions made in the piece to evoke specific reactions and feelings from the reader.
ContributorsRaines, Elliana (Author) / Fette, Don (Thesis director) / Mack, Robert (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Department of Economics (Contributor) / Department of Finance (Contributor)
Created2022-05
ContributorsRaines, Elliana (Author, Co-author) / Fette, Don (Thesis director) / Mack, Robert (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor)
Created2022-05
ContributorsRaines, Elliana (Author, Co-author) / Fette, Don (Thesis director) / Mack, Robert (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor)
Created2022-05