The New "Werid"

How does one describe the genre of "weird"? What is the "weird" genre within horror literature and film? I believe the weird derives from a variety of aspects of horror such as a particular inexplicable occurrence, unsettling images or sounds that aren't directly horrific, or behaviors that cannot be described or discerned with certainty. For instance, the read for this week, the novel Annihilation. The books main theme is the inexplicable and uncertainty dealing ongoings in the world around the explorers. There is a great deal of described anxiety as well, within the diction of the author that causes the reader to take on such emotions. There is a particular part of Annihilation that I particularly enjoyed; while the biologist and surveyor are descending into the tower, after being "persuaded" by the psychiatrist to go by themselves, the biologist sees the "stone" walls to be alive and moving. How the author describes this makes your hair stand, especially in the unknown if it is really happening or if it is a hallucination. I think this is a wonderful example of the "weird". It is certainly inexplicable along with unsettling to imagine descending within the tunnel that appears to be an organism itself.
Another example, was the in class film, "Under the Skin". This film definitely disturbed the whole class, and fits into the genre of "weird" perfectly. For the first part of the film, you are unsure of what exactly is going on, starting from the opening scene. You follow this young "disguised" woman with no explanation of who she is or what she is doing, but there is an ominous tone to her actions and the lack of any dialogue. These aspects of the film coincide with the "weird" by purposely giving the viewer no information but leading them to occurrences that are inexplicable and unsettling to say the least. When the men are led to the other dimension, and are left to be a floating skin suit, for reasons barely revealed to us, these images are horrific but more because we do not know why or what is happening. These motifs are so compelling to us as viewers because it signifies one of the most feared things for human, the ability to not understand and not know. Along with the inclusion of elements that frighten us and we truly don't understand why.

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