The black character dies first. The (weak) woman is saved by a heroic man. The disabled or disfigured person is presumed to be "scary." In this course, we will unravel the various tropes that haunt the horror genre, exploring how horror film and fiction reflect the values, mores and fears of a collective unconscious, with special emphasis on the ways in which racial stereotyping and gender violence are often deployed as horror tropes. We will look closely at portrayals of violence, shock, resistance and power, thinking through how race and gender play central roles in the production of fear, terror, monstrosity and the grotesque in popular media-- as well as efforts to subvert the genre.
- Profesor: Connie McNair