PHIL 390T: Philosophy Of Horror

Course Description

This course will explore questions within the philosophy of horror as well as consider more general philosophical questions through horror. The former includes: What makes a film a horror film? The most obvious answer is that they have to be scary. But most classic horror films (e.g. Dracula (1931), Frankenstein (1931), etc.) will not frighten modern audiences. This would mean that such films are not horror films, which is clearly false; these are quintessential horror films. Is it immoral to watch horror films? Either because we are taking pleasure in watching films that depict unethical actions or because watching such films may desensitize us and inhibit our capacity to respond to victimization with compassion. The latter includes exploring the topic of personal identity through horror examples: A body theorist may be committed to saying that a zombie is a person since the body is still functioning and conscious. A mind theorist may be committed to saying that a vampire is a person since vampires retain much of their psychological content. (OC).