The Effects of Loss as a Paradigm of Literary Criticism for Horror Fiction

Copyright 2018 by Gary L. Pullman

Horror fiction is a literature of loss. The losses, of course, are significant: no one has ever written a novel or produced a film about a character stubbing his toe.

Often, the losses are physical (a loss of ability or a loss of limb) or personal (a loss of freedom or a loss of dignity).

However, losses may also be psychological, or emotional (a loss of identity or a loss of sanity). 

Likewise, losses may be social (a loss of kinship or a loss of family members or friends).

Other losses may be spiritual (a loss of faith or a loss of salvation). The losses depicted in horror fiction result from a variety of causes, but they are established, most often, through particular situations or specific settings.

A loss introduces a type of change, physical, personal, psychological, social, religious, or otherwise. Often, a preliminary loss, significant in itself, is a prelude to another, greater, perhaps vital, loss—for example, death. A loss may also be a test of love, of faith, or of a relationship.

Literary criticism based upon the loss suffered by the main character (and, to a lesser degree, other characters) must begin by identifying the particular loss that the protagonist has suffered. What type of loss occurred? When and where did the loss occur? Why did the loss occur? How does the loss change the character? (Most horror stories largely ignore the last question, although the question of what caused the loss to occur may, on occasion, be more important than any of the other questions.)

In other words, in a critical analysis of a horror story, whether it takes place upon the page or the soundstage, should be applied to all the elements of fiction. (The answer to the question “HOW?” typically represents the story's turning point, or climax. Often, it helps to start the “WHY?” answer with the infinitive “to.” if an element is unimportant in summarizing the story, it can be omitted.) 

Here are a few examples.

Question	Answer
WHO lost?	Carietta (“Carrie”) White
WHAT was lost?	dignity
WHEN did the loss occur?
WHERE did the loss occur?	her high school prom
HOW did the loss occur?	pigs' blood is dumped on her
WHY did the loss occur?	to humiliate her

Carrie (novel) by Stephen King

After identifying each element in relation to the question regarding the loss suffered by the protagonist, write a single sentence that summarizes the plot. In doing so, the order of the answers may be rearranged:

Carrie White loses her dignity when bullies dump pigs' blood on her to humiliate her at her high school prom.

Then, in another single sentence, explain how the protagonist's loss changed him or her:

Carrie dies after she avenges herself against her tormentors.

Question	Answer
WHO lost?	Carietta (“Carrie”) White
WHAT was lost?	dignity
WHEN did the loss occur?
WHERE did the loss occur?	her high school prom
HOW did the loss occur?	pigs' blood is dumped on her
WHY did the loss occur?	to humiliate her

“The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe

A narrator is arrested when he hallucinates after murdering an old man in his home to rid himself of his victim's “evil eye.”

Unable to escape his guilty conscience, the narrator suffers psychological torment.

(Note: Although it seems that the narrator loses his sanity in the story, he does not; he has lost his sanity before the story begins; it is his freedom that he loses when the police arrest him.)

Question	Answer
WHO lost?	Nancy Thompson
WHAT was lost?	friends
WHEN did the loss occur?
WHERE did the loss occur?	hometown
HOW did the loss occur?	attacks by Freddy Krueger, a supernatural killer
WHY did the loss occur?	to avenge his death at the hands of his victim's parents

A Nightmare on Elm Street

Nancy Thompson loses her friends to attacks by Freddy Krueger, a supernatural killer, who murders his victims to avenge his own death at their parents' hands.

Nancy survives Krueger's attacks, but she is traumatized by her experience, even as she lives with guilt for her involvement in the attempted murder of her stalker.

Question	Answer
WHO lost?	Norman Bates
WHAT was lost?	identity
WHEN did the loss occur?
WHERE did the loss occur?	Bates Motel and house
HOW did the loss occur?	arrest for murdering Marion Crane and private detective Milton Arbogast
WHY did the loss occur?	to avenge his death at the hands of his victim's parents

Psycho (movie)

Norman Bates loses his identity, becoming his “mother,” after he murders Marion Crane after she checks into the Bates Motel so he cannot have a relationship with her and murders private detective Milton Arbogast to prevent him from discovering the truth about Marion's disappearance.
 

Norman ceases to exist as himself, becoming completely absorbed by his alternate personality.

Question	Answer
WHO lost?	Julie James
WHAT was lost?	friends; security
WHEN did the loss occur?
WHERE did the loss occur?	hometown
HOW did the loss occur?	murders by intended murder victim
WHY did the loss occur?	to avenge himself against the victim's attempt to murder him

I Know What You Did Last Summer (movie)

Julie James loses her friends and her security after their intended murder victim kills them and threatens her to avenge himself.

Julie lives in constant fear of being killed at any moment.

As these examples suggest, the theme of horror fiction is the effects of loss.

A few of the other many types of loss that may occur in horror fiction, their effects, and their contexts include:

Type of Loss	Possible Effects	Context
Perception (i. e., blindness, deafness, tactile insensitivity, inability to smell, inability to taste)	helplessness; loss of self-confidence; timidity	situation or setting
Ability (e. g., mobility) (i. e., being bound, incarcerated, or trapped)	helplessness; loss of self-confidence; timidity	situation or setting
Assistance (i. e. emergency services), as a result of being isolated	helplessness; loss of self-confidence; timidity	situation or setting
Effectiveness (e. g., an amputation or a broken limb)	vulnerability; loss of self-confidence; timidity	situation
Sanity	vulnerability; confusion; poor judgment	situation
Control (e. g., as a result of demonic possession or being a patient)	autonomy; independence; confidence	situation
Family or friends	emotional and social support	situation