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History of Horror: Supernatural Horror

A cultural history.

The Supernatural

The Supernatural category consists of two sub-genres: the Supernatural and the Devil. The Supernatural sub-genre assumes there is a pure, unseen evil. This evil can overtake and destroy a human being. The Devil and Demon sub-genre brings the protagonist into contact with those supernatural forces that are malicious personifications of evil known as the devil or the demon. This contact may lead to the temptation for the protagonist to sell their soul, such as Faust or the poor schmuck in the movie, Bedazzled. Or the contact may lead to possession as is the case of The Exorcist.

The Supernatural

  • 1798. Novel: Wieland by Charles Brocden Brown.
  • 1835. Story: "Young Goodman Brown" by Nathaniel Hawthorne.
  • 1842. Story: "The Masque of the Red Death" by Edgar Allan Poe.
  • 1890. Novel: The Picture of Dorian Gray.
  • 1894. Novel: The Great God Pan by Arthur Machen.
  • 1902. Novel: The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle.
  • 1907. Novella: "The Willows" by Algernon Blackwood.
  • 1932. Story: "Farewll Miss Julie Logan." by J.M. Barrie.
  • 1979. Novel: The Dead Zone by Stephen King.
  • 1979. Film: Phantasm.
  • 1985. Novel: Song of Kali by Dan Simmons.
  • 1998. Japanese horror film: Ringu.
  • 1993. Novel: The House of Doctor Dee.
  • 2001. Novel: American Gods by Neil Gaiman.
  • 2004. Film: Secret Window.
  • 2007. Novel: House of Lost Souls by F. G. Cottam.
  • 2008. Novel: The Graveyard Book Neil Gaiman.
  • 2013. Film: Occulus.
  • 2013. Novel: The Daylight Gate.
  • 2014. Film: The Badadook.
  • 2018. Film: Hereditary.
  • 2019. Film: Doctor Sleep.

Demons & the Devil

  • 1796. Novel: The Monk by Matthew Lewis.
  • 1818. Book: Dictionnaire infernal by Jacques Collin de Plancy.
  • 1926. Film: F.W. Murnau's Faust.
  • 1934. Film: The Black Cat (with Bela Lugosi & Boris Karloff).
  • 1955. Story: "The Guardian" by Walter de la Mare.
  • 1957. Film: Night of the Demon.
  • 1962. Novel: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
  • 1967. Novel: The Master and Margarita  by Mikhail Bulgakov.
  • 1968. Novel: Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin.
  • 1968. Film: The Devil's Bride.
  • 1971. Novel: The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty.
  • 1976. Film: The Omen.
  • 1986. Novel: The Hellhound Heart by Clive Barker.
  • 1987. Film: Angel Heart.
  • 1988. Book: Cabal by Clive Barker.
  • 1990. Novel: Good Omens by Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman.
  • 1991. Novel: Needful Things by Stephen King.
  • 1997. Film: The Devil's Advocate.
  • 1999. Film: The Ninth Gate.
  • 2005. Film: Constantine.
  • 2007. Film: Paranormal Activity 
  • 2009. Film: Jennifer's Body.
  • 2012. Film: The Lords of Salem.
  • 2013. Film: The Conjuring.

Demons

  • Beelzebub, Lord of the Flies.
  • Incubus, male sexually preying upon women.
  • Kapre, Filipino tree demon.
  • Koschei the Deathless, Russian demon.
  • Lamia, ancient Greek female demon.
  • Mephistopheles, demon in the Faust legend.
  • Oni, Japanese demon.
  • Pazuzu, Babylonian demon.
  • Popobawa, Zanzibar islands.
  • Ravana, king of the rakshasa (Hindu demons).
  • Succubus, female sexually preying upon men.
  • Yokai, Japanese demon.

Additional References

Cardin, M. (2017). Horror literature through history an encyclopedia of the stories that speak to our deepest fears (Kindle) Greenwood.
Jones, D. (2021). Horror a very short introduction. Oxford University Press.
King, S. (2010). Danse macabre. Gallery. 
Landis, J. (2016). Monsters in the movies: 100 Years of Cinematic nightmares. DK. 
Luckhurst, R. (2018). The Astounding Illustrated History of Fantasy & Horror. Flame Tree Publishing. 
Skal, D. J. (2020). Fright favourites: 31 movies to haunt your Halloween and beyond. Running Press.
Turitz, N. and Zimmerman, B. (2020). Horror: An illustrated history of vampires, zombies, monsters & more. Centennial Books, an imprint of Centennial Media, LLC.