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July 2012 Read: The Case of Charles Dexter Ward
That's an interesting story, Greg! I'd love to excavate a seventeenth-century graveyard with fellow horror and Lovecraft fans, too!
Jason wrote: "That's an interesting story, Greg! I'd love to excavate a seventeenth-century graveyard with fellow horror and Lovecraft fans, too!"We should organize a HA field trip!
I'll help dig up graves as long as I can keep anything of value that I find. Ooo, grave robbing ftw! ;pAm I the only one who did not like this novel?
Honestly I will never voluntarily read anything else by HP Lovecraft if this is what all his work is like, life is far too short to waste on things that displease us. Perhaps the problem is that I am difficult to disturb let alone scare. Hmmm, just perhaps.
You're just not a HPL fan, Nora. I think that if you didn't like this story, you probably wouldn't like anything else by him. Charles Ward isn't Lovecraft's best, imo, but it is amongst his best.
What did everyone think of the Joseph Curwen part of the story? Somebody mentioned earlier that it was creepy at the end of it when (view spoiler)
I think it's best to start with his shorter work. The longer ones tend to ramble, even a good one like this.
I thought that part was creepy. People were more subtle in their horror in those days, but the usage of choice words more than made up for that. But then, I also appreciate writers like Wilkie Collins, especially Woman in White. I thought that book was eerie.
I would love to go dig up stuff/bodies/archeology crap!
Jason wrote: "What did everyone think of the Joseph Curwen part of the story? Somebody mentioned earlier that it was creepy at the end of it when [spoilers removed]"I found it vapid not creepy. Quite redundant as well.
Jason wrote: "You're just not a HPL fan, Nora. I think that if you didn't like this story, you probably wouldn't like anything else by him. Charles Ward isn't Lovecraft's best, imo, but it is amongst his best."yeah but this is the second month in a row that I did not like the book of the month. Makes ya wonder.
Maybe you're not a horror fan, Nora. Time to switch to romance. :o)
Aloha, I've read one Wilkie Collins story, an it was Woman in White. I loved it! The choice of words are really important. In Charles Dexter Ward, I think Lovecraft nailed it. Especially the part I described above.I also think that sometimes less can be much more creepy, because your imagination takes over, and the things waiting for you there, fed by your unconscious mind, is more frightening than what any author can do.
Aloha wrote: "Maybe you're not a horror fan, Nora. Time to switch to romance. :o)"I don't believe in love, I hate romance. Honestly I read that comment as a politely phrased go fuck myself. hmmm.
I do like horror, I just think it should at least be a little bit scary, is all.
I agree with that....my imagination takes things way too far sometimes.
Peeking in to say I liked this one a lot. The story flows, and with it, a dawning understanding of what is happening to our narrator. I didn't find it that hard to read, to my surprise. I sometimes get annoyed with Lovecraft's melodramatic prose, but this one worked for me. It was quite unnerving.
I agree. How can it not be creepy. I know different things scare people, but Lovecraft is to horror what The Beatles are to Rock N Roll.
No, Nora. I was only joking. It's okay to not like 2 books in a row. There are many books I don't like that others like.
Jason wrote: "I also think that sometimes less can be much more creepy, because your imagination takes over, and the things waiting for you there, fed by your unconscious mind, is more frightening than what any author can do. ..."This is what I loved about
.
I'm going to put aside The Sisters Brothers and tear into the Lovecraft. Gotta see what all the fuss is about.
Mike wrote: "I agree. How can it not be creepy. I know different things scare people, but Lovecraft is to horror what The Beatles are to Rock N Roll."Would it suprise you to know that I don't the Beatles either? Grade school teacher was obsessed and we sang alot of that odd music.
LOL, Nora! You're starting to sound like Steven Wright, the comedian.
Mike wrote: "I agree. How can it not be creepy. I know different things scare people, but Lovecraft is to horror what The Beatles are to Rock N Roll."for starters it took too long to get anywhere and was rather repitious, how many times does anyone need to be told something? It lacked realism to me, necromancy like alchemy is a fake science. What's creepy about that?
Aloha wrote: "No, Nora. I was only joking. It's okay to not like 2 books in a row. There are many books I don't like that others like."oh ok. :)
That's very true, Mike! There are some people out there who just do not like Lovecraft, though. I have these artistic friends in Toronto. They're writers and whatnot, and they all love horror and are very intelligent to boot, but they roll their eyes at me whenever I bring up Lovecraft. I don't get it. LOL
Lovecraft fans...King fans...Koontz fans...I roll my eyes at all of you!
I'm kinda sick of the Beatles myself. I think it's because they've been over loved and overplayed.
WHAT????! Necromancy and alchemy are not real???!!!!! Okay, we have a troll in here! MODERATORS!!!!
Jason wrote: "Rolling Stones are better, imo..."Now there's a statement I can agree with.
Tressa wrote: "Lovecraft fans...King fans...Koontz fans...I roll my eyes at all of you!"that just makes me think of ...
'she rolled her eyes at me and being a gentleman I rolled them back to her.' but I can't remember who said it. lol
Aloha wrote: "LOL, Nora! You're starting to sound like Steven Wright, the comedian."He is my favorite comedian.
I get sick of all my music if I hear it too often...except for Elvis Costello.
I never get sick of Beethoven. Now, that's pure rock!
Lol! This is a fact - The Beatles changed Rock N Roll. Lovecraft changed Horror Fiction. There are so many musicians that were influenced by The Beatles, as were writers by Lovecraft.
But Beethoven was the earliest of them all! Don't tell me the Beatles never listened to Beethoven.
Mike wrote: "Lol! This is a fact - The Beatles changed Rock N Roll. Lovecraft changed Horror Fiction. There are so many musicians that were influenced by The Beatles, as were writers by Lovecraft."prove it.
I have read so many articles about musicians being influenced by The Beatles and writers influenced by Lovecraft. Have you not ever read anything like that before?
Not about Lovecraft, no.The Beatles, some yes but they were just one of many who have changed the sound of rock and roll over the years.
Even I've read time and again about famous horror writers being influenced in their careers by Lovecraft, and I'm not an HPL junkie.
I am still re-reading it, but I will post some of my thoughts regarding what I have read so far.I guess one of the things that stands out the most so far is the characterization of Charles Ward. Not every Lovecraft story has a Lovecraft stand in, but several stories do.
In my opinion, Charles Ward is the prototypical Lovecraft stand in. He is socially awkward, obsessed, in love with the past, and yeah, that whole fascination with forbidden knowledge. ;)
Charles Ward, in my opinion, is an interesting character. However, one of my critiques is that so many of these Lovecraft stand in characters are way too similar and Lovecraft seems to develop them the same way, such as just telling the reader as much of the character's history in one swoop. I can then see how several people here might have been annoyed by the long buildup of the character since, yeah, there are times in a Lovecraft story, where I have said, let's move on Howard. ;)
What do you mean by stand in character, Oscar? Do you mean that the character of Charles Ward is basically HP Lovecraft? If so I totally agree. There are many aspects in Lovecraft's life and personality that mirror Ward. I was thinking about this earlier, wondering what went through Lovecraft's head when he went on his walks to look at old buildings and other antiques.
Yeah, a character who somewhat resembles him and shares some of his personal traits. For example, I read an article that said that Lovecraft would go in long walks and when he came across an old Victorian house, he would sometimes knock on the door and ask to see the inside of it because he was curious. That sticks out in my mind since I have felt the same way when walking by an old and somewhat creepy Victorian house. However, we live in different times, so I wouldn't dare just knock at some random person's house and have the cops be called on me, lol!
Nora wrote: "Am I the only one who did not like this novel?Honestly I will never voluntarily read anything else by HP Lovecraft if this is what all his work is like, life is far too short to waste on things that displease us. Perhaps the problem is that I am difficult to disturb let alone scare. Hmmm, just perhaps. "
I just want to say that I don't agree with Jason's comment that if you don't like this you probably won't like anything else by him. As I said in a prior post, I don't think this is the best place to start with Lovecraft. If you were willing to give him another chance, I would suggest starting with something like "Rats in the Walls" or "Shadows Over Innsmouth". Both are shorter and are both more direct in their approach.
That said, it is quite possible that Lovecraft isn't for you, I just wouldn't give up on him just yet. Lovecraft, like other horror writers, at the time and many since, skirt around the meat of the matter as it were. Their approach is to hint and imply rather than make explicit the precise nature of the horror. You, as the reader, are expected to take the batton and run with it, fill in the gaps, and hopefully construct a horror far more terrorfying that anything the author could have described, your own personal horror.
But it's not an approach that works for everyone. Maybe you do like this appraoch but don't like Lovecraft's particular style? Without knowing what other horror you do and don't like I can't really say. But anyway, I just wanted to share my thoughts...
I still think "The Call of the Cthulhu" is worth reading for someone who wants to give Lovecraft another chance.
Horror Aficionados
Books mentioned in this topic
H.P. Lovecraft: Against the World, Against Life (other topics)H.P. Lovecraft: A Life (other topics)
Naomi's Room (other topics)
The Woman in White (other topics)
Storm Front (other topics)
More...
I recall when I was working on an archaeological dig in Montréal a number of years ago how I was reading The Lurking Fear and Other Stories. I was happy to find that I was not the only Lovecraft fan there as another member of the archaeological team was reading a French translation of The Case of Charles Dexter Ward. Meanwhile, another archaeologist was reading Ça, the French translation of Stephen King's It. I'm not sure if our penchant for horror had anything to do with the fact that we were excavating part of a seventeenth-century graveyard....