Honors Program
Honors in English
Date of Award
5-2022
Thesis Professor(s)
Dr. David M. Jones
Thesis Professor Department
<--College of Arts and Sciences-->
Thesis Reader(s)
Dr. Thomas Alan Holmes
Abstract
Why is H.P. Lovecraft still relevant? That is the one the questions put forward by this thesis. Lovecraft is known for his creation of Lovecraftian horror, also known as cosmic horror. However, his bigoted view on race and class muddies this legacy. What this thesis seeks to explore is how Lovecraft’s work demonstrates the fears and anxieties central to the America psyche. The paranoid style can be found in American discourse throughout history but it can also be found in the works of Lovecraft himself. Lovecraft was a prejudiced and paranoid man, and his prejudices and paranoia are a major part of his works. The fear that Lovecraft felt and wrote, is the same fear that continues to guide and shape America itself. This work explores four of Lovecraft’s work “The Call of Cthulhu,” “The Dunwich Horror,” “The Shadow Over Innsmouth;” as well as a lesser-known poem by Lovecraft “Providence 2000 A.D.”
Publisher
East Tennessee State University
Document Type
Honors Thesis - Open Access
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Marvel, Bailey, "American Fears: H.P. Lovecraft and The Paranoid Style" (2022). Undergraduate Honors Theses. Paper 715. https://dc.etsu.edu/honors/715
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Copyright
Copyright by the authors.