Horror and Feminism In Literature
A short list of horror novels with feminist themes to explore this Halloween season
The spooky season is upon us with all its tricks, treats, and horror in all its formats. While horror films may not be everyone’s cup of tea, here are some must read horror novels for this Halloween season!
Carrie – Stephen King
Carrie follows the life of teenager Carrie White. She is the odd one out at school—bullied by everyone, does not have many friends, and suffers at home from the wrath of her overly religious mother. She also has the power of telekinesis, which she is struggling to understand and deal with because it occurs outside of her control. After being invited to the prom and suffering a prank at the hands of her bullies, she decides to use her powers for revenge on everyone who has hurt her.
The story of Carrie is sad, as we see how hurt she is by her peers, an experience most readers can relate to. She is ridiculed for her physical appearance (something omitted from all film adaptations), and for her quiet, awkward nature. However, she slowly learns to take control over her powers and fight back against her bullies, making for a very suspenseful read.
Frankenstein – Mary Shelley
The novel follows Victor Frankenstein’s creation of life (the Creature) through an absurd science experiment. When his experiment works and the Creature awakens, Victor becomes scared and runs away, returning later to see that the Creature has disappeared. The story follows the Creature, who despite learning how to read, write and trying to be gentle, struggles to fit in due to his appearance. The Creature becomes angry at the world due to his mistreatment and it is then that harm and violence between him and Victor ensues.
Similarly to Carrie, the story of Frankenstein is a sad, but horrific one. It explores the creation of life in a perverse way, while also bringing attention to the consequences of marginalizing others based on appearances and physicalities. Although following male characters, Frankenstein portrays many early feminist ideas and rejections of patriarchy in the ways in which the characters interact, particularly between Dr. Frankenstein and the Creature.
Rosemary’s Baby – Ira Levin
This story follows Rosemary and Guy as they struggle to deal with their new neighbours during Rosemary’s pregnancy. Their neighbours are pushy and meddlesome to Rosemary, but Guy is very inviting. He and the neighbours pay no mind to Rosemary’s sudden change in behaviour and appearance during her pregnancy, assuming she is suffering from “hysteria.” They dismiss her concerns while simultaneously feeding her strange herbs and concoctions which they claim are good for her unborn baby. As the story, and Rosemary’s pregnancy continues, we learn that Rosemary’s concerns were justified, as there are dark forces at play from her neighbours’ apartment.
Written in 1967, but still relevant today, Rosemary’s Baby explores themes of bodily autonomy and women’s health concerns, while mixing in themes of the occult and the supernatural, making an effective commentary on the treatment of women’s health in the real world, and a spine tingling read this season.
