Halloween Reality

“Shadows of a thousand years rise again unseen, Voices whisper in the trees, ‘Tonight is Halloween!’”

– Dexter Kozen,

American theoretical computer scientist and songwriter

You dare to return after the article on Halloween Fantasy?!

You must be courageous, intrepid reader, or one of the many who actually enjoy being frightened, as revealed in our first article below.

As we recall, tradition in many cultures of the world see Halloween is seen as a night when “the veil between worlds thins,” where supernatural forces gather, or the veil between the living and the dead, or the land of the Fae (Moss, 2015). In the last handful of articles from our Halloween treat bag we looked at articles on the fantasy of Halloween horror. Today—not for the faint of heart—we face terrors that are very much of our world, closer, and in that, possibly more terrifying.

But, as we gaze into the eye of real-world horror, perhaps we will return with wisdom.

Read on, if you dare…

For Love of Fear – “Why do you like to be scared?” My wife has wondered, at my love of horror. This article examines the mental, emotional and physical benefits of horror entertainment.

Getting what we Deserve: The Depravity Standard – Dr. Michael Welner and his team have developed the Depravity Standard which ranks real-world horror against cultural metrics. Its science at its most chilling, and as a bonus, Dr. Welner emailed a response and added his personal insights!

Behind the Red Nose (One and Two) – A two part exposé on Clown Fear (Coulrophobia), the phenomena of Clown-selors and the history of clowns back to the proto-era. It focuses on the horror, but balances it with live interviews of three clowns: Steamboat Joe, (The unfortunately named) Skats the Clown, and (the less creatively named) Alex the Clown—who was hilarious.

Shadowdancing: Jung’s Halloween – The phenomena of Halloween, and an examination of its appeal to our mass culture based on how it triggers the shadowy parts of all of our natures and brings them forth.

 “If human beings had genuine courage, they’d wear their costumes every day of the year, not just on Halloween.”

– Douglas Coupland, Novelist

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Karabin, K. (2010) Behind the Red Nose (One and Two). Retrieved from: https://keithkarabin.com//2010/10/28/behind-the-red-nose-part-one-horror-vs-hilarity/

Karabin, K. (2011) For Love of Fear. Retrieved from: https://keithkarabin.com//2011/10/31/for-love-of-fear/

Karabin, K. (2013) Getting What We Deserve: The Depravity Standard. Retrieved from: https://keithkarabin.com//2013/04/26/getting-what-we-deserve-the-depravity-standard/

Karabin, K. (2015) Shadowdancing: Jung’s Halloween. KeithKarabin.com. Retrieved from: https://keithkarabin.com//2015/10/23/shadowdancing-jungs-halloween/

Moss (2015) Approaching Halloween: when the veil between the world thins. Beliefnet. Retrieved from: http://www.beliefnet.com/columnists/dreamgates/2015/10/approaching-halloween-when-the-veil-between-the-world-thins.html