Do proponents have a harder time with horror entertainment?

Benevolent entities are the majority, while malicious entities are far rarer than popular media would imply.

That, of course, is also true in everyday life!

David

[Laird]

I don't think that this has got anything to do with my views on the paranormal, but I've never understand why I would consume horror. It's by definition, well, horrific. I'm not a masochist, so why would I intentionally subject myself to that? I can understand doing it once out of intellectual curiosity to see what it's like, but, having satisfied that curiosity, and confirming that, yes, the label fits, why continue tormenting oneself?

I think the only hardcore horror that I've watched is The Exorcist, and I did that partly out of curiosity about the real-world phenomenon of possession and exorcism and how this famous film dramatised that. It's also probably not nearly as hardcore (gory and violent) as this genre can get. I can't remember whether or not I left the theatre early, but I certainly didn't enjoy it, and have no desire to repeat the experience.

I don't think that this has got anything to do with my views on the paranormal, but I've never understand why I would consume horror. It's by definition, well, horrific. I'm not a masochist, so why would I intentionally subject myself to that? I can understand doing it once out of intellectual curiosity to see what it's like, but, having satisfied that curiosity, and confirming that, yes, the label fits, why continue tormenting oneself?

I think the only hardcore horror that I've watched is The Exorcist, and I did that partly out of curiosity about the real-world phenomenon of possession and exorcism and how this famous film dramatised that. It's also probably not nearly as hardcore (gory and violent) as this genre can get. I can't remember whether or not I left the theatre early, but I certainly didn't enjoy it, and have no desire to repeat the experience.

I think there is definitely horror that slides into mindless violence, just as there is action that is just the good guy getting tortured or violently killing others. Or even drama that seems to be about forced situations that try and pull at our heart strings. Fantasy and Science Fiction that is just a chance to show off special effects and offer up some well worn tropes for consumption And so on.

Out of these I am probably most sympathetic to Fantasy, because it seems to me that this genre most closely reflects the spiritual dimension if not metaphysically then at least metaphorically.

All that said horror can also be meaningful - like Stephen King's It is about the fears we have as children versus as adults, but also how preserving some aspect of childhood sensibility can help us against even grown up fears. Bring Her Back is a study of love and grief. The Babadook is about how society too often doesn't seek to understand the neurodivergent.

But I don't think horror needs to be cerebral to be fun, just as some people like watching heartbreak on screen others like watching something more physically gory. Though I will admit as I grow older I am concerned about how the genre can desensitize people to violence - especially with the increased prevalence and acceptance of violent pornography in many societies. 

There's also - when a person *doesn't* believe what they see on screen could be real - something comforting about knowing that the viewer is perfectly safe. Sadly I think there is a degree of truth in many horror movies that feature the supernatural, though the specific details are fictional.

Beyond that I think horror is a reactionary genre to a degree, reflecting attitudes toward sex/drugs/etc but also specifically with regards to the paranormal. 

I do think this kind of warning is important, as I suspect spirits - as @Valmar notes - don't by necessity see reality as we do. I'm thinking of a friend who said he wandered off from his group during a psychedelic ceremony and thought about ending his life - leaving his 2 year old behind - right before the group found him again. This wasn't even a depressive state, but rather a certainty that this might be the best course of action. Of course this could be his own delusional state or repressed thoughts taking over, rather than a spirit making suggestions.

On the other hand horror can keep people from seeking personal spiritual paths or cause stigma so that people don't share their paranormal experiences for fear of being labeled "Evil". How many psychic healers has the world lost because those potentially gifted feared their own ability?

The spirit world is mostly neutral ~ it is not centered around humanity, nor even vaguely concerned with it.

Benevolent entities are the majority, while malicious entities are far rarer than popular media would imply.

Enough negative events are simply our own doings ~ self-sabotage, with malicious entities being scapegoats for human problems, whether psi or elsewise.

(Of course, I suppose you could personally piss off or annoy a neutral entity, but that won't make it actively malicious to everyone, generally.)

Popular religion has largely poisoned views of how people perceive the spiritual ~ heaven vs hell, spiritual warfare, and all that crap.

Sometimes I wonder if your internet address is in the astral!

David

[Laird]

horror can also be meaningful

I might relate to that sort of horror better, but probably not if it involved violence and gore. In any case, I'd much rather watch something meaningful that isn't horrific.

others like watching something more physically gory.

I'm definitely not one of them, and I don't understand them, just as I don't understand people who like listening to death metal.

Though I will admit as I grow older I am concerned about how the genre can desensitize people to violence - especially with the increased prevalence and acceptance of violent pornography in many societies.

I share those sentiments, and, going even further, I simply don't want to live in a world in which people watch violence for fun, regardless of any tangible consequences. That world simply seems like an unwholesome one to me.

I might relate to that sort of horror better, but probably not if it involved violence and gore. In any case, I'd much rather watch something meaningful that isn't horrific.


I'm definitely not one of them, and I don't understand them, just as I don't understand people who like listening to death metal.


I share those sentiments, and, going even further, I simply don't want to live in a world in which people watch violence for fun, regardless of any tangible consequences. That world simply seems like an unwholesome one to me.

I highly recommend Bring Her Back, if you can stomach it. The demonic aspect to me was a vehicle to explore the way love, grief, and madness tie together in humans. I thought actors who played siblings did a great job, to me it's harder to convey love between siblings than romance, since the latter can to some degree come naturally just by spending time with someone even it's not full fledged interest.

Red Rooms might also be of interest, an exploration/questioning/criticism about the way true crime fans are entertained by real life violence. There is no violence visually depicted in the movie, though you do hear audio screams.

I don't usually like watching excessive violence, though at times I have played a game or watched a movie that features a lot of gore. The less real it is the more it's just fun, perhaps enjoyable because it's transgressive. I can also see it being a way to relieve stress if the victims of violence are on the receiving end of justice...

...But like you I do genuinely worry about the way some people treat real life violence as entertainment. Perhaps I was just naive but it felt in older times people could more easily distinguish between pretend violence as entertainment [versus] real life.

I do also worry about depictions of violence toward women, though part of this I've heard is violence toward men in film is more acceptable to a viewing audience [and thus elicits less reaction]. Both sides of this are causes for concern IMO.

OTOH I am also wary of top-down censorship as a means of societal control, and I do genuinely believe that entertainment can have a positive effect whether that's catharsis or experiencing something second hand widening one's perspective.

Since I think any engagement with the supernatural - or even believed engagement such as the example of the man on psychedelics I mentioned above - needs to be done with due caution I find myself liking that horror movies might give a person pause before they open themselves up to dangers whether they are spirits or drastic alterations of mental state.

[Laird]

OTOH I am also wary of top-down censorship as a means of societal control

Likewise. Coercing people - backed by the State apparatus sanctioned to use violence - not to consume violent content for fun seems to perpetuate a similar (and perhaps worse) mindset to that which it ostensibly targets, and that I don't like cohabiting with in this world. It's an almost oxymoronic idea.

Edit: I exclude here the coercive restriction of the consumption of violent content that does real-world harm, such as child sexual-abuse material. I am in favour of top-down censorship there.

Sometimes I wonder if your internet address is in the astral!

David

Heh, no. I just have insights from astral entities who more or less live with me.

I do think this kind of warning is important, as I suspect spirits - as @Valmar notes - don't by necessity see reality as we do. I'm thinking of a friend who said he wandered off from his group during a psychedelic ceremony and thought about ending his life - leaving his 2 year old behind - right before the group found him again. This wasn't even a depressive state, but rather a certainty that this might be the best course of action. Of course this could be his own delusional state or repressed thoughts taking over, rather than a spirit making suggestions.

That appears to be the majority of experiences, even in psychedelics ~ our own dark thoughts and states can certainly appear "demonic". I've had my Shadow manifest during psychedelic experiences enough times in many forms ~ and it always feels very discomforting and unpleasant, even if it means no ill-intent. It just can't help but appear that way, as the manifestation of all personality aspects I fear and dislike.

That appears to be the majority of experiences, even in psychedelics ~ our own dark thoughts and states can certainly appear "demonic". I've had my Shadow manifest during psychedelic experiences enough times in many forms ~ and it always feels very discomforting and unpleasant, even if it means no ill-intent. It just can't help but appear that way, as the manifestation of all personality aspects I fear and dislike.

What really disturbed me was how to him it seemed like the right thing to do, that killing himself and leaving his 2 year old daughter would benefit his family.

It would be different if it were a "bad trip" because that I think can - if survived - be a warning. 

But this was seen as an ultimately positive spiritual experience by the person, which really worries me as from the outside it seems like he got lucky his group found him before he offed himself.