Horror Tropes

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Horror often employs certain tropes, such as the final girl, the haunted house, and the mad scientist. Familiarity with these tropes can help readers understand and appreciate horror stories.

Supernatural entities: Creatures or beings that are not of this world but exist in the supernatural realm, such as ghosts, demons, vampires, and werewolves.
Psychological horror: Horror that focuses on the internal mental state of the characters, delving into the darker corners of the human psyche.
Survival horror: Horror that emphasizes the struggle for survival and the fight against an overwhelming antagonist, usually in the form of a monster or zombies.
Body horror: A subgenre of horror that focuses on graphic and disturbing physical transformations, mutations, and mutilations.
Gothic horror: Horror that employs the tropes of Gothic literature, such as haunted castles, supernatural occurrences, and mysterious and brooding characters.
Slasher horror: Horror that typically involves a killer who stalks and kills a group of people, often with a preferred weapon.
Cult horror: Horror movies that have amassed a cult following due to their quirky, unconventional, or subversive storytelling.
Found footage horror: Horror films that use the conceit of "found footage," such as a video camera, to depict events as if they were captured on film.
Lovecraftian horror: A subgenre of horror influenced by the works of H. P. Lovecraft that emphasizes cosmic horror, the incomprehensibility of ancient deities, and humanity's insignificance in the grand scheme of the universe.
Folk horror: A subgenre of horror that draws upon folklore and mythology to create a sense of dread and terror.
Haunted house horror: Horror that takes place in a haunted house or other haunted location, where the characters are terrorized by supernatural entities.
Body count horror: A subgenre of horror that emphasizes gore and violence, often featuring a high body count of victims.
Alien horror: Horror stories that focus on extraterrestrial life-forms or encounters with beings from other planets.
Post-apocalyptic horror: Horror that takes place in a world after a catastrophic event, such as a nuclear war or a global pandemic.
Cosmic horror: Horror that emphasizes the existential struggles of characters against a vast, uncaring universe.
Paranormal horror: Horror that involves phenomena beyond the realm of scientific explanation, such as psychic abilities or ghosts.
Occult horror: Horror that deals with the supernatural practices, rituals, and beliefs of secret societies and cults.
Creature feature horror: Horror that focuses on monstrous creatures or creatures that have been mutated by science or magic.
Disaster horror: Horror that revolves around a catastrophic disaster, such as a natural disaster or an outbreak of disease.
Mummy horror: Horror that centers around mummies, usually as a result of an ancient curse.
Ghosts: These horror tropes involve the presence of apparitions or spirits, whether they are malevolent or not.
Haunted Houses: This trope involves a home or structure that is inhabited by ghosts or evil spirits, causing terror and disturbances for those who enter.
Zombies: This horror trope is based around the reanimation of the dead, who seek to consume the flesh of the living.
Demons: These tropes involve malevolent supernatural beings, often depicted as the embodiment of evil.
Vampires: This horror trope involves vampires, who are creatures of the night that suck the blood of their victims.
Werewolves: This trope focuses on the transformation of humans into wolves, usually during the full moon.
Slashers: These horror tropes feature a killer or an individual who is intent on murdering their victims.
Psychological Horror: This trope is based around the psychological torment of a character, often with unseen or unknown forces at play.
Body Horror: This horror trope focuses on the mutilation and transformation of the human body, often through the use of technology or biological means.
Lovecraftian Horror: This trope is based on the works of H.P. Lovecraft, involving cosmic horror and entities beyond human comprehension.
Creature Features: These horror tropes focus on the appearance and actions of monsters, often from a specific species or class.
Folk Horror: This trope is based around the folklore of a particular region or culture, often involving supernatural elements and rituals.
Occult Horror: These horror tropes involve the usage of magic or other occult practices, often with malevolent intent.
Kaiju Horror: This trope is based around giant monsters, often in the form of a dinosaur or other prehistoric creature.
Body Snatchers: These horror tropes involve individuals who have been replaced or possessed by a malevolent force, often resulting in the loss of identity and autonomy.
Found Footage: This type of horror trope uses documentary-style footage to tell a story, lending a sense of realism to the events depicted.
Torture Horror: This trope involves the infliction of physical and psychological pain on characters, often in a sadistic manner.
Gothic Horror: These horror tropes are characterized by dark, foreboding settings and twisted, mysterious characters.
Slasher Horror: This horror trope features a killer or a group of killers who stalk and murder their victims, often in a gratuitous and brutal manner.
Survival Horror: This trope involves the characters having to fend for themselves in a hostile environment, often against a supernatural or mutated foe.
"Final girl: The final girl is a trope in horror films (particularly slasher films). It refers to the last girl(s) or woman alive to confront the killer, ostensibly the one left to tell the story."
"The final girl has been observed in many films, including The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Halloween, Alien, Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Scream, and Train to Busan."
"The term was coined by Carol J. Clover in her book Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film (1992)."
"The term was coined by Carol J. Clover in her book Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film (1992)."
"The final girl is the last girl(s) or woman alive to confront the killer, ostensibly the one left to tell the story."
"Clover suggested that in these films, the viewer began by sharing the perspective of the killer, but experienced a shift in identification to the final girl partway through the film."
"The Texas Chain Saw Massacre."
"Halloween."
"Alien."
"The final girl is a trope in horror films (particularly slasher films)."
"Friday the 13th."
"A Nightmare on Elm Street."
"Scream."
"The last girl(s) or woman alive to confront the killer."
"The term was coined by Carol J. Clover in her book Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film (1992)."
"Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film" by Carol J. Clover.
"Carol J. Clover suggested that in these films, the viewer began by sharing the perspective of the killer, but experienced a shift in identification to the final girl partway through the film."
"Clover suggested that in these films, the viewer began by sharing the perspective of the killer, but experienced a shift in identification to the final girl partway through the film."
"It refers to the last girl(s) or woman alive to confront the killer, ostensibly the one left to tell the story."
"It refers to the last girl(s) or woman alive to confront the killer, ostensibly the one left to tell the story."