Background to the modern world (II part)

Horror of phylosophy

As far as horror and its influence on modernity is concerned, the first thing to note is that horror can be perceived in many different ways, and in this case, the relationship between the horror genre and philosophy seeks to find ways of approaching modernity by incorporating alternative ways of thinking - the occult, demonology, mysticism, which permeate the layers of contemporary culture, recognisable in literature, cinema, advertising, games, music, art, religion and, indeed, every cultural stratum imaginable (21). Philosophical horror, in other words, occurs when we begin to look at the questions posed by philosophy through the lens of the incomprehensible, the infinite, the suffocating abyss, incorporating into our own vision what is often described as the supernatural. On the other hand, I hasten to add at this point that what is perceived as supernatural is revealed in philosophical horror as demystified, science-based components of this world.

Paradoxically, the pervasiveness of the supernatural in horror in contemporary culture is so deep that, even when it is fiercely confronted with the norms of lifestyle and the values of the capitalist world broadcast by society, it is accepted by the majority of society as the status quo and is unquestioned as a dissonance, given that the horror of the supernatural, on the surface, still has a mystified image, which, even if it is demystified in the light of the norms of the capitalist world, should be destroyed immediately, before it even appears in the cultural footnotes. The reasons for this incompatibility may indeed be many. One of them, of course, is the system shaped by capitalist realism, in which, according to Fisher, there is no alternative (22). Finally, the leitmotifs of hopelessness and depressive present that emerge from the political and economic leitmotifs of 21st century secular religion may resonate with the contradictions of the collective unconscious, which include the aforementioned horror, which, in its supernaturalness, is not in line with the idyllic capitalist world. On the other hand, it is possible to think that the horrors and unknowns of the collective memory that have haunted humanity for millennia are ultimately relegated by capitalism to the genre of fiction, a safe fictional oasis in which stories of all kinds and doubts about the nature of the world find a place in the world's nature and its continuation. Not even capitalism, with all its mystified symbols, is able to eradicate the mystified world, although in the same framework of fiction, in which mysticism, superstition and the scenarios of the unknowable "float", the aforementioned capitalism finds access to change and to shape utopian perspectives of the future, which would accommodate a dystopian future, free of mystified perception and fantasy. Here we can also recall M. Fisher's animated film WALL-E (23), in which the future of the capitalist world unfolds in a dystopian and at the same time inevitable scenario, so that even today, with all the hauntological backdrop and philosophical horror, we are in an in-between state, between the perceptions of a mystified existence and the capitalist liberation of the future (however shocking this may be), sooner or later, in the absence of other alternatives, this in-between state will pass, and we, as a society, will become another, as yet unrecognised, nation, both in the spiritual and the physical sense. Mysticism is likely to become, and will increasingly become, an archaic atavism, a legacy of ancient religions and societies.

Although it may seem a little strange to start the horror chapter from the perspective of capitalist realism, such a prologue becomes unavoidable in order to understand the concept of the supernatural and the expression of horror in contemporary society. The aforementioned Fisher, in his book Capitalist Realism, reflects on the existence of the alternative in the contemporary condition, arguing that capitalist culture is engaged in the formation of desires, aspirations and hopes, and he goes on to suggest: "Let's look at how cosy 'alternative' or 'independent' zones are being created. "Alternative" or "independent" no longer refers to what is outside the dominant culture, but rather to certain styles of the dominant-dominant culture."(22) In the light of this, Fisher's theory of the alternative, it seems that we become helpless to even try to imagine alternatives to the capitalist world. Whatever revolution or change may exist in our minds will eventually be "eaten up" by expanding capitalism and the new theory will become just another acceptable deviation in the sea of the capitalist universe. Capitalist realism, or even capitalist cosmicism, is like the universe that is constantly expanding after the big bang, revealing more and more symptoms of knowledge and darkness, like the body of the universe coming towards the earth, causing more and more melancholy and sadness, but inevitably (25). The philosopher E. Thacker, reflecting on the contemporary world, seems to be echoing capitalist cosmicism (26) in that our world is becoming more and more unthinkable: disasters, pandemics, tectonic shifts, strange and unusual weather, oil-soaked seascapes and the secret threat of extinction hanging over our heads like the Sword of Damocles. Despite our daily worries and desires, it is becoming increasingly difficult to comprehend the world in which we live and of which we are part. To confront this idea is to confront an absolute limit to our ability to understand the world adequately, an idea that has been a central motif of the horror genre for some time now27. What is the immeasurable, unimaginable and unthinkable world? Could it be that here lies the key that opens the door to the enigmatic layers of modernity and creative potential?

21 THACKER, Eugene. In the Dust of this Planet. Horror of Philosophy vol. 1. Winchester: Zero books, 2011. p.179. ISBN: 9781846946769

22 FISHER, Mark. Kapitalistinis realizmas. Vilnius: Hubris. 2021. p.172. ISBN 9786098280098

23 Režisieriaus Andrew Stanton animacinis filmas WALL-E, sukurtas 2008 m. Šį filmą, kaip pavyzdį M. Fisher knygoje „Kapitalistinis realizmas“ naudoja apibūdinti kapitalistinio pasaulio distopizmą.

24 THACKER, Eugene. In the Dust of this Planet. Horror of Philosophy vol. 1. Winchester: Zero books, 2011. p.41. ISBN: 9781846946769

25 Referencija į 2011 m. režisrieriaus Lars Von Trier filmą „Melancholija“

26 Kosmicizmas - dar kitaip vadinamas kosminiu siaubu ar Lovekraftišku siaubu, kurio pradininkas rašytojas H. P. Lovecraft. Esminis kosmicizmo bruožas - absoliutus žmonių rūšies nereikšmingumas visatoje. Siaubo rašytojas tikėjo, jog visata yra beprasmė, abejinga, svetima, mechaniška, o žmogaus atsiradimas ir neišvengiamas išnykimas bus tik vienas iš daugybės nereikšmingų visatos įvykių. Toks H.P. Lovecraft požiūris atsispindėjo ir jo kūryboje. Šiame kontekste minimas kapitalistinis kosmicizmas, turėtų būti suprantamas kaip netolimos ateities distopinis scenarijus