Howard Phillips Lovecraft, one of my favorite authors, was born 120 years ago today. He died in March of 1937. For a xenophobic, kinda racist, sorta-asexual whitey from New England who died over 73 years ago, Lovecraft’s writing’s have been incredibly influential to countless writers, readers, artists and filmmakers. In celebration of this anniversary I’d like to take a moment to detail what his work means to me.
"It's me! H.P.!"
Lovecraft was a practitioner of what was then referred to as “weird fiction.” This was pretty much any type of writing that focused on horror, fantasy and science fiction, but was before those genre conventions had been established. Lovecraft’s work differed from that of other horror authors in that much of his work did not use elements of religion or the supernatural. The “horror” of his writings came from science, or ideas based in science. Instead of ghosts or demons the monsters in his stories were often aliens or other cosmic entities that existed just outside the realm of human understanding. The general premise of his work was that the Universe is a strange and terrifying place, and that the human mind will go mad from glimpsing only mere pieces of the truth. To me, that’s pretty bad-ass.
I love the idea that human life is inconsequential to the Universe at large. I like that we might be insignificant in the grand scheme of life. To me, thinking that anything you or I might do will be of no consequence to the cosmos is somewhat comforting. With this perspective, any problem that might arise is immediately made smaller. Sure, something might be a big deal from our human-to-human viewpoint, but if you take a step back and decide that nothing really matters, any issue becomes surmountable.
Hey, it's Cthulhu!
Another thing I like about Lovecraft’s work is the bizarreness of the creatures he created. Many of his monsters defy description (he often said so, which I’m sure made writing about them that much easier). Even the ones that are specifically described are so strange that artistic interpretation becomes a necessity. I love seeing different renderings of Cthulhu or Deep Ones. Some interpretations appeal to me and some don’t. I like that anyone can imagine what these creatures might look like and each person can still feel connected to the material. Your Yog-Sothoth might look one way and mine might look another, but together we have a shared understanding of what it is and what it means.
Something about Lovecraft’s writings bring people together in a way I haven’t experienced with any other author. It’s almost like there’s an unseen connection binding his admirers and when we meet we unconsciously give one another the secret wink and handshake. I don’t think many other pieces of genre fiction unite their fans in this way. In nerd terms, Star Trek fans can fight over Kirk vs. Picard and Star Wars fans can argue over the prequels, but Lovecraft’s work is Lovecraft’s work; his stories are finite and complete.
A Deep One
That’s not to say Lovecraft’s ideas are finished. To the contrary, even during his lifetime other writers were using his concepts and creations in their own works, with his encouragement. Lovecraft wanted others to expand on his ideas and to this day artists all over the world follow his wishes. As time goes on Lovecraft’s legacy continues to expand, and since his work is in the public domain (more or less), there’s no such thing as “unauthorized” derivatives. People can create what they want out of his ideas and fans can either accept or reject it. Lovecraft’s stories are a living thing, growing with every addition. His work is owned by everyone and we can all be a part of it. Lovecraft may not have seen meaning in life, but together you and I can make our own.
So here’s to the futility of life and the madness that comes with true knowledge. I say if we can’t possibly comprehend the truth at least we can be happy with what we have in our own shallow existence. Let’s celebrate the Old Gentleman from New England’s work, and pass it on to others, so that even more people can appreciate his writings for the next 120 years.
