Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Confessions of an English Opium Eater
In class, we discussed the difference between terror and horror. The idea that this kind of "pleasing terror" can be similar yet different from what De Quincey describes, particularly in the section called Pains of Opium, was interesting to me. To me, it seemed that terror is something physical that can be controlled or manipulated- it's the helmet in the garden, or the skeleton in the chest. There is a way away from it, and there is a way to escape it. Horror, on the other hand, is internal. This section is full of intense imagery that continues to build upon itself, for example, "I was the idol; I was the priest; I was worshipped; I was sacrificed," (199). This building of imagery shows the decline of mental stability. What De Quincey experiences in Pains of Opium does not go away. It manifests itself within his dreams, within his every waking moment. Because this horror is so internal, there is no way for De Quincey to escape it, and it essentially drives him mad.
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Yes and this is why dreams are the central issue. In dreams you release all physical control and the mind completely takes over. In nightmares, it is common a theme to lose control of your body; a dream where you are being chased but you can't seem to run as fast you know your body is capable, or even are unable to move at all. If terror has the element of control, then horror is the lack of it; the distinction is in autonomy. It is much easier to draw inspiration from terror because, in part, a person is an active participant and can give direction to their fate. Horror is shutting down and going mad as you can only watch what horrible things will occur.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your thoughts on the difference between external terror and internal horror. I think these two things can exist without each other, but they often go together. Perhaps the inner, inescapable horror comes from being unable to cope with some terrifying external reality. Or, as was possibly the case with De Quincey, an inner horror can project itself onto the natural world, forming everyday things into nightmares. Opium’s effect on De Quincey’s brain caused him paranoia, making him afraid of things that should not naturally be frightening, such as sleep. As you said, he was unable to escape the confines of horror in his mind, so everything around him descended with him into madness.
ReplyDeleteThe moment when he wakes up to see his children standing next to his bed is a very powerful one for drawing out these insightful points: immersed in the horror of his crocodile dreams, DeQuincy awakes to the "sight of innocent human natures of infancy," a transition he describes as a "mighty and sudden revulsion of mind" (260). If he had awoken to a scene of pleasing terror, the experience may have been one of safety and settling--horror would have been replaced by an aesthetic experience. But waking up to see innocent, real children made the horror of his dreams even more potent since internal and external were so entirely at odds with each other.
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