Mythcœur

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  • Suburban Gothic – Finding the uncanny in the manicured lawn.

    Suburban Gothic – Finding the uncanny in the manicured lawn.





    Suburban Gothic – Finding the uncanny in the manicured lawn

    Suburban Gothic – Finding the uncanny in the manicured lawn

    In the realm of suburban living, the picturesque facade often masks a hidden undercurrent of disquiet. This tension between the idealized and the eerie is embodied in the genre known as Suburban Gothic.

    “The suburbs are where the American Dream goes to die” – Joyce Carol Oates

    • Isolation: The vast expanses of manicured lawns and isolated houses can create a sense of isolation, fostering an atmosphere of unease.
    • Deception: Beneath the shiny veneer of suburban life, lies a world that is not always as it seems. This deception is a common trope in Suburban Gothic stories.
    • The Ordinary Turned Sinister: In this genre, the everyday objects and situations are imbued with an unsettling quality, transforming the mundane into the macabre.

    The Suburban Gothic subgenre can be traced back to works like Ray Bradbury’s ‘Dandelion Wine’ and Shirley Jackson’s ‘The Lottery.’ More recently, it has found expression in popular culture through films such as ‘American Beauty’ and TV shows like ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer.’

    “Life during wartime is about learning to live with the unexpected” – Kelly Link, from ‘Stranger Things: The Complete Second Season’

    In exploring the Suburban Gothic, we find that the manicured lawns and quiet streets of suburbia are not as idyllic as they appear. Instead, they serve as a stage for the exploration of human nature, our fears, and the unsettling undercurrents that lie beneath the surface.

  • The Waste Land – T.S. Eliot and the myth of the dry kingdom.

    The Waste Land – T.S. Eliot and the myth of the dry kingdom.





    The Waste Land – T.S. Eliot and the myth of the dry kingdom

    a confession

    “I have measured out my life with coffee spoons.” – T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land

    breaths of the dry kingdom

    In the arid landscape of The Waste Land, T.S. Eliot weaves a tapestry of fragmented myth and symbol, inspired by his own spiritual malaise.

    • The mythic fragments: From the Sibylline oracles to the Hindu epic, The Mahabharata, Eliot weaves together a diverse collection of mythological fragments that mirror his own sense of disillusionment and fragmentation.
    • The dry kingdom: The term “dry kingdom” is used by Eliot to describe the spiritually barren landscape of post-World War I Europe, a place where traditional sources of meaning have been irrevocably shattered.

    an echo of antiquity

    By revisiting and reimagining the myths of ancient civilizations, Eliot seeks to reconnect with a deeper sense of meaning and purpose that has been lost in modernity.

    “What are the roots that clutch, what branches grow / Out of this stony rubbish?” – T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land

    the silence of the desert

    The Waste Land concludes with a vision of desolation and despair, yet it is also a testament to the resilience of the human spirit in the face of overwhelming darkness. Through its exploration of myth and symbol, Eliot’s masterpiece offers a profound meditation on the nature of existence in a world that has lost its way.