BA assignment about Ligotti

[MadsPLP]

Hello Nightmare Network,

earlier today, I handed in my finished BA assignment about Thomas Ligotti's fiction.

I'm not too satisfied with it myself. I may or may not translate it into English and make it available here, depending on its grading and academic vanity.

I'll post the summary here in a few days, for those who may be interested.

Nevertheless, should anyone here be able to read Danish, you're welcome to send me a mail or private message if you wish to read it.

best,
mads

[MadsPLP]

I just got the answer today. I, rather surprisingly, given that I wasn't satisfied with it myself, got the highest grading available in Denmark (a "12"), which I'm very happy about. I'm now thinking about translating it into English. It may take a few months (years, decades), but I think I'll do it, in order to get some academic repute amongst a very small number of persons.

As a teaser, I hereby bring you....the resume!

Quote

Summary: The subject of this paper is American horror writer Thomas Ligotti and his fiction’s way of rejecting life. First, I discuss the horror genre as defined by H.P. Lovecraft and S.T. Joshi in relation to the fantastic as defined by Tzvetan Todorov and Rosemary Jackson. A vital element in this discussion, is the theory that horror literature has wider implications than mere creation of horror. Ideally, horror fiction should reconceptualise the place of the human in the universe, as well as reconceptualise our values and shatter our perception of reality. The paper argues that Ligotti’s horror fiction bases itself on a merging of the real with the nightmare, by utilizing a shattering of boundaries, and puppets as symbols for human life. This is reminiscent of certain Gnostic beliefs, but Ligotti’s fiction offers no salvation, as opposed to the Gnostics. In Ligotti’s fiction, life is the essential problem that cannot be solved. Everything seems to partake in life, whereby – in a distinctly anti-ideal authorship – the standing outside of life, the escape from life, and the rejection of life becomes the only ideals. The paper stresses that the rejection of life, and standing on the outside of life, is a vital part of Ligotti’s fiction, whereby it reconceptualises our notion of humanity, our values and our perception of reality. However, even the rejection of life is also, in a way, an affirmation of life, meaning there is no escape from life, in spite of a continual rejection.

As one can see, it's not exactly groundbreaking work here, but since it's a BA, it doesn't need to be. Nevertheless, it's apparently a good paper, with some Todorov-bashing.

[Jezetha]

Excellent news, Mads! My congratulations!

I had already read the greater part of your BA assignment. Once I have finished The Nightmare Factory I'll do so again. I'm looking forward to comparing your view of Ligotti with mine.

[gveranon]

MadsPLP: That sounds very interesting. I'll be eager to read it if you post an English translation of it here.

[G. S. Carnivals]

I envy you, MadsPLP. I never had "12" scrawled upon my writing assignments. I had to settle for the scarlet letter... ;)

[Cyril Tourneur]

congratulations Mads on your BA mark

[Viva June]

Tillykke!

I guess this means that drinks are on you the next time we meet.

[MadsPLP]

Quote Originally Posted by Viva June

Tillykke! I guess this means that drinks are on you the next time we meet.

I guess so. There's a downside to everything, isn't there?

Many thanks to you who congratulated - I guess a scarlet letter isn't too bad, GSC? I considered writing my thesis about that novel, but I'm glad I decided against it.

And many, many thanks to those from the Nightmare Network who provided me with texts about Ligotti - that was a greater help than you can imagine.

I still haven't started translated, but hope to get something done in the next couple of weeks.

[G. S. Carnivals]

Quote Originally Posted by MadsPLP

Many thanks to you who congratulated - I guess a scarlet letter isn't too bad, GSC? I considered writing my thesis about that novel, but I'm glad I decided against it.

In the United States, the highest academic grade is denoted by the letter "A," with "A+" being superlative. I had a religion instructor in college who told us that he once used a scale of animals as grades in order to prove the arbitrariness of the system. He said that students would seriously approach him, and attempt to have a "pig" changed to a "horse" or a "horse" changed to a "cow." Mr. Will taught me most of what I understand about Buddhism. And he attended a wild Halloween party at our house once, too!

[MadsPLP]

Aha! I wasn't sure the A+ grade actually existed. I don't own a television anymore, so my memories from American TV series are rather blurred these days.

In Denmark, the superlative grading doesn't exist anymore, the former "11" and "13" (the latter being the superlative grading) have recently married, and lives happily together as the "12". The arbitraryness, however, is still very much present.

Quote Originally Posted by G. S. Carnivals

Quote Originally Posted by MadsPLP Many thanks to you who congratulated - I guess a scarlet letter isn't too bad, GSC? I considered writing my thesis about that novel, but I'm glad I decided against it. In the United States, the highest academic grade is denoted by the letter "A," with "A+" being superlative. I had a religion instructor in college who told us that he once used a scale of animals as grades in order to prove the arbitrariness of the system. He said that students would seriously approach him, and attempt to have a "pig" changed to a "horse" or a "horse" changed to a "cow." Mr. Will taught me most of what I understand about Buddhism. And he attended a wild Halloween party at our house once, too!