The Works of Howard Phillips Lovecraft
November 20, 2001 10:22 AM Subscribe
The Works of Howard Phillips Lovecraft Unabridged texts of most of his short stories, poems, and essays, as well as biographies, photos, and even wallpaper. Cthulhu fhtagn, dude.
Why is it strange?
Unspeakable, sure. And maybe full of angles that if you stare at them long enough will drive you slowly mad.
But strange?
posted by Kafkaesque at 10:55 AM on November 20, 2001
Unspeakable, sure. And maybe full of angles that if you stare at them long enough will drive you slowly mad.
But strange?
posted by Kafkaesque at 10:55 AM on November 20, 2001
Lovecraft is evil and insane. However, if you are able to abide such stuff, this is a wonderful site. Like doug, however, I find it hard to read that much text on line. Wouldn't it have been simple for the site designers to create a table or column in the center of the page, and simply put the text in there? It's a pretty basic operation, viewed from my amateur web-designing experience.
posted by Faze at 10:56 AM on November 20, 2001
posted by Faze at 10:56 AM on November 20, 2001
Great link, Shadowkeeper. I actually wish a lot more sites were designed as basic as this one. If you find the text hard to read, you can always apply your own style sheet.
Wish I could think of a Lovecraftian reference to follow up Kafkaesque, but it's been a while...
posted by dlewis at 11:18 AM on November 20, 2001
Wish I could think of a Lovecraftian reference to follow up Kafkaesque, but it's been a while...
posted by dlewis at 11:18 AM on November 20, 2001
You've read the books, now buy the plush toy. [via memepool]
posted by j.edwards at 1:46 PM on November 20, 2001
posted by j.edwards at 1:46 PM on November 20, 2001
Apologies for cross-posting, but the reading the Bloink! thread reminded me about The Colour Out Of Space for some reason...
Great toy, j.edwards!
posted by dlewis at 2:23 PM on November 20, 2001
Great toy, j.edwards!
posted by dlewis at 2:23 PM on November 20, 2001
My other vehicle is a MI-GO BRAIN CYLINDER
How could you not note the bumper stickers there, j.edwards?
posted by y2karl at 2:25 PM on November 20, 2001
How could you not note the bumper stickers there, j.edwards?
posted by y2karl at 2:25 PM on November 20, 2001
That is not dead which can eternal lie,
And with strange aeons even death may die.
I was working at the post office the day Elvis died and this color xerox post card to S. Clay Wilson from Robert Ferrigno came through: The young Elvis onstage between two arcing transformers ala the animation scene in any given Frankenstein and the above quote. We all passed it around and laughed our heads off. One prescient piece of mail that was late in delivery...
posted by y2karl at 2:47 PM on November 20, 2001
And with strange aeons even death may die.
I was working at the post office the day Elvis died and this color xerox post card to S. Clay Wilson from Robert Ferrigno came through: The young Elvis onstage between two arcing transformers ala the animation scene in any given Frankenstein and the above quote. We all passed it around and laughed our heads off. One prescient piece of mail that was late in delivery...
posted by y2karl at 2:47 PM on November 20, 2001
Perhaps it is because I came to Lovecraft late (i.e., not in my teens/twenties), but I have never been able to get that excited about his work. A couple of interesting ideas, but, really, only one formula - plot-wheel writing at its best. I'll take Poe over Lovecraft any day of the week.
posted by edlark at 4:06 PM on November 20, 2001
posted by edlark at 4:06 PM on November 20, 2001
i liked "the white ship", reading the site just now. never read any lovecraft before.
posted by moz at 5:13 PM on November 20, 2001
posted by moz at 5:13 PM on November 20, 2001
On reading one collection of his short stories, I found it a little annoying that anyone insufficiently aryan is described in subhuman terms --
"Here his only visible servants, farmers, and caretakers were a sullen pair of aged Narragansett Indians; the husband dumb and curiously scarred, and the wife of a very repulsive cast of countenance, probably due to a mixture of negro blood."
"I s'pose you know - though I can see you're a Westerner by your talk - what a lot our New England ships - used to have to do with queer ports in Africa, Asia, the South Seas, and everywhere else, and what queer kinds of people they sometimes brought back with 'em. You've probably heard about the Salem man that came home with a Chinese wife, and maybe you know there's still a bunch of Fiji Islanders somewhere around Cape Cod." [This one's arguable, I admit.]
"There were only three passengers - dark, unkempt men of sullen visage and somewhat youthful cast - and when the vehicle stopped they clumsily shambled out and began walking up State Street in a silent, almost furtive fashion."
-- and his attempts at dialect are truly dire. But he rang the changes of weird fiction well enough to be readable even at this late date.
Anyone interested in fresh lovecraftian humor should check out the League of Gentlemen TV series from Britain, it's rather macabre and quite a riot.
posted by retrofut at 5:42 PM on November 20, 2001
"Here his only visible servants, farmers, and caretakers were a sullen pair of aged Narragansett Indians; the husband dumb and curiously scarred, and the wife of a very repulsive cast of countenance, probably due to a mixture of negro blood."
"I s'pose you know - though I can see you're a Westerner by your talk - what a lot our New England ships - used to have to do with queer ports in Africa, Asia, the South Seas, and everywhere else, and what queer kinds of people they sometimes brought back with 'em. You've probably heard about the Salem man that came home with a Chinese wife, and maybe you know there's still a bunch of Fiji Islanders somewhere around Cape Cod." [This one's arguable, I admit.]
"There were only three passengers - dark, unkempt men of sullen visage and somewhat youthful cast - and when the vehicle stopped they clumsily shambled out and began walking up State Street in a silent, almost furtive fashion."
-- and his attempts at dialect are truly dire. But he rang the changes of weird fiction well enough to be readable even at this late date.
Anyone interested in fresh lovecraftian humor should check out the League of Gentlemen TV series from Britain, it's rather macabre and quite a riot.
posted by retrofut at 5:42 PM on November 20, 2001
Not exactly cricket to judge his characterizations by modern standards, retrofut. Lovecraft's purpose and focus was different than that of many writers today. Rather than promoting a sensitivity to diversity or psychosocial development, he was tapping into the psyche of his readership to unnerve and frighten them. Foreigners were generally perceived odd, poorly understood, creepy and not quite right. And their portrayal as such in fiction was a familiar and effective cliche. As such, they could be utilized as a sort of shorthand to help foster the mood that Lovecraft was aspiring to in his work.
posted by rushmc at 7:42 PM on November 20, 2001
posted by rushmc at 7:42 PM on November 20, 2001
Kafkaesque: I believe the adjective that should be used rather than strange is "eldritch" as in "I dared not look upon that eldritch horror arisen again from the depths of time and space."
If you'd like to read Lovecraft on good ol' paper, I think the best Lovecraft books out there are the collections put out by Arkham House. The hardcovers are especially nice with well done cover illustrations that aren't too lurid.
The most complete collection of Lovecraft's manuscripts, notes, revisions, etc. is housed in the John Hay Library at Brown University. Look for the plaque outside the library on Prospect St. commemorating Lovecraft, who lived much of his life just blocks away. (The Hay is rumored to have other interesting things as well such as a book bound in human skin.)
posted by finn at 11:34 PM on November 21, 2001
If you'd like to read Lovecraft on good ol' paper, I think the best Lovecraft books out there are the collections put out by Arkham House. The hardcovers are especially nice with well done cover illustrations that aren't too lurid.
The most complete collection of Lovecraft's manuscripts, notes, revisions, etc. is housed in the John Hay Library at Brown University. Look for the plaque outside the library on Prospect St. commemorating Lovecraft, who lived much of his life just blocks away. (The Hay is rumored to have other interesting things as well such as a book bound in human skin.)
posted by finn at 11:34 PM on November 21, 2001
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posted by Doug at 10:32 AM on November 20, 2001