The True History That Inspired Folk Horror (Part 1)
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- čas přidán 4. 06. 2024
- In this first part of a series of videos, we explore the history and folklore which inspired the Folk Horror genre in film and literature.
Films/Literature/Events referenced:
Children of the Stones (1975)
The Wicker Man (1973)
The World of Stonehenge (2018)
The Reddening by Adam Nevill
The Ecclesiastical History of the English People by Bede
The Three-Headed One at the Crossroad by Jiří Dynda
Sources:
What is the Wicker Man? Ancient Pagan Celtic Ritual described by Greek and Roman Writers...
• What is the Wicker Man...
The Three-Headed One at the Crossroad by Jiří Dynda
sms.zrc-sazu.si/pdf/17/03_sms1...
Twitter: / connork_au
Audiobooks: eldritcharchives.bandcamp.com
My gist of folk horror is that it is an active reimagining of the past, often pulling elements from verifiably apocryphal sources (Greek and Roman historians making things up whole cloth for example), and obsessing over class dynamics (and often gender/subversive sexual culture... lots of orgies). Folk horror usually boils down to being terrified of poor or rural people. Sometimes it is empowering, giving people (or an individual) hidden autonomy from a greater culture, but most often not. It is a fun game to try and delineate what is folk horror-I think there's a valid argument that Twin Peaks is folk horror.
astute shit
Two Gun Bob Howard said he got his American horror stories directly from the yarns his grandmother told him as a child.
I will need to chase this up! Thanks for the info! Two Gun Bob always delivers the goods.
Was horror the reason he started carrying Two Guns ?
😊😊
Yes! There is some sort of weird connection with children and many nursery rhymes, that has a dark side. Why? Is it children trying to cop with stress by singing about the horrors they’ve seen, or heard whispered about by adults? Fascinating.
My grandma's stories would curl your blood. And my friend died when I was young and I became very good friend with his dad, he told me and showed me some crazy stuff in Claxton Georgia.
I can actually think of one example of a religion going into hiding for more than a few generations: Japan's hidden Christians went underground in the 17th century, and reemerged from hiding in 1873 when religious freedom was established. Their version of Catholicism was almost unrecognisable after 300 years. They were known as the Kakure Kirishitan, and some still practise their alternative Christianity. There is one island where a few Kakure Kirishitan survive; they now only have two priests, both over 90 years old, who don't talk to each other...
"... who don't talk to each other ..."
Is there an interesting story there? You left me blue balled.
@@dileepvr It just amuses me how revealing of the hypocrisy of clergy this is. They preach 'love thy neighbour as thyself' but the last two priests of a fragile community have fallen out to such a degree that they stop communicating.
@@dileepvr Oh, and sorry for the testicular distress 😁
Whoa. The Green Man.
My nasty step-grandmother had a stone rendering of the Green Man’s face. She probably bought it at an uppity garden boutique, clueless as to what it was.
She was going to throw it away as it no longer pleased her, and I intervened, saving it before it ended up discarded.
It had a chunk of dried mud imbedded in the left side of its nose and cheek.
Not wanting to track dirt inside, I scraped at the mud with a stick and was shocked as the dust fell away. Encased in the mud was a large grub, a bright poisonous yellow. I’m still not sure what it was, I assumed the foul cocoon of a Yellowjacket or giant hornet.
Something about this loathsome offspring encased in the Green Man’s face that was decidedly…I don’t have the words. I guess eerie is a good word. I wouldn’t say it felt evil, nothing like that, but wild, venomous, malicious.
Really, it was just some junky lawn ornament and a poor little bug who would now perish because of my ignorant fumbling. And I’m still sorry somehow for that.
I kept the Green Man, though. He hangs outside our house, a smear of that greenish mud still there, 15 years later.
In Oklahoma black wasps commonly called dirt dobbers build nests like that to hatch their eggs. Spiders and bugs are stung to death and the dirt dobbers lay their eggs on them. To humans they are the least aggressive wasps around and less likely to sting or bite than the spiders they feed on. The color of the nest depends on the local soil brown and red around here. If yours was green it was most likely made from cow manure. I hope you washed your hands.
We’ve got mud dobbers in the Midwest. They’re usually yellow and black and build little mud cocoons for their young to pupate and grow in, and then they burrow their way out as full grown wasps/hornets.
They’re not usually dangerous though. They can sting, but really don’t unless you’re actively trying to kill them or destroy their cocoons.
Lucky you took the Green Man elsewhere to try and clean it.
'Malicious' isn't the word I'd use in regards to that. It implies evil or at the very least enmity. 'Predatory' would be more appropriate.
There is no actual specific meaning to the Green Man except as a representation of nature. It was a general motif all over Europe. It wasn't specific like images of Pan or Cernunos
Wow epic you really needed to spend the 15 minutes of life typing all that thanks
“I found information I had overlooked...”
What a refreshing statement in our current political world climate! Willingness to accept new information is not only vital for learning and teaching, but the very difference between ignorance and intelligence.
Hats off to you for that alone!
Folk horror really is a kind of christian horror. It's interesting to see your anglo saxon perspective because it clearly influences the general aesthetic of fiction. I think you would love some more obscure surviving traditions in continental europe. I only know of central german, south italian and french tales but there is super cool material that is a bit under exploited in horror.
As a lit professor (medievalist) I have to add that both the Gothic literary tradition (dating to the 1760s and also the Ossian controversy and the Grimm brothers and German Romanticism w/Goethe) and on my side of the pond the writing of Nathaniel Hawthorne - who was writing in the first half of the 19th century but set his stories in Puritan New England (1600s), all fit aspects of the “folk horror” themes. See “Young Goodman Brown” for an example. In the early 1900s the great M. R. James wrote a number of ghost stories referencing the idea of folk horror.
Of course the idea of the rural land holding mysterious, ancient power was also very appealing to writers in the medieval (Gawain and the Green Knight, the lays of Marie de France, Sir Orfeo with its powerful King of the Otherworld - or the great and terrifying King of the Fey) and Renaissance periods (Macbeth’s witches for just one example).
I have to say that for all the Christian Persecution that many churches preach, the persecution of pagan and indigenous religions has always been far greater at their hands…
When I learned about the Native American/First Nations forced boarding schools to ‘civilize’ and ‘christianize’ children in the 19th and 20th century I was utterly disgusted…
I was taking about this with my mom one time like yes it is true that the Roman’s treated the Christian’s horrible but after that the Christians at that time treated the pagans,the witches,,and anyone not Christians horribly. The amount of power that the church had is gross and to this day SOME Christian’s still abuse that power. At the end of the day it doesn’t matter who prosecuted who first it matters that people were killed for being who they are and still are
So true!
Yup
The final crusades were fought against north German and Scandinavians to secure the final christianizing and colonizing of Europe. Think about it, Europe was a completely colonized continent, colonized by christian Rome, and than various European states such as England, Germany, France and Spain inherited that Roman colonizer disease and became colonizers themselves, all in the name of Christiandom.
So in a way the nations of europe that were christianized presented a state/society form of what psychology called 'Compulsion Repetition', a reproduction of the trauma their people faced at the hands of the Romans. Quite interesting
Sorry if you're already clued in on it, but otherwise look up the Northern Crusade, which is when the Teutonic Order invaded the Baltics to cleanse the pagan population. Also had a war with the Rus', from which Aleksandr Nevsky arose, whom is still revered as a sort of founding father of Russia, also because of the theme used in WW2 propaganda of a great Russian leader defending the Motherland against the invading Germans
I feel an important aspect of this notion of the mystery of the past stemming from the loss of knowledge in several of these films is also how it’s often misinterpreted and especially exploited by certain figures of power or authority in the present.
In both the wicker man and midsommar we have rich privileged and/or authoritative figures exploit both this loss and the people’s ignorance of the past for their own purposes. In the conversations between Howie and summerisle the latter freely admits that what they have is a perversion of the past brought about by his hobbyist parents and him further exploiting it for his own purposes. Howie also points out that sooner or later the cult will turn on Summerisle when inevitably the harvest fails one day as he has no real power over nature, only over his own indoctrinated cult and anyone weaker than them.
Meanwhile in Midsommar as has been frequently pointed out and in some cases critiqued by actual pagans is the fact that it is not an accurate depiction of the actual festival but rather a fabrication by its organisers meant to look genuine while being something else entirely. Many of the “rituals” such as the screaming matches, suicides and especially the sacrifices, outfits and prophecies have little to no historical basis. The scene with the one character trying to take pictures of their “sacred” text and being caught in the act comes off less as an ignorant clout chaser and more like a vicious cult trying to hide their falsehoods and crimes.
In a way this is another tragic angle of these stories from the perspective of cultural preservation. People in the present desperate for answers, community, purpose or anything seeking answers in their lost heritage and or the exotic only for certain figures to in turn exploit the desperation and ignorance to turn this lost culture into something they can exploit and a veneer of legitimacy. The culture has been lost, perverted and now used to harm people, with its success ensuring continued suffering or with its failure forever damaging its reputation.
It’s the difference between genuine and preserved folk customs and unnatural opportunistic manufacturing of culture. Ominously enough I imagine this is how many real life religions and cults spread.
There’s been folk horror as long as there’s been folk!
Now for another recommendation: Arthur Machen's "The White People". Omg. This one had me guessing for years. I discovered a lot of Golden Age British horror during the summers between college semesters, going to the libraries in my hometown. I've been reading supernatural fiction since I was a child and I've accumulated quite a collection. I have a LOT of "folk horror " and Arthur Machen is an author with a lot of that in his work. "The White People" is just so subtle and ambiguous it's really difficult to figure out what exactly is happening, especially at the end. I finally came to the conclusion that this ultra-religious Welshman just found anything that wasn't in the Bible to be EEEE-VILLL. Still kinda interesting, though.
When it comes to the name The Green Man, I thought of the meaning of the word "green" during the middle age. It was often used meaning fresh or new. Not only for plants, but also for food not preserved to last longer. The term "green meat" was used for meat that wasn't dried, salted or smoked, but intended to be used fresh. "Green cheese" meant the soft white cheese that wasn't matured into the more common hard cheese.
Not sure if this has anything to do with the meaning of The Green Man, but sometimes changing uses of words can hide older meanings.
The Green Man is often associated with the cycle of life and the sprouting/blossoming of things, so that's an interesting point you've brought up.
It's said he represents the natural wisdom of living things, but how much we can rely on that interpretation is uncertain.
I personally think pagan religions involved an amount of personal interpretation, and it wouldn't be possible to nail down one specific answer for everything.
The symbol at the beginning of the film is actually Nuada , the god of the sun of whom they are worshiping. He fades out at the end as well implying that “ the sacrifice was likely successful “.
You mean the Green Man?
Nuada Airgetlam was the King of the Tuatha De Danann. It is Nudd in Welsh.
It's easy to see that the folk horror genre is simply using the motif of christian anti pagan slander.
It's always good to be cautious with claims of 'pagan survivals'. There certainly are some, but there's also a tendency for people to want to romanticise weird local traditions and imagine ancient explanations that can't be proven. It's possible for 'traditions' to arise quite quickly just because people find them rewarding- e.g. 'gender reveal parties' and 'love locks' are now common in many places but were virtually unknown 20 years ago. Some of the weird folk traditions that people claim are ancient survivals of pagan rituals are probably just something goofy somebody did for fun in 1903 (or whenever) which inexplicably caught on with their neighbours because they were bored.
WOW save some misanthropy for the rest ov the agnostics...
@@nunyanunya4147 What part of anything I wrote there is 'misanthropic'? Do you know what the word actually means?
@@chrisball3778 please... if it makes you feel better and helps illustrate the point i made that you missed add 'passive aggressive' and/or 'smarthy' infront ov 'misanthropy'.
does that help at all Chip?
@@nunyanunya4147 just say you don't know what misanthropic means bud, save yourself some embarassment.
@@urmumsbaps ok bubbles have fun in the 80s!
I think one of the biggest problems you run into in cases such as this is that what survives religious changes is the folklore. You see folklore that predates the viking age and still exists in Scandinavia all the way up until the 1800's. You see it in Japan today where no one would likely call themselves religious but they visit shrines for good luck and keep out of certain areas believed to be heavily influenced by certain spirits you would like to avoid. You see it in Ancient Greece as well and more specifically in Rome where deities changed, new ones came and old ones were abandoned but the folklore remained because that was what people saw as the closest connection to the otherworldly. The idea of deities as the end all be all that we have today simply did not exist.
The bathroom of the house i lived in as a child had a green man in the wood grain of the door. When you sat down you were basically facing it.
It was like sitting on a wooden throne and had a big beard, no one seemed to notice it but me. On the day we moved out i was able to literally point it out to my mother and she was shocked she'd never been able to see it before.
Your writing and editing are both excellent.
I think often symbols become iconic after they stop being significant.
Holy smokes, stumbled on this randomly - it’s amazing!
Coming from Scandinavia, we have various pagan rituals we still perform to this day. Many of them are honestly a little creepy to me - possibly for the same reasons you mentioned early on in the video.
Always had a love for this sort of horror (among Lovecrafts work) - even though I did not know its proper name until now. Keep up the good work!
I find your final few lines particularly interesting. Mostly because I grew up in rural Essex, in an area that is notorious for witchcraft. There are a number of legends which have been around for centuries, and I know from my own experience that witchcraft has been going on in this place for generations. For academics, it's quite hard to research based on books alone because the practices are pretty secretive and, much like the Druids, not much of it is written down. People value oral history and memory retention more in these cultures, although if you look into specific regions you'll find some useful local history books. I myself was raised with witchcraft, like my mum was, and like others in her family were, albeit at different times/in different places. It's worth researching folk magic more as you would be surprised how much of it makes up modern Pagan beliefs. It's an annoying assumption that it's all based on reconstructionism, when there are practices and beliefs that have been around in the countryside long before the reconstructionist movement began. People like Gerald Gardner did appropriate a lot of it into their modern form of Wicca, but witches were using it long before then.
I'd recommend looking into Gemma Gary's work, where she documents modern practices of traditional folk magic in South West England, and the Boscastle Witchcraft Museum--particularly items which have been donated by locals.
If you haven't yet seen Kier-La Janisse's 'Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror', I really cannot recommend it enough, though Kier-La agrees that even at three hours long it can really only capture a small part of the subject (she originally thought about making a mini-series, and I still hope that will get off the ground). The key to engaging with Paganism in folk horror is to recognise that violent traditions (many of which have been exaggerated - bear in mind that some of those Roman sources are propaganda, as noted in this video) are just one part of a much wider network of traditions, many of which remain active around the world. I spent part of my childhood in an English village which had Maypole dancing and, separately, floral rituals for appeasing a well spirit, though the latter had been superficially distorted and appropriated into Christianity. In creating 'The Wicker Man', Robin Hardy did a lot of his own research, touring around such villages, and he kept that up throughout the remainder of his life. He saw the conflict between Christianity and Paganism, which is often central to these films, not as something located in the past but very much as an ongoing thing.
I am so happy I discovered your channel. I've been meaning to write a folk horror story set in my native Subcarpathian region of Poland (with a pinch of the Cthulhu Mythos) for a couple of years now, and your channel really reignated my interest and gave me a lot of inspiration. Thank you!
My favorite source of folk horror is the Bible, the themes of child sex trafficking are a little heavy-handed though
Folk horror is the best horror because it’s so believable, and also picturesque. The Wicker Man is by far the greatest, in fact it transcends the genre.
It's been called the thinking person's horror movie.
Thanks for a very comprehensive presentation. I'd also suggest Arthur Machen's works as an early contribution to folk horror, notably The Great God Pan, The White People, and The Novel of the Black Seal.
I didn't realize that the "official" term folk-horror was this recent! I did watch Gatiss' documentary forever ago. It's good fun.
I think Doctor Who: The Dæmons (1971) helped dramatically in popularizing folk horror, by making it more palatable to general audiences by adding a sci-fi explanation for it. Not to mention how mainstream it was compared to some of the films mentioned in this video.
Even just in terms of sheer numbers, with it receiving 10.5 million viewers when it was repeated later in December of that year (with its original broadcast in May getting 8-9 million). The Wicker Man by comparison was a commercial flop.
Doctor who would repeatedly revisit the occult of the English countryside following this with stories like The Stones of Blood (1978) and the Awakening (1984), though I think the Dæmons is the most notable due to how early it was.
Folk Magic and Magic World beliefs were popular throughout early colonial America. Wealthy people often used superstitions of the poor to call people witches.
THANK YOU for remembering Harvest Home! The book and even more the TV movie "Dark Secret of Harvest Home" were HUGE landmarks in American folk horror which are much too often overlooked.
Thanks for the kind words! I have huge respect for Harvest Home. Very well written and much underrated.
That movie scared the bejeebers out of me when I was a kid. Good times 😄👍
The Green Man was a generalized motif representing nature. Pan and Cernunos are more specific although also associated with nature itself.
I suggest the book 'The History of the Devil: The Horned God of the West' by R. Lowe Thompson
I am less sure about Cernunos, but the Woodwose mentioned would easily syncretize with Pan.
sacrifice is a central theme to Christianity dont forget. Its just been slightly reconceptualized
I know this is an older video, but it strikes me that the stories of the cult of Dionysus have all the elements of folk horror you outlined here. Dionysus was an outsider god to the dominant religion, (later folded into the pantheon, and (not so) coincidentally, the tales of human sacrifices by his followers stopped after he was assimilated) and they take place in the wilderness, and deal with human sacrifice (and have an element of "you get what you deserve" that is seen in trickster gods). And Dionysus was a nature god. I guess the more things change, the more they stay the same.
Human sacrifice has occurred around the world. The Gauls may have reserved the 'wicker man' for times of great need, which is why no indisputable sites have turned up.
Can we *really* rely on the writings of Julius Caesar regarding the Druids? "They" [the Romans] "were... victims of indigestion, you know." -Eris in Principa Discordia.
Lovecraft certainly had many of these elements in his works in the 1920s. Though there was often a cosmic origin to the gods the pagans worshipped the idea of some brutal ancient cult surviving to the present day can be found in many stories.
This helped me see how uniquely European the concept of Folk Horror is, with the Celtic and Germanic roots of modern Europe having been obscured by time and demonized by the successive Romans and Christian missonaries alike. Yet most other folklore around the world still has a clear enough connection with the modern inhabitants of the region and thus not really allow for any feelings of eerie uncertainty by the current population with their own premodern culture.
I'd add two other films to the list that starts around the 5:00 mark - Ingmar Berman's The Virgin Spring (1960) and Hour of the Wolf (1968). Both of these psychological horror films relied on many of the components and broad themes of the films you included
Thanks! I will check both those out!
Nice job !!! I love the fact you included one of my favorite movies " Viy" I haven't the movie so I mangled the spelling but I adore that film.
So many films could by loosely considered folk horror, even some noirs and twilight zone episodes. Growing up in the country, on a farm an only child all I had, other then Saturday creature double features was my imagination. I wish everyone that loves being creeped out by the dark countryside could get a chance to stand in the field of corn just before harvest, at night. The brittle corn stalk leaves scrapping against each other, is one of the most harrowing and haunting symphonies you'll ever hear. Especially given the fact these fields all contain thousands of players. It reminded me of the dead whispering their stories thru the corn stalks. Even better when a nice midnight breeze picks up.
Is that the movie from Poland or Russia? (Sorry, I don’t remember which it was).
@@tunguskalumberjack9987 It’s Russian movie, based on a book from Nikolai Gogol. Although very folkloric in style, Gogol invented most of it himself.
We must remember that even in early days Christianity wasn't a monolith. It's never been a monolith. So the variety of christianities interacting with the variety of native cultures have resulted in a wide variety of folk christianities, which are a result of syncretism.
At the time of publication, Murray's book was dismissed by fellow academians. They didn't buy into the idea of a long surviving cult religion going back tens of thousands of years. Also, it's not an easy book to read with large blocks of text in languages other than English. Not sure why she didn't do translations. I guess, she was maybe showing off a bit. She published another book titled 'God Of The Witches' which is a seemingly condensed version of her former book. It's all in English with many parts just cut and pasted from the witch-cult book. It's much easier to understand. Interesting note: Lovecraft refersd to the witch-cult book in at least one of his stories. Her idea of a secrettive, long surviving cult religion fit into his Mythos idea, I guess.
Check out the song “John Barleycorn”, a traditional UK folk tune- I suggest the version by Steeleye Span. It sounds like it’s about human sacrifice, but is really about harvesting barley to make beer in ye good olde days. Also, if you remember the song in The Wicker Man during the procession, it’s also a traditional UK (I believe Scottish, specifically) folk song called “Willy O’Winsbury”. In the soundtrack it’s instrumental, but look for a live version of it by the band Pentangle for the best rendition- the story and words are beautiful. Also, “Oak, Ash & Thorn” by John Roberts. It’s about “conjuring Summer in” and reverence for the ancient trees of England. If you find a version with the lyrics written out, you’ll see what I’m on about. Sorry to bombard the comments section like I am, but this is one of my very favorite subjects- it’s so full of great stories, music, and even movies.
Thanks for the suggestions. I've saved all to my watch later after this vid. I'm sure that they'll also conjure up some interesting stuff from the algorithm. Good man yourself!
@@nappertandy9089 Thanks! I hope you enjoy them- and have a great weekend!
Before anyone else feels the need to comment about it, I wrote this before seeing the subsequent videos to this one, so I didn’t realize that John Barleycorn was discussed later on. I’m just leaving this comment up as it mentions a couple of other items that viewers might find interesting.
i am SO glad i rewatched your folk horror video about an hour ago and subscribed
Thank you so much for including Viy in your amazing essay! This folm has definitely largely influenced the ukrainian filmigraphy and folk horror adaptations
A book that I can recommend to everyone that I don’t remember hearing mentioned is The Golden Bough, by James George Frazier. Also, the movie “Crone Wood” is currently streaming on Tubi, as is “The Blood On Satan’s Claw”. Both were examples that I particularly enjoyed-
The Golden Bough of redundancy
Sorry for writing this out, but I just now saw that this was covered in following videos. At the time of writing, I had only seen this one, and didn’t realize that there were follow-up videos even available yet. I thought that other viewers might find it interesting, as it wasn’t mentioned in this one or in the comments as far as I saw. I certainly wasn’t trying beat a dead horse, or to imply that people were ignorant, and thought that if they were interested in this video that they would appreciate some further info.
I kept thinking about the vital importance rituals play in these films and books. The ritualistic nature serves to normalise the behaviour of the antagonists, no matter how brutal or inhuman. When something is tradition, you don't need to argue for or against it - it is simply the way things are done.
That plays a crucial part in separating the people who commit the rituals from any moral burdens or misgivings because it is not their place to try and change tradition. I think this is the very essence of what makes folk horror disturbing, the idea that a whole village of kind, respectable people may set aside personal views, morality and basic decency to partake in a horrifying ritual as long as it is a ritual, a tradition, something which united them.
It's quite interesting how the Edgar Wright comedy film "Hot Fuzz" is about this specific topic. The quiet and unassuming populace of a small English country town secretly murder any unwanted people for the sake of remaining the "model town" they have always been, and upholding tradition at ANY cost.
Based on your definition, I would say that Stravinsky's Rite of Spring is folk horror
I just knew you'd mention Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery"! I saw a video of the story in high school decades ago. After viewing the video, we kids had a discussion afterwards and we all agreed it was scary. This is the first time I ever heard a discussion of folk-horror as a genre inspired by long ago paganism. Fascinating video. I'm watching the second half this evening,
Omg I also was expecting to hear about The Lottery after reading it in high school. It struck me as being so horrific yet the characters in the story acted so nonchalant about the yearly sacrifice by stoning each victim. Very disturbing to me even now.
You should do a reading of Novel of the Black Seal by Arthur Machen
I feel like Machens stuff combines folk elements with city life.
Interesting idea! I might do a reading in the future. I agree about Machen and city life. Normally I think folk horror should be restricted to a rural setting, but Machen brings these elements into urban life really well. I particularly like The Great God Pan, which I think takes place mostly in the city.
The three imposters.... another fine example of masterpiece
Hauntingly facinating. I appreciate all the work you did in order to bring it to the viewer. Thank you.
So grateful you compiled this material and information. Thank you very much
Excellent, the best series on Folk Horror. Thanks
Very good assessment. I love these kinds of movies but never really had the name for the genre, “Folk” fits perfectly. I also like how it is only short distance from “Cosmic horror” when you start getting into cults and whatnot.
Sacrifice is not only central to Paganism but also Judaism--Isaac, then animals, then Christ himself. The primary difference between Paganism and Christianity is that many Pagans still sacrificed humans over animals to achieve an end with whatever they considered divine.
Didn't expect such a thoroughly researched and well done video! Subscribed. Very impressive work.
Hi Connor. I, usually, never comment on a youtube video. But this series is a masterpiece. I rewatch it every week, I'm currently reading the Golden Bough. You have given me so much ideas to explore. Thank you so much for the good work. Please forgive my broken english, I'm french :)
Thanks so much! It's really encouraging when people like the videos :) I hope you keep exploring ideas about folk horror and enjoy reading the Golden Bough!
A very interesting aspect of folk horror, which isn't seen in other types of horror is that certain viewers actually empathize with the villains. I remember watching Midsommar, then asking a friend "hey, so, burning people in bear skins and cutting off human faces aside, didn't you feel strangely sympathetic to this cult?" and she was like "yeah actually I was it looks like a really cool place to be a part of". Everywhere from The Wicker Man to stuff like Midnight Mass which is a really weird but very well done example of folk horror, there are good traits to the proposed villains. They usually live very naturally, in picturesque beautiful places, away from offices, cars, smog and public transportation, they have a tightly knit community, unconditional love and a sense of belonging so strong it even overpowers morals at times. I for one would love to find a creepy pagan cult living in the woods, do communal activities, worship together with lovable, nature-loving rural folks. Now human sacrifice is a whole nother matter of course. But as long as they are strangers or annoying tourists or journalists... Okay that might sound creepy. But just think about it. I'm not talking about a cult where there's this one charismatic leader who basically enslaves the rest. I'm talking a small, friendly community who share certain beliefs and respect one another as equals. Like the people in Midsommar, or even Lovecraft's Innsmouth. Having a secret god all to yourself. Having your own rituals, knowing your own truth, eating fresh produce, being a part of something bigger than yourself. Doing traditional crafts and stuff. Hanging around all manner of cool animals like capybaras. Isn't that a tiny bit cool?
Midsommar also made the guy who was burned very unlikeable. He was scum.
i get what you mean, i was sympathetic too, but i think the point to take away from midsommar is that a cult is a cult. i mean, i was in one and whilst it seems idyllic on the outside it's really not like that
I read Lovecrafts Shadow over Innsmouth when I was a child it has stuck in my mind for years and I am in my 60s now!! From this I have studied about Druids and Pagans all my life!! Always wanted to be a Anthropologist and ARCHEOLOGIST since I was young. Maybe it comes from my DNA comeing from Britain, Scotland and Wales and Ireland.
@@jerseystotler3615 this is a great field of study, Jersey! Very interesting and alluring, as well as of great historical and spiritual importance. Your home country is full of amazing folklore & history and your peoples have roots that run very, very deep.
Most cults are like that
This is a wonderful work. I have been a lover of mythology and its impact in society through various cultural traditions for just over three and a half decades, so it is wonderful to see a work that is not full of a presenter's biases but rather backed up with much reading and references. I will certainly be pointing other people in the direction of this worthwhile essay.
On the Green Man, you need to go back to 'The Golden Bough', but to keep it in perspective, I recommend that you also read Ronald Hutton's 'Triumph of the Moon', which is a good primer into the way that some survivals have been overinterpreted or distorted to fit pre-existing theories.
Frazier is very outdated and not very accurate at all.
thanks for the video! I've been hooked up on this genre since your video from last year, came across this one after I suddenly remembered it actually, definitely subscribing now
Humans get in touch with the eeiry and sublime even in modern places. The Backrooms is a good example of this. Once the concept of liminal spaces went viral, the creepiness of those spaces became a genre of horror known as The Backrooms. Humans love that tingly feeling. A reason to listen to our bodies in this modern time. IMHO.
The Wicker Man (the original, not the bloody awful "remake") is a long-time favorite.
OMG IM OBSESSED WITH YOUR CHANNEL!! I adore folk horror and there isn't a lot of analysis on it so I'm binging all your videos now!!
As an Appalachian cunning woman, of Celtic descent, it has been an adventure, unravelling the threads of Wales' pre-Christian past, by way of the traditions that I was taught by my own elders. We still possess much of the lore, which has been forgotten (or proselytised away) in the motherland. It is fulfilling, to return home, and put it all together.
To say the Slavic Pantheon is "totally" different to the Roman Pantheon is a bit problematic.
Yes, both have significantly diverged from each other, but it's worth noting that both are derivative from the same Indo-European origin and actually share several similarities and commonalities due this heritage. Furthermore, significantly less of the Slavic paganism is known than that of Roman/Greek paganism and hence there are less obvious commonalities to directly compare.
So I'd er on the side of making generalisations, especially when omitting discussion of the relationships and shared heritage of the European religions.
You did a marvelous job on this video! Very informative.
Great job on this. Can't wait to watch part II.
Folk horror is the precursor of cosmic horror, as it uses many of those old pagan worship places places as the point where horrifying gods enter our dimension. There’s a very interesting conversation there. Fantastic video by the way. Bravo!
Amazing grace in your work and passion , thank you so very much for this and don't forget that if you hear a bird whistling at night. Don't call back, for whoever or whatever is waiting for the young and nieve to to stumble in the dark out of curiosity , to never be heard from or seen again . That warning from my great grandmother as child still haunts me alittle to this day , even though I've seen and heard many birds chirping at night . Just good earthen stuff . Thanks again
Wow such a meaningful analysis of historical roots and narratives. Thank you!
i love living in scotland and visiting these ancient places such as the stone circles. very interesting your theories about the green man.
This is great work, thank you very much for sharing it !
Saw this video come up on my recommended... instantly subbed the moment I saw the name. great video btw the historic side of this video was really interesting!
Your video is absolutely fascinating. Thumbs up to you.
I have seen variations of the green man theme, even among First Nation dwellers in the states, who called them: "Giant hairy man". Very in tune to the bigfoot legends of today. People still report seeing large hair covered bipedal's who are usually matted down with leaves or other foliage.
You might want to check out how the Sephardic Jews survived the Spanish inquisition if you want to see how folk tradition can survive
When you get out in the sticks, people get weird. It's timeless and ongoing, but always fun to retread history because there's so much bizarro stuff out there. Or the history you make up. Fun video/listen^^
Very good survey! Many thanks... Looking forward to Part II...
What an incredible selection of paintings from Art History to go with the theme of paganism. Some very beautiful art. Loved the video! Subbed!
Thanks for the video ELDRICH ARCHIVES
Folk horror is my favorite brand of horror.
Damn congrats at blowing up, hope you continue to grow
Thank you for this, it’s so great to listen to and an area I’m really keen on discovering more about. Subbed, thank you!
Hard to tell a more horror folk tale than the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. That bit of terrifying storytelling goes back a couple thousand years.
Yeah that's the irony of it hey
Seriously. It's scary looking at it from that angle.
the idea of a demigod being sacrifices then resurrected goes back further than a could thousand years
Such a facinating essay, thank you for this devulge, especially the final segment. As a native american I firmly believe the path for this world is global empathy and truth, this point may be removed from the subject at hand but its videos and information like this that I really respect because it shows to this modern society that we ALL have endured the spread of European Christianity/Catholosism and we ALL have experienced oppression or our cultures forced to blend in/adapt solely to survive total annialation. We are all no different from one another in the end.
Really enjoyed this! Great work.
this is so awesome! thank you for making this! these facets of ancient European culture are often demonized and so vastly misunderstood/misinterpreted. Its really fun to learn about from an unbiased view
HP Lovecraft touches on many of the themes you find in Folk Horror- a lot of his stories feature murderous cults that have survived since ancient times. Also, a number of children's authors have drawn extensively on British folklore to create spooky tales, often given atmospheric rural settings- e.g. Alan Garner and Susan Cooper. As with a lot of genres, there'll be a lot of inspirations and trying to pinpoint a single origin point is usually a losing game.
Yes Alan Garner is a good mention.
Very interesting video, thanks for referencing my favourite kids TV show of the 70s and the Green Man. Amazingly on visiting Derby I was able to buy a Green Man chalice in the gift shop of Derby Cathedral.
Just found your channel, this is really well put together, keep it up! 🧙🏽♂️🍀
There might be an explanation of origin of the Green Man. I think I can make form a parallel between Celtic Green Man and the Slavic Leshiy, both nations being of Indo European branch, it quite makes sense. Btw great analysis
19:32 the symbol on the shield is for the Rosicrucians.
I hate to be commenting a year after you uploaded, but I think Halloween pushed this forward. Well done, very informative. Have you considered that Rosemary's Baby, is actually a folk horror? I wouldn't have ever thought of it as one, but your series made it pretty clear that it ticks all the boxes.
Margaret Alice Murray is such a witchy name. This was really interesting. I love this stuff! British folk music is full of this too.
I had no idea folk horror was so rooted in the history of the British Isles, but it makes perfect sense. I was literally waiting for you to mention Penda's Fen, which is all about the evolution of older traditions in Britain (coupled with some coming-of-age themes of course). Also, subscribed
Yes I was expecting a mention of Penda's Fen especially as it was also in the "Play for Today" series.
I suggest reading The Man Whom the Trees Loved, by Algernon Blackwood. It's a strange fantasy involving nature.
Finest folk horror ever written there
One of my favorite CZcams creators. Thank 🙇 you
Thank you! I admire your channel and the work you put into production is excellent. Your compliment means a lot :)
Thank you for this. I'm loving it.
You're confusing the face of the Wicker Man with that of the Green Man. The Green Man always has foliage growing out of it while the Wicker Man just has wicker. The Roman god Sylvanus, god of the forest, is the best candidate for the Green Man. There is an ancient carving of the Green Man with the name "Sylvanus" carved on it.
You have such good diction! As a non-English speaker, I understand everything. Thank you!
Wonderful video. Thank you for sharing.
1:27 Most people have seen the "prayer flags" in TIbet. But when I was doing some research, I discovered something in the British Isles called "clootie wells." They are sacred sites and the trees around them are filled with strips of white cloth tied to them.
Maybe I'm reaching, but there seems to be more than a passing resemblance.
Hey, we've got a similar practice to those "clootie wells" stil in the Netherlands. They're called a koortsboom or lapjesboom (fever tree/ rag tree). They're trees at spiritually important or sacred places filled with strips of cloth, because it's believed that if you tie a piece of clothing from a sick person to their branches the tree will assume the sickness and the person will be cured. I grew up close to one of these sites, which was next to an ancient, ruined chapel. It's one of those bits of folklore few people still say they believe, and yet the trees are always filled with new-looking rags. Also a lot of covid masks since these last few years.