Weekly Lovecraft - The Haunter of the Dark (Analysis)

[@kevinmerrifield4767]

Another one of my favourites. The protagonist's insatiable curiosity, driving the narrative and the tension that grows along with it as the story evolves made it one of most memorable for me.

[@chriskirby9408]

Loving the HPL content!

[@jonathonfreeman9233]

but ... i thought it mentioned blake's death within the first ... basically read-time minutes of the story? Like, you go in knowing this is a story about his death. really, aside from the detailed account of him exploring the chapel for the first time, i coulda sworn it kept that "piecing things together from other accounts" vibe that Dunwitch shared. Even then I thought it mentioned lifting that 3rd-person-personal account from his diary (though it definitely felt breaking that rule)

[@mouseketeery]

It's one of my favourites. It's a little while since I've read it but I'm afraid I don't remember noticing the change in style particularly - it certainly didn't jar anyway. I think that one of the reasons I enjoy it is that Blake is a stand-in for Robert Bloch who "killed-off" Lovecraft in his story The Shambler From The Stars. Both did it with their "victim's" permission. Also, I enjoy such stories of weird, somewhat out-of-kilter, enclaves in otherwise normal modern towns and cities - a street or alley which has an air of disconnect from what surrounds it. Btw, I'd like to suggest The Music Of Erich Zann for this series.

[@Den.Vos.Reynaerde]

Bloch wrote a follow-up story for this one; 'The Shadow from The Steeple'. But you probably already knew this. 🙂

[@jamescampbell39]

this is part 2 of a trilogy Shambler, Haunter, and the final Shadow from the Steeple.

[@andrewdornan587]

This was one of two Lovecraft stories I listened to on audiobook I tried falling asleep to but kept me awake with an actual sense of dread... loved this one.

[@Den.Vos.Reynaerde]

Another one of my favorites. You can never go wrong with Nyarlathotep...

[@oberstul1941]

I like your HPL analysis; most of them are on point. I don't agree every time with all your views in the other videos, but man, I have to say that I'm profoundly impressed by your writer's bibliography and also the fact that you give away the ebook versions for free elicits a huge sign of respect from me. Cheers, Sir!

[@Steamcrow]

I just finished this book and it was great!! I had such chilling feelings when the item is found

[@MsHellokitty666]

probably my favorite story by lovecraft. I think it hit the sweet spot between telling too little and telling too much without dragging it out too long (like i.e. the whisperer in darkness which was too long and explicit to evoke that scary feeling in me)

[@powerlifting1012]

I'm new to reading classic stories and I picked up this book called horror short stories and these video help because these stories are at a very high reading level.

[@DVSPress]

Thanks for watching!

[@Chou-seh-fu]

"It changes the way the story is being told about halfway through." The first half *looks like* it's told in 3rd person, and then the second half is definitely told from someone reading Blake's diary. However, near the start of the story (the 4th paragraph), we're explicitly told that everything in the story is taken from his diary: *"Now, studying the diary closely, dispassionately, and at leisure, let us summarize the dark chain of events from the expressed point of view of their chief actor..."* But Lovecraft doesn't mention the diary again in the first half, so it's easy to forget about it. Then in the second half, he mentions it several times, which it hurts the effectiveness of the story IMO. Perhaps he wrote one half first, and then completed the other several months later. That would explain the difference in style. And this was one of the last stories he wrote before dying of cancer, so that might have something to do with it, too.

[@duncanmaclean1001]

it really seems to be told from the perspective of Dr Dexter.

[@seanmorse1389]

I read voices of the void recently. A great quick and fun read. I hope to see more sci fi from you soon.

[@bloke1348]

Theres a fantastic audio version of this story on youtube whos special effects and narration are second to none. Actually the robert blake character was based on robert bloch the author of psycho ...interesting ive listened to that story many times and never noticed that switch before...!!!

[@rfrey74]

Hey, David. This is off topic, but I noticed your lighting configuration: red on one side, blue on the other, and white in the middle. Have you ever done a video discussing why you prefer that lighting configuration? If you haven’t, would you consider it? Inquiring minds want to know.

[@DVSPress]

Sure. I was going to do a vid explaining a bunch of video stuff I've figured out over the years. Short answer is I do the colored fill lights because they remind me of the stage - we always used red and blue fills with white spotlights. Traditional camera lighting is bright slightly off-center, with a second light on the other side of the face at about 50% brightness. You can do this with a mirror or a piece of cardboard covered in tin foil (my favorite) if you only have one light to work with.

[@joyis9638]

First-person was also taken out to bring a morbid finality to the protagonist's fatal ending.

[@LordCommanderGuts]

I like to think that he wrote the end first before writing the protagonist perspective in this story.

[@Den.Vos.Reynaerde]

David, a question : does 'Voices of the Void' use the so-called Cthulhu Mythos pantheon or rather Lovecraftian themes? Anyway I'd like to buy it.

[@timothyfoley9870]

If you liked "The Haunter of the Dark", you may consider Maupassant's "Le Horla" published in 1887. Lovecraft obviously was influenced by Maupassant's narrative. What made "Le Horla" so frightening is that Maupassant might have been suffering from neurosyphilis when he wrote that short story. Was Maupassant's narration an actual diary or fictional account?

[@DVSPress]

I'll check it out - sounds awesome

[@timothyfoley9870]

@@DVSPress It was originally written in French but there are English translations and an audio book on You Tube

[@senacht]

Fix the typo in your thumbnail.

[@DVSPress]

No.