Believable Impossibilities : Race, Testimony, and the Horror Film / Christopher Bracken.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bracken, Christopher, Author.

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource

Place of Publication:

Chicago University of Chicago Press, [2026]

Language Note:

In English.

Summary:

A gripping exploration of belief in the impossible through horror film, informed by philosophy, history, and anthropology. What if aliens crash-landed at an old mine? What if you discovered your spouse is protecting you from witchcraft? What if you received messages from the dead? You wouldn't believe it, of course-but you might investigate. As Christopher Bracken shows through this gripping exploration of the horror film, this is the first step toward believing the impossible. In Believable Impossibilities , Bracken examines the genre in which we are most frequently called on to believe something seemingly impossible has unsettled our ordinary lives-the horror story. Whether on the page or on screen, horror draws us into narratives in which a community of nonbelievers are suddenly confronted with the challenge of believing in events and experiences that radically break with expectation. As Bracken argues, questions of belief often intersect with issues of race and Indigeneity because, historically, belief in the impossible has been racially coded as a trait of "primitive" thought. Drawing on philosophy, anthropology, and psychoanalysis, Bracken explores the fictional spaces in which the paranormal and supernatural challenge and defy our social bonds.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

INTRODUCTION. The Horror Ceremony

CHAPTER ONE. History in the Colonial Theater

CHAPTER TWO. You Gotta Believe Me

CHAPTER THREE. The Improper Life of Signs

CHAPTER FOUR. Believable Impossibilities

CHAPTER FIVE. Miracles for Sale

CHAPTER SIX. Something like Telepathy

CONCLUSION. Tingling Is Believing

Acknowledgments

Notes

Bibliography and Further Reading

Index

Notes:

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed June 25 2026)

ISBN:

9780226850696