The theory of uncanny is based on a feeling, an uneasy and fearful feeling. It is not just the aesthetics of beauty.
What excites fear; how to use these fears to put people into this state of feeling. using peoples experiences and memories (using what it familiar) to excite a feeling.
But we want to move past the notion of the uncanny as unfamiliar, because in a definition stand point; it is seen as gloomy, scary, ghastly, daemonic, or gruesome. These things are something that is visible and known to us.
Manifestation of insanity
We know from psycho-analytic experience, however, that the fear of
damaging or losing one’s
eyes is a terrible one in children. Many adults retain their apprehensiveness
in this respect, and no physical injury is so much dreaded by them as an injury
to the eye. We are accustomed to say, too, that we will treasure a thing as the
apple of our eye. A study of dreams, phantasies and myths has taught us that
anxiety about one’s eyes, the fear of going blind, is often enough a substitute
for the dread of being castrated.
The notion of the double, the fascination with another. A shadow, mirrors, with guardian spirits, the soul.
The double has become a thing of terror, the notion of gods being turned into demons.
Uncanny- the feeling of helplessness experienced in dream states, like nightmares or repetitive dreams, you know what is going to happen but you cannot stop it.
Superstitions make us have the feeling of uncanny because we have been taught to know how coincidences could have negative connotation. Like repetition, of a number or name or event.
The fairy tales, how wishes could become true. or if they are just a coincidences. How magic is viewed, how is it translated? Is it baised off of belief that just believing in something and it happens, so then its magic? How does reality play a role in this happening.
Something familiar that has been repressed
The evil eye- the feeling of not only being watched but being disliked and despised and looked down upon for some reason.
Something that should have remained hidden but had come to light, like a myth or legend. Speaking of evil brings about evil?
Humans will never be free from this feeling
Sarah,
ReplyDeleteNotice you highlighted the fear of losing eyesight and then thinking about your "evil eye" exploration. Can't wait to see how you've furtehr researched ---one suggestion is instead of the viewer looking at the eye, how would you make the conditions in which the viewer has already been effected by the evil eye- what are the effects?
Maybe they're a series of events or a series of objects that have come into the "viewers" field of vision after being "cursed".
Shifting the perspective can lead to more questions!