Horror has always been about society. It has always been a commentary. If you think as far back as Carmilla, a horror novel, it was based on the fears of homosexuality. 120 Days of Sodom was a commentary about fascist Italy. Sci-fi horror comes from the fear of space, and Jordan Peele’s works are a commentary on racism in the horror landscape. Horror has always reflected what humanity finds terrifying and that changes over time alongside the political landscape.For example, we can look at the internet. Its very birth was basked in fear. Fear of an infinite landscape caked in anonymity. Fear of what could happen with widespread communication that the internet provides. Fear of the technology itself and what it could do- radiation? The internet coincides with fear to this very day. From the “Dark Web” to the fear of doxxing. The internet, fundamentally, plays on the things in which humans find terrifying. Specifically, the fear of the unknown. The internet is vast and completely unknowable no matter how long you spend on it and it could have anything, especially with things like the library of Babel website which has any combination of text possible. This leads to the internet being a truly infinite and terrible (in the sense of causing fear and not being bad) space.

How does one express this fear- but through horror media? The media in which this essay focuses on is a TV Series and Video Game, Serial Experiments Lain. Lain is about a girl who becomes absorbed by the internet. Who loses her humanity and identity in the internet, and most of all, becomes lost in the threads of the internet. The Series and game focuses on two very different stories, however both of them are important. This specific horror franchise commentates on the societal issue of internet anonymity in a way that only horror can do.

Tropes in horror is something that can be used to make commentaries in a subtle manner. For example, in Lain, doppelgangers are utilized. Modern technology has a focus on anonymity. Sites such as 4chan or Discord allows people to be anonymous and while that isn’t a bad thing, it affects people in a way that causes issues on the fundamental level of society. When there’s a literal and metaphorical mask on your words and actions, suddenly who you are becomes meaningless. You can make a whole new identity, the things you say can be as cruel and hurtful as you want and it can at times, feel like a whole different person. Anonymity is not an inherently bad thing but it can mess with your identity. This topic is portrayed in Serial Experiments Lain through our titular main character, Lain. In a piece of writing by The Ringer, they explain that “[On] the [Internet], Lain is an altogether different person—a much darker person who is easily moved to vengeance. Quickly, Lain sees that her digital presence is a cruel and gutsy perversion of her true self; a cunning doppelgänger... As the real Lain watches in shock, the digital Lain confronts a delusional young man, addicted to nanomachines, who shoots up a nightclub. “No matter where you go,” the digital Lain tells the gunman, “everyone’s connected”... the gunman is so horrified by the Wired’s ubiquity that he then turns the gun to his mouth and takes his own life. The digital Lain is a bully, and the real Lain struggles to comprehend her personality and her mission. The real Lain—the meek middle school student who avoids human interaction and confrontation—greets the digital Lain with a gasp.”

Doppelgangers have been something that horror has always had (Think Jekyll and Hyde, in which they represent repressed Victorian societal norms, Clara from Pathologic representing the duality of a teenager) and Lain is simply a modern version of this trope. Doppelgangers throughout history commentate on societal norms and using a mask to say what you have never been able to– and Lain’s internet doppelganger is this. By using tropes to explain societal issues (doppelgangers and a break from societal norms), horror is able to address issues that are not as easily addressed through other genres. Horror being a genre that’s supposed to unnerve and scare, horror has a special ability that most other genres do not when it comes to social commentary.

Analyzing media for themes is something that’s always been around, and horror brings very unique and interesting themes to the table. Media such as Fear and Hunger and it’s themes of humanity, obsession, the casualties of religion and in the second game, war, queerness, disability, mental illness and child abuse, all of which are very very real problems, addressed through games. Pathologic and it’s themes of hope in trying times, childhood, adulthood, drug addiction, golden child syndrome, growing up and morality can really touch people in ways that might not be possible other than in horror format. Lovecraft, despite his problems, resonates with people who suffer from mental illness. People with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, paranoia, OCD, etc., can feel seen and affirmed in his writing (though, some find his work to be extraordinarily triggering, and that’s fine and valid). From facism, war, poverty, famine, horror touches on all of these to varying successes, but nonetheless, can tell themes that most media might be afraid to. Final girls and their commentary on women's purity (though, this one is far more negative saying that premarital sex will kill you). I Have no Mouth and I Must Scream covers themes like AI taking over, fears of transhumanism, and even Freud’s Id, Ego and Superego.

Horror is about commentary, will always be, and even the most braindead of slasher films have a message.