Wednesday, October 5th, 2011 - The Outsider

The Outsider by HP Lovecraft

Published April 1926

Illustration by Elliot Rodriguez

Category: Macabre

And here we have the most reprinted, most celebrated story in Lovecraft's canon. When ever I tried to introduce HPL to someone I often passed this story along; it is the simplest and best example of his macabre style and is ultimately the story that crosses into "classic literature"; this story could be taught as part of a high school, October lit lesson. Lovecraft called it the closest thing he ever wrote to Poe's work and that's undeniable.

Our protagonist, again, does not tell us his name - though he may not have a name. His origins are a mystery even to him - he has simply always lived in the dark, inescapable castle that is our setting. With only barely visible writings and silent rats for company, he decides to make a harrowing journey out of the castle to freedom.

I like this story, and in the past I might have said it was one of my favorites but this past reading my eyes rolled a bit at the "silliness" of his style. The overly descriptive prose and the italicized ending lines that let us know what is happening now is truly, truly horrific... It's all a bit much. But it's quality and chilling climax is still very effective. As you read it try to imagine how it could be made into a film; a challenge, wouldn't you say?

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I read The Outsider in a collection of American Gothic tales, fittingly called American Gothic Tales, edited by Joyce Carol Oates. It contains an excellent survey of classical American short stories that sit within the broad category of "gothic" - grim tales of the grotesque and mysterious. Oates, herself a master of the gothic, includes a single story from greats such as Poe, Faulkner, Hawthorne, and modern writers like Stephen King and John Crowley.