An Examination of Elements of Cosmic Horror Within Adventure Time
Articles > Article · 2020
Authors: Boran Tandoğan
, International, 2020, vol 2, pp 39-42
Summary
This paper aims to explore the concept of Lovecraftian cosmic horror through a children’s cartoon. In order to define and understand the concept of cosmic horror, this paper will refer to H.P. Lovecraft’s The Call of Cthulhu and his article “Supernatural Horror in Literature”. Lovecraft’s works have been chosen for this paper because he is among the foremost practitioners of the cosmic horror subgenre. Furthermore, the episode “Everything’s Jake’’ of the Cartoon Network Show Adventure Time, explicitly displays elements of Lovecraftian cosmic horror. These elements are provided by Jake the shape-shifter dog’s bizarre shapeshifting powers that cause the emergence of a city full of people, who seem to have futile existences.