Jason's Reviews > The Call of Cthulhu
The Call of Cthulhu
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What’s great about a Lovecraftian horror story, besides the fact that his writing is eerily similar to that of Jason Morais, is that it can afford such a welcome reprieve from a weekend otherwise consumed by madness and violence, the kind of violence that disturbs the soul to its core.
“The Call of Cthulhu” is the story of a man who uncovers evidence of otherworldly beings residing in a state of hibernation deep beneath the surface of the Earth’s oceans. Though the image of Cthulhu¹ is by no means original, as it is heavily borrowed from Scandinavian lore among other sources, Lovecraft’s descriptions—in this case of a bas-relief carved in its likeness—are still nothing short of chilling:
Cthulhu emerging from his ancient portal.
The only thing that detracts from the story in my opinion is the fact that the narrator is too far removed from it. Assembling manuscripts left by his late uncle with pieces of testimony from those who had purportedly fallen under the spell of Cthulhu during his attempts to resurface, the narrator slowly pieces together an understanding of who or what Cthulhu is, a revelation that induces a profound sense of fear and anxiety in those who discover it, but which leaves the reader feeling a bit miffed at not having been taken on a more intimate journey. Even eyewitness accounts of those who had encountered Cthulhu personally are learned through diary readings rather than by interview. Nonetheless, it is a story worth reading, especially for those who are intrigued by the concept of the Island in Lost as something that protects the world from a source of evil. In many ways, the Smoke Monster is like Cthulhu in that both entities are responsible for baseline levels of dread in people everywhere, driving some of them to madness occasionally. I’d like to think the madness of the events of this weekend could be attributed to a resurfacing of the monster Cthulhu, but unfortunately for us we do not live in an H. P. Lovecraft story.
I don’t know. I might read another Lovecraft, I might not. You people know I’m not crazy about the short story and short stories are pretty much all he has written. But he is from Rhode Island, the tiny state with the gargantuan ego, and that is pretty cool. He is like their Poe. And since Seth MacFarlane is one of their only other claims to fame (in the authorial/screenwriting context), maybe I should read more of him.
¹Cthulhu is pronounced Khlûl’·hloo, gutturally, in a way that calls attention to the otherworldliness of the being, as even its name is beyond the ability of human linguistics to phonologize.
“The Call of Cthulhu” is the story of a man who uncovers evidence of otherworldly beings residing in a state of hibernation deep beneath the surface of the Earth’s oceans. Though the image of Cthulhu¹ is by no means original, as it is heavily borrowed from Scandinavian lore among other sources, Lovecraft’s descriptions—in this case of a bas-relief carved in its likeness—are still nothing short of chilling:
It represented a monster of vaguely anthropoid outline, but with an octopus-like head whose face was a mass of feelers, a scaly, rubbery-looking body, prodigious claws on hind and fore feet, and long, narrow wings behind. This thing, which seemed instinct with a fearsome and unnatural malignancy, was of a somewhat bloated corpulence, and squatted evilly on a rectangular block or pedestal covered with undecipherable characters.And it is always a testament to good writing when a Google Image Search of that which is being described cannot turn up anything nearly as hair-raising as the text itself. On the other hand, this one is not half bad:
Cthulhu emerging from his ancient portal.
The only thing that detracts from the story in my opinion is the fact that the narrator is too far removed from it. Assembling manuscripts left by his late uncle with pieces of testimony from those who had purportedly fallen under the spell of Cthulhu during his attempts to resurface, the narrator slowly pieces together an understanding of who or what Cthulhu is, a revelation that induces a profound sense of fear and anxiety in those who discover it, but which leaves the reader feeling a bit miffed at not having been taken on a more intimate journey. Even eyewitness accounts of those who had encountered Cthulhu personally are learned through diary readings rather than by interview. Nonetheless, it is a story worth reading, especially for those who are intrigued by the concept of the Island in Lost as something that protects the world from a source of evil. In many ways, the Smoke Monster is like Cthulhu in that both entities are responsible for baseline levels of dread in people everywhere, driving some of them to madness occasionally. I’d like to think the madness of the events of this weekend could be attributed to a resurfacing of the monster Cthulhu, but unfortunately for us we do not live in an H. P. Lovecraft story.
I don’t know. I might read another Lovecraft, I might not. You people know I’m not crazy about the short story and short stories are pretty much all he has written. But he is from Rhode Island, the tiny state with the gargantuan ego, and that is pretty cool. He is like their Poe. And since Seth MacFarlane is one of their only other claims to fame (in the authorial/screenwriting context), maybe I should read more of him.
¹Cthulhu is pronounced Khlûl’·hloo, gutturally, in a way that calls attention to the otherworldliness of the being, as even its name is beyond the ability of human linguistics to phonologize.
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rated it 3 stars
Dec 15, 2012 01:33PM
That's why I read it!
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Jason notes: "¹Cthulhu is pronounced Khlûl’·hloo, gutturally, in a way that calls attention to the otherworldliness of the being, as even its name is beyond the ability of human linguistics to phonologize."
And I found Jason's name equally difficult to phonologize. I was stupidly saying it "Mor-reh," as if he were some sort of eel in a Jacques Cousteau nature documentary. Then I found out you were supposed to say "Mraz," with some sort of accent. HOW does one say Mraz without injuring oneself? Another eerie similarity between the Lovecraftian and Mrazian cosmoses... wait, shouldn't that be cosmi?... universes.
And I found Jason's name equally difficult to phonologize. I was stupidly saying it "Mor-reh," as if he were some sort of eel in a Jacques Cousteau nature documentary. Then I found out you were supposed to say "Mraz," with some sort of accent. HOW does one say Mraz without injuring oneself? Another eerie similarity between the Lovecraftian and Mrazian cosmoses... wait, shouldn't that be cosmi?... universes.
Jason wrote: "Richard, my last name is pronounced Mor·ayz’"
Morays? So you are a sort of land-dwelling lung-breathing eel after all! Too bad Cousteau is not around to do a documentary on you.
Morays? So you are a sort of land-dwelling lung-breathing eel after all! Too bad Cousteau is not around to do a documentary on you.
...unfortunately for us we do not live in an H. P. Lovecraft story.
Only in light of such real-life terror could such a statement be sensible. A fine review and an admirable sentiment.
Cthulhu represents fear of the unknown, and insofar as these tragedies are unfathomable and unspeakable regardless of how often they occur, it may be a rather appropriate metaphor. This kind of madness is indeed a resurfacing monster.
Only in light of such real-life terror could such a statement be sensible. A fine review and an admirable sentiment.
Cthulhu represents fear of the unknown, and insofar as these tragedies are unfathomable and unspeakable regardless of how often they occur, it may be a rather appropriate metaphor. This kind of madness is indeed a resurfacing monster.
Jacob J. wrote: "[...] This kind of madness is indeed a resurfacing monster."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SqC_m...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SqC_m...
Thanks, Jacob. Yeah, Cthulhu is pretty interesting in that even the tomb he inhabits has poorly discernible angles and proportions. It's all very vague and unidentifiable, as most of human fears are.
Grand stuff, perhaps I should read this too. Cthulhu seems to really have come back in popularity lately, at least references to it. Also, I found this awhile back:
[image error]
Gotta dress to impress, right?
[image error]
Gotta dress to impress, right?
I know. Most of Mauricio's side says it that way, too (your way). I have no idea why my parents always had us pronounce it —AZE. Your way is actually closer to the Portuguese pronunciation, even.
now that i think about it, i actually have a vague memory of your mom saying something to me about it. I think there may have been a naughty word in her explanation.
Great review. I heard this read on the radio last year. Frighteningly good. And thanks for the attempt at showing me how to pronounce the name cos i have always wondered, though i am still not sure. I am thick, I need it spelt out phonetically.
Thanks, Mark. But I thought I did spell it out phonetically! It's still kind of hard to say, though, intentionally. The name is supposed to be as foreign to the tongue as the beast is to the eyes.
You probably did but I am too thick to work out how the accents and accidentals on the letters alter their sound. Maybe this calls for St Google
For some reason I never bought into the green monster, my favourite lovecraft are 'the thing on the doorstep' and 'the lurking fear'
As a fellow Lovecraftian stylist (according to that site you linked, at least), I owe you yet again for scratching a literary curiosity itch. I'm still not sure I see what makes us all so similar, but I can say that lines like this:
"Cthulhu is pronounced Khlûl’·hloo, gutturally, in a way that calls attention to the otherworldliness of the being, as even its name is beyond the ability of human linguistics to phonologize."
are damned good!
"Cthulhu is pronounced Khlûl’·hloo, gutturally, in a way that calls attention to the otherworldliness of the being, as even its name is beyond the ability of human linguistics to phonologize."
are damned good!
Thanks, Steve. 'Phonologize' is one of those words that I sort of made up and then had to later confirm whether or not it actually exists.
a Lovecraftian horror story, besides the fact that his writing is eerily similar to that of Jason Morais,
LOL, dude! :D
Do you think that Lovecraft could ever have aspired to be as good as Morais, had he still lived?
LOL, dude! :D
Do you think that Lovecraft could ever have aspired to be as good as Morais, had he still lived?
Great review Jason. I read this earlier in a collection of his stories. As the introduction pointed out, Lovecraft's genius is in how he can create narrators who are both unreliable and reliable. I didn't think this story was the best example of this however.
Well I actually preferred the works not connected to the Cthulhu Mythos that I read. But it could be that I found them more skilfully written. 'The Rats in the Walls' was the story I found most fascinating.
That said I think Lovecraft has limits in his characterisation and his skill is in creeping through subtle word choice. He's quite pulpy and at times his stories are better than the writing. Although his writing's not that bad...
If you don't mind theoretical essays he wrote a brilliant one about supernatural horror in literature: http://gaslight.mtroyal.ab.ca/superho...
That said I think Lovecraft has limits in his characterisation and his skill is in creeping through subtle word choice. He's quite pulpy and at times his stories are better than the writing. Although his writing's not that bad...
If you don't mind theoretical essays he wrote a brilliant one about supernatural horror in literature: http://gaslight.mtroyal.ab.ca/superho...
Your picture shows cthulhu as he is normally thought to be but in the book it describes him as "gelatinous"... Wierd
I think The Shadow Out of Time, The Colour Out of Space, and The Unspeakable Void Out of Nowhere are better examples of good Lovecraft craft.
Well… the first two are my favorites. :O)
Well… the first two are my favorites. :O)
He has a lot more stories about New England if you ever want to read more of his work. I'm from VT, so Whisperer in Darkness is my jam.