As stated before, this analysis will look at the combination of horror as a genre, with religious themes/elements. The question that is asked here is whether or not it is okay to mix these two drastically different topics together - are the creators of the show being disrespectful in doing so?  

 

So, what really is horror? 

 

Horror as a genre aims to elicit fear and terror in audiences while they watch. For many people, the allure of horror as a genre has to do with suspense, adrenaline and shock value. Often times, horror genres deal with highly obscure themes such as the supernatural, spirits, hauntings, erotica, murder, zombies, etc. These themes are meant to be seen as bizarre, precarious and well, scary, by audiences with a hope to evoke fear in the viewer. 

 

Religion, although not as prevalent in society today as it once was, still plays a huge role in the lives of millions of people across the world. Religion often has to do with the belief in a higher entity and carrying out certain practices instilled by an institution. If a religion is an important part of someone's life, they will hold their beliefs close. People practice religion for a variety of reasons, but for the most part, these reasons can be brought back to the feeling of comfort that religion may give someone - via hope, structure, or openmindedness to a higher power in general. 

 

By these explanations, there is a tremendous fundamental difference between horror and religion. Their premises aim to evoke completely opposite feelings in their audiences. 

 

In a world where many other fictitious elements could be used to evoke terror or fear, religion is so often used as a fairly easy means of evoking those reactions [1][2][3]. This is where the question of ethical and moral reasoning comes into play with the combination of horror and religion/ religious themes. Is it okay to put religion, something that many people hold near and dear to them, in a context meant to evoke fear and terror in the viewer?

 

American Horror Story is no stranger to shock value. As seasons of the show progress, it seems as if the writers keep pushing the boundaries in an attempt to keep audiences' suspense. Suspense and anticipation are huge aspects of the success of the horror genre. If a show or movie becomes too repetitive, these aspects are lost, and the show will have difficulty being successful. American Horror Story follows an anthology-style format. In doing this, audiences are greeted by new characters and storylines every season. By following this format, the creators of the show also have the opportunity to explore many different sub-categories of horror. As such, the show has included categories of horror such as spirit, slasher, psychological, bodily horror, entrapment, urban legend, cults, political and apocalyptic horror genres.