Brittany Z Davalos

Professor McClure
Writing 39B
6 November 2016
Class Experience
Dear Professor McClure,
Overall I feel as though my essay has come a long way from the original vision of this
paper. At first I was a bit lost and not sure exactly how I wanted my essay to come out
but with a lot of revision and new ideas I was able to create a paper that was structured
how I wanted it. I think that the structure of this essay gave me problems because I
wasnt at first certain of how or what I wanted to tackle in this paper. If I were to rewrite
this paper I would have definitely changed the initial development of this paper. I would
have definitely focused more on my topic sentences and made sure that I had a strong
structure about what I was writing about. Incorporating the quotes in my essay was also
something that I struggled with at first. If I would have initially kept in mind that I needed
to use the scholarly texts, then it would have changed the way I approached this essay
initially. I found myself having to stick in quotes from sources in places I thought were
appropriate. However, this proved to be difficult because it made the paper not flow
properly. This lead me to completely scrapping paragraphs and having to come up with

other paragraphs that made the essay flow in a normal way.

I think that the peer review was a different yet helpful approach towards this paper. It
was very insightful to hear someone elses academic criticism who wasnt bias towards
my work. The peer review also turned out to be a success because I was able to hear
other approaches towards this assignment, ones that I would have never thought of
doing. The part that I felt was the most difficult in the peer review process was being
able to give insightful critique on my end without being too harsh and being sure I gave
helpful advice. At times I disagreed with the suggestions that were given to me but I had
to accept the fact that there is more than one way to go about writing an essay so I kept
myself open to new ideas.
My greatest improvement in the development of this essay was my ability to create
connections with Mathesons work and the academic writers that I mentioned in my
essay. Formulating a strong paragraph with good topic sentences is also something that
I have improved on and will be able to approach differently in the future. At first my
writing style approach was a bit hectic so I think that this essay helped me with finding a
better way to approach academic writing. Being able to apply the 3 step method and
executing the part when I tie in the examples towards my own topic sentences and claim
is something that I will definitely be able to execute and apply in future work in this
course and in the future. Before I never really executed the 3 step method properly so

now that I am able to apply it properly it helps the flow of my essays much better than
previous work.

Sincerely,
Brittany Zahara Davalos

Brittany Z. Davalos
Professor McClure
Writing 39B
22 October 2016
Horror Analysis: I Am Legend

In this passage from the novel I Am Legend by Richard Matheson, the recurring
struggle that our protagonist, Robert Neville, faces is the difficulty to find the humanity
that was once prevalent in him prior to the vampiric germ that spread across the human
race. The word choices that the author uses to describe our protagonist lead the
readers to confirm that Robert Neville is battling his inner demons and ultimately
struggling with instinct and morality. Along the way we see how Neville faces challenges
that lead him down the path of self-destruction. I will validate that this claim is evident by
showing the readers how the author uses the setting along with Robert Nevilles tone to
express just how his character is developing in regards to my claim. Along with that I will
discuss important aspects such as Noel Carrolls expectations of monsters are used to
manipulate the readers understanding of monsters in the horror genre in his work, The
Nature of Horror. This passage confirms how modern day cultural anxieties such as
globalization has become a constant fear in our society. Just like how Robert Neville

finds the vampires and Ruth as threatening we see this occurring today in society as
interactions between nations has become the new norm and people are forced to adapt
to what is deemed acceptable in one country while still trying to uphold their cultural
traditions.
This passage validates how dismissive and detached Neville has become towards
anything or anyone, therefore he sees the vampires and Ruth as threatening and
disposable. The point of view in this passage gives us readers an inside look at Robert
Nevilles monster like tendencies that are occurring in his thought process. Since,
Robert Neville has been living in isolation he has been a prisoner to his own thoughts,
fears, and imagination. It does not help that he has to sit in his home when the sun goes
down and has to listen to the vampires trying to entice him out of his home. Mathias
Clasen, a Danish scholar of horror fiction and author/editor of two horror anthologies
argues, Metaphorically, Matheson suggests that the need for companionship is as real,
as fundamental, and as strong as the need for sustenance. For members of a social
species such as ours, the horror of isolation is very real and very rational (320). This
ties in with this passage I have selected because we see firsthand how Robert Neville
has the capacity of murder without a question of a doubt, murder has become instinct
and he is able to do these deeds by refusing intimacy with characters such as Ruth. In
this passage we really get an inside look of how our protagonist is really feeling. These

inner battles that he has with himself show just how vulnerable his state of mind is.

Matheson makes an effort to show an emphasis on Robert Nevilles voice. This novel
is clearly about him as the protagonist, but in this passage we see moments of his true
personality. Neville is a very reclusive man who doesnt show his emotions due to the
chaos that has become the world so this is a very important part of the novel in which
we see how Robert Neville truly feels about civilization becoming infected and turning
into vampires. A source that supports my claim is Noel Carroll, esteemed author and
philosopher who has wrote many works on the horror genre. Specifically, I want to focus
on his work The Nature of Horror, in this writing Noel Carroll emphasizes that the
expectations of monsters as viewed by the audience is such that monsters are seen as
threatening and impure to societal norms. Noel Carroll states, It is crucial that two
evaluative beliefs come into play: that the monster is regarded as threatening and
impure. If the monster were only evaluated as potentially threatening, the emotion would
be fear; if only potentially impure the emotion would be disgust (55). This quote goes on
to confirm how Neville has adapted to this new society and became a ruthless vampire
slayer and experimenter. It is quite horrific to see Neville become so careless towards
these vampires to the point that experimenting on them and killing for sport has become
normal and basic instinct for him.

In this novel we see examples of categorical interstitially (Carroll 55). For instance, in
this passage Neville is having this conversation in his mind in which he is trying to keep
Ruth at bay. Furthermore, he comes to the conclusion that if she is infected with the
vampirism virus that he will kill her. Noel Carroll, esteemed author of The Nature of
Horror argues, Things that are interstitial, that cross the boundaries of the deep
categories of a cultures conceptual scheme, are impure, according to Douglas. Feces,
insofar as they figure ambiguously in terms of categorical oppositions such as me/ not
me, inside/outside, and living/dead, serve as ready candidates for abhorrence as
impure (55). We can apply Noel Carrolls understanding of what is seen as boundaries
that are crossed in novels by looking at this passage. This is a true testament as to the
type of man Neville has become. Although he is not your average monster in the sense
that is grotesque looking such as the vampires in this novel, we clearly see that he has
ironically shifted from hero to monster.

There is a shift of perspective in this novel when Ruth comes into Nevilles life. Ruth
becomes this new enlightening force that brings a new perspective into this chaotic
world that Neville finds himself in the middle of. Neville has always been set in his ways
that killing vampires and experimenting on the infected was the right thing to do. And in

many ways it was his coping mechanism to survive this apocalyptic world. However,
when Ruth comes into the picture she brings these new ideals that make Neville
question if what hes doing is right. Ruth doesnt seem too keen on how Neville
approaches the vampires therefore she becomes the voice of reason in this passage.
Carol J. Clover, American professor of film studies and rhetoric language, claims in
Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film that, In fact, of
course, males and females are not evenly distributed over the categories. The functions
of monsters and hero are far more frequently represented by males and the function of
victim far more garishly by females (12). This quote shows us how men and women are
perceived in the horror genre and ironically the roles are reversed in I Am Legend, this
goes on to support my claim that Ruth becomes the new hero of this novel by bringing
in her new outlook on how to view the world that has become predominately ruled by
vampires in number.
The author shows us just how Neville struggles to accept the fact that there is the
possibility of another human being that isnt infected with the vampire germ. Needless,
to say it is even more difficult to digest because the person happens to be a female.
Richard Matheson, esteemed author and screenwriter, writes that Neville reacts by
subconsciously thinking, It gave him a strange, restless feeling to hear a woman speak
his name after so long (131). This quote confirms how Neville is fighting his impulsive

urges that he has been struggling with throughout this novel. This quote shows us
readers how something as normal as a name can be a sign of weakness and
vulnerability. The author uses these words in order for the readers to get the sense that
Neville is losing his sense of humanity. He almost seems to be presented as this
primitive man that fears anything that is threatening. I will expand on this idea in the
following paragraph by showing how Neville has been driven by his sexual desires.

In this passage Matheson expands on the idea of how Neville has been fighting an
inner battle within himself. He is constantly struggling with sexual frustration and the fact
that this is happening to him is driving him inane because he is conflicted with thinking
this way towards the female vampires. Neville tries to masks these urges by
experimenting on the female vampires rather than the males and this is no coincidence.
Mathias Clasen, a Danish scholar of horror fiction and author/editor of two horror
anthologies, claims in Vampire Apocalypse that, Of particular salience in I Am Legend
are the motifs of being isolated, sexually frustrated, and preyed upon. Initially, sexual
frustration is foregrounded. At night, when the vampires attack his house, Neville is
especially troubled by the female vampires (319). This quote shows the readers just
how affected Neville is by the female vampires. Therefore, when Ruth enters his life he
is in shock and disbelief that she could be unaffected from the vampire virus. It is quite

obviously pointed out by Ruth that he does not need to feel obligated towards her
because they are possibly the only man and woman left.

Cultural anxieties were a very important aspect to the development of this novel. When
Matheson wrote this novel The Cold War was spreading across nations. Although this
was not a battle fought on soil, there was a fear of nuclear war breaking out. Therefore,
fear of globalization experienced by people across the nation put fear and influenced
everyones lives. We can see by the plot of I Am Legend that the zombies are supposed
to symbolize change in our world and Neville represents the people in the world that feel
overwhelmed by the constant change in society. Tony Magistrale, a professor in English
and accomplished writer, along with Michael A. Morrison, a professor and associate
editor/ author claim, Here is the final truth of horror: It does not love death, as some
have suggested; it loves life. It does not celebrate deformity but by dwelling on deformity,
it sings of health and energy. By showing us the miseries of the damned, it helps us to
rediscover the smaller (but never petty) joys of our own lives (3). Therefore, Matheson
is able to convey Magistrale and Morrisons idea of distorting reality. By showing us
readers an apocalyptic style world in which Robert Neville struggles to survive in we see
a glimmer of hope in our world. Overall, Matheson is trying to show us readers that
change is necessary for life and it is something that should be celebrated.

Work Cited:

Noel, Carroll. "The Nature of Horror." The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 46.1
(1987): 51-59. Web.

Matheson, Richard. I Am Legend. New York: Tom Doherty Association, LLC, 1954.
Print.

Magistrale, Tony, and Michael A. Morrison. A Dark Night's Dreaming: Contemporary

American Horror Fiction. Columbia, S.C: University of South Carolina Press, 1996. Print.

Clasen, Mathias. Vampire Apocalypse: A Biocultural Critique of Richard Mathesons I

Am Legend. Philosophy and Literature. Vol. 34. Johns Hopkins UP. 313-28. Project
MUSE. Web. 23 Nov. 2010.

Clover, Carol J. Men, Women, and Chain Saws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film.
Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press, 1992. Print.

RA: Prewriting and Exploration

Preface: I have chosen to include this assignment because it shows the beginning of my
analysis of a specific text from I Am Legend. This was the first assignment that enabled
me to see how the structure of the RA paper was going to span out. While writing my
RA paper I referred back to this assignment to see how to approach the paper.

Passage:
How old are you Robert? His throat moved. It was the first time shed spoken his
name. It gave him a strange, restless feeling to hear a woman speak his name after so
long. Dont call me that, he almost said to her. He didn't want to lose the distance
between them. If she were infected and he couldn't cure her, he wanted it to be a
stranger that he put away (Matheson,131).

Analysis:
This passage affirms that Robert Neville is struggling to find the humanity that was once
prevalent in him, the word choices that the author uses to describe our protagonist lead
the readers to confirm that Robert Neville is battling his inner demons and ultimately
struggling with instinct and morality. I will validate that this claim is evident by showing

the readers how the author uses key phrases, syntax, and how Noel Carrolls
expectations of monsters are used to manipulate the readers understanding of monsters
in the horror genre in his work, The Nature of Horror. In this passage Robert Neville has
found out that he might not be the last of humankind however his insecurities and fears
are revealed in the text, we clearly see how he is weary of this woman and at any
moment will not hesitate to murder this woman named Ruth. Furthermore, this passage
validates how dismissive and detached Neville has become towards anything or anyone,
he sees the vampires and Ruth as threatening and disposable. Key phrases such as,
didnt want to lose the distance between them, and stranger that he put away,
indicate to us that Neville has become this cold and detached monster that will do
anything in order for his survival. The point of view in this passage gives us readers an
inside look of Robert Nevilles monster like tendencies that are occurring in his thought
process. A source that supports my claim is Noel Carroll, esteemed author and
philosopher who has wrote many works on the horror genre. Specifically, I want to focus
on his work The Nature of Horror, in this writing Noel Carroll emphasizes that the
expectations of monsters as viewed by the audience is such that monsters are seen as
threatening and impure to societal norms. This ties in with this passage I have selected
because we see firsthand how Robert Neville has the capacity of murder without a
question of a doubt, murder has become instinct and he is able to do these deeds by

refusing intimacy with characters such as Ruth. This passage confirms how modern day
cultural anxieties such as globalization has become a constant fear in our society. Just
like how Robert Neville finds the vampires and Ruth as threatening we see this
occurring today in society as interactions between nations has become the new norm
and people are forced to adapt to what is deemed acceptable in one country while still
trying to uphold their cultural traditions.

Work Cited:

Noel Carroll. "The Nature of Horror." The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 46.1
(1987): 51-59. Web.

Matheson, Richard. I Am Legend. New York: Tom Doherty Association, LLC, 1954.
Print.

No Way Out Response

Preface: I similarity chose to include this assignment because this helped me to

structure a paper based on analysis. Since, we were asked to create topic sentences
and then give a brief summary of this short film it enabled me to start the RA paper.

Thesis Statement: In Kristoffer Aaron Morgans short film No Way Out, the monster is a
symbol of psychological illness. The protagonists only way of escape from this illness is
his detachment from reality and the inner workings of his mind.

Topic Sentence: The insect like monster in this short film symbolizes parasites in the
mind.

Topic Sentence: The tentacles that appeared in this short film are a metaphor of how
mental illness has a grasp on the human psyche.

Topic Sentence: The protagonists only way out from his mental illness was seen at the
end of the short film when he detached his brain from his body.

Topic Sentence: The brightly lit window symbolized the protagonists separation from the

real world and his mind.

Brief Summary: In the short film No Way Out we are shown the true reality of what goes
on in the mind of someone who is plagued with a mental illness. At first we are not so
sure what the true horror or monster is in this film however we are lead to believe that
this is an extraordinary setting. The setting is far from normal which makes it all the
more difficult to pin point what the true horror of the short film is. The monster like insect
is abnormally large and appears threatening for it does some harm to the protagonist.
Which led me to wonder why this monster did not kill him since it was clearly capable of.
Therefore, this insect didn't seem to be the real monster. The parts in this film that
seemed the most important were the bright lights coming from one room and then the
brightly lit window that showed nothing but complete whiteness on the other side. These
two things made me believe that there was more to this story than I originally thought. At
the end of the short film we see the protagonist use a blade and vey gruesomely detach
his brain from his body. Once hes done this he takes his brain and puts it in the window
that has nothing but whiteness on the other side. By his actions at the end of this film it
made me realize that although his body did not escape he was able to save his brain
from the horrors he faced. Therefore, the true monster of this short film was his mind
and his only way of escape was detaching himself from reality and the happenings that

lied inside of his mind.

My Own Monstrosity

Preface: I chose to include this assignment because this paper really helped me with
developing my writing style. This assignment helped me create a creative paper that I
was overall proud of because Ive never really wrote a paper much like this one.

It waits in shadows watching those pass by. The sun has set and the moon is the only
thing lighting the sky save for a few scattered street lights. The creature has just woken
up from its hiding place in an abandoned building. Basic instinct lets it know exactly
when the last rays of the sun are gone. The creature wakes eager for its hunt has
begun. Its movements are quick and it mechanically plans its every movement. It prides
itself on how swift and cunning it believes itself to be. An evil smirk is always etched on
its face. Theres also remnants of dried up blood running down its face from the previous
night. The creatures eyes are yellow orbs that are very useful for stalking its prey.
Occasionally it'll blink the only sign, if caught, the victims will have of its existence. The
city is heavily populated yet no one has ever caught a peak of this creature unless
they're the unlucky ones who have become the prey.

On nights like these it'll walk the streets and alleys following groups of people. The

creature always has a way to conceal itself. It stays in the shadows and no one ever
seems to acknowledge or know that they are being followed. As the night gets later the
creatures carnal hunger becomes heightened. All sense of reasoning seems to be put
on the back burner for it craves what it desires the most. The empty feeling inside of the
creature starts to be all it can focus on. Its a curse that it must live with for all of its
existence and it only knows one way of subsiding the pain it feels in its chest. For that is
why it must hunt every night. The creature has a way of watching people and picking out
the vulnerable. It waits until one of them strays to far from its group or has made the
mistake of walking the streets alone.

It isn't difficult to find prey in this city but it must watch its every move to make sure it
isn't seen. The time has come and this creature of the night is ready to make its move.
Taunting its prey is what it does best. Sensing the fear in its victim is what makes this
creature enjoy its nightly routine. Tonight it has found a victim that seems lost, the best
kind of prey. The creature artfully walks past its prey and the woman suddenly stops
where she is at. She clearly felt someone walk past her and yet saw no-one there. The
creature is nearby and watches the woman from the shadows. The creature once again
has its all to permanent smirk on its face. The creature starts to cast shadows on the
buildings brick walls. The woman's heart drops as she starts to see unexplainable

shapes being casted on the walls. The creature all too well knows that anything
unexplainable strikes fear into people. The woman picks up her pace because these
unexplainable human like shadows are following her. Her heart starts to race and the
creature can hear her pounding heartbeat. When all sense of logic has left the woman
the creatures shadowy figure approaches her. The last thing the woman sees are yellow
orbs and the sound of sharp claws digging their way into her chest. Before she knows it
this creature is holding her heart. She looks down in disbelief and sees a hole in her
chest. All too quickly an empty feeling washes over her and she drops to the ground.
The creature looks down and sees the red heart clutched in its claws. That constant
empty feeling in the creatures heart slowly subsides. Satisfaction is etched all over its
face and it slowly consumes the once beating heart.

RIP: The Other Place Imitation

Preface: I also included this paper because it further developed my writing style. I think
that it was a different assignment in which we were asked to imitate a writing style. This
assignment was very helpful in my opinion because it also helped me develop my
writing style in regards to the horror genre.

She lives a completely normal life, goes to school every day, is involved with clubs and
gets good grades. But every now and then she takes a break from her normal life. Its
not her fault she cant completely hide her urges. Although she does a really good job at
concealing her inner most desires, her mind is no match for her instincts. She often
thinks to herself, How much longer can I go on like this? She often dazes off in the
middle of the day thinking about her nightly rituals. It starts off with her hiding in the
shadows. Her eyes are brightly lit for shes ready to strike at any moment. She often
imagines herself with these razor sharp teeth that would only heighten her abilities. In
her thoughts she has these razor sharp claws that would only make her even more
intimidating and replace the blades she usually kept on her person. As she stalks her
victims on the streets she has this menacing grin on her face and her walk is precise,
showing no indication of uncertainty. As she finally finds a lone strangler looking

helpless in a dark alley she knows that her time has come. She strikes with precision,
her inhumanly razor sharp claws pierce her victim in one single motion. She watches as
her victims face contorts in pain, her satisfactory grin still present on her face. As fast
as her fantasy came she is snapped out of it by the sound of people next to her.

She cringes because she let her desires catch ahold of herself again. Although she
chastises herself for showing a moment of weakness she doesnt completely regret it.
These fantasies she has are the only things at the moment keeping her from losing her
sanity and giving in. She doesnt know why she let it get this far, she believes her
upbringing to be completely normal however she knows if shes honest with herself that
she has always been this way. It started when she was young, she liked watching
people in pain, took a little too much satisfaction from it in fact. She remembers one day
in fact when she watched on of her school mates balancing on the playground set and
she thought to herself, What would happen if I push her? She cant be hurt that badly,
right? So as simple as that thought came she pushed her classmate with all the force
she could muster and quickly got out of site. From the other end of the playground she
watched the adults and kids rush over to the girl quivering in pain, in fact she can still
hear those cries of pain from her classmate. From the other end of the playground she
reveled in the pain she caused that girl.

Once again she finds herself lost in thought and scolds herself from not being more
attentive. Well its not much longer after then that she snaps. That night she waits until
everyone is asleep and in the dead of night escapes to the dark city streets. She
wonders to herself, What if I use that knife in my pocket tonight? Shes been through
before in fact but just when she was going to use that knife of hers her cover was blown.
Witnesses suddenly stumbled onto the alley and she quickly went back home defeated.
So here she found herself again stalking the streets looking for a victim to use that knife
of hers on. This is what she enjoyed the most being in control of someone elses fate.
Knowing that she could take a life as easily as she could spare one. Who knew what
this night would bring but she knew one thing, that she was in control. So with that
menacing grin of hers she continued to quietly prowl the streets completely content with
being in the shadows.