American science fiction is definitely a distinct tradition apart from the English scientific romance and the French roman scientifique which it came to dominate and replace after 1950. It's distinctive elements were a concern with inventors and technology, frontier stories transferred to space, interplanetary travel, and an interest in aliens that reflected the American experience with Indians as it expanded west.
You could argue that the much smaller subgenre of the decadent far future story owes its genesis to Clark Ashton Smith and his Zothique stories. Smith took Poe and French Decadents and created something unique.
And, surely, if we're talking about the distinct culture of American fantastic literature, you have to mention role-playing games which, I believe, were invented in America. Their influence has been immense on publishing, the type of stories being written, and the shaping of the writers.
Worth pointing out that French decadence and symbolism is itself highly influenced by Poe. It is impossible to over state Poe's influence on European arts and literature. By extension this means that late 19th and early 20th century European art is highly influenced by mid 19th century American art.
“We have developed a distinctly White American culture even if we have not fully formed into a self conscious White American ethnos.”
Great message. Maybe one day our eyes will be forced open by the African crime and Bolshevik degeneracy and we’ll form White Identity. Jared Taylor wrote a good book by that name.
American culture doesn’t exist because it’s European folk culture or high culture, simple as. Québécois nationalism works because they’re ethnically French catholic and still strongly identify with the motherland, while contemporary “Amerikaner” culture is too mixed both ethnically and religiously. American original wasp component always opposed New York and what it represented but in the end New York won.
Most contemporary Americans don’t know and haven’t read any of the writers you’ve mentioned so I wouldn’t use them as symbols of American culture. A better representation of American culture is plebeian pop culture, fast food , superhero movies and sitcoms
Pinning the invention of cosmic horror on Lovecraft is a stretch. William Hope Hodgson's novel The House on the Borderland was released in 1908, the same year as Lovecraft wrote his first short story.
Problem is that cosmic horror has its seeds further back to certain Poe stories. Primarily MS. Found in a Bottle and Arthur Gordon Pym. Horror as a genre is dominated those of British decent. Britain and Wales have MORE masters but the American masters (Poe, Lovecraft, and Ligotti) cast a longer shadow.
Yes. I should clarify my comment by saying that Hodgson wasn't just tangentially related to Lovecraft's work, The House on the Borderland pre-empted a lot of Lovecraft's approaches to horror - it was the first 'Lovecraftian' story, before Lovecraft himself. So I would say Lovecraft's role in crafting cosmic horror in that specific brand is diluted by the existence of Hodgson.
Another American musical genre is beach music.
American science fiction is definitely a distinct tradition apart from the English scientific romance and the French roman scientifique which it came to dominate and replace after 1950. It's distinctive elements were a concern with inventors and technology, frontier stories transferred to space, interplanetary travel, and an interest in aliens that reflected the American experience with Indians as it expanded west.
You could argue that the much smaller subgenre of the decadent far future story owes its genesis to Clark Ashton Smith and his Zothique stories. Smith took Poe and French Decadents and created something unique.
And, surely, if we're talking about the distinct culture of American fantastic literature, you have to mention role-playing games which, I believe, were invented in America. Their influence has been immense on publishing, the type of stories being written, and the shaping of the writers.
Worth pointing out that French decadence and symbolism is itself highly influenced by Poe. It is impossible to over state Poe's influence on European arts and literature. By extension this means that late 19th and early 20th century European art is highly influenced by mid 19th century American art.
Only problem is that American art was created by Europeans who moved to America, so therefore it’s still European
“We have developed a distinctly White American culture even if we have not fully formed into a self conscious White American ethnos.”
Great message. Maybe one day our eyes will be forced open by the African crime and Bolshevik degeneracy and we’ll form White Identity. Jared Taylor wrote a good book by that name.
American culture doesn’t exist because it’s European folk culture or high culture, simple as. Québécois nationalism works because they’re ethnically French catholic and still strongly identify with the motherland, while contemporary “Amerikaner” culture is too mixed both ethnically and religiously. American original wasp component always opposed New York and what it represented but in the end New York won.
Most contemporary Americans don’t know and haven’t read any of the writers you’ve mentioned so I wouldn’t use them as symbols of American culture. A better representation of American culture is plebeian pop culture, fast food , superhero movies and sitcoms
Pinning the invention of cosmic horror on Lovecraft is a stretch. William Hope Hodgson's novel The House on the Borderland was released in 1908, the same year as Lovecraft wrote his first short story.
Problem is that cosmic horror has its seeds further back to certain Poe stories. Primarily MS. Found in a Bottle and Arthur Gordon Pym. Horror as a genre is dominated those of British decent. Britain and Wales have MORE masters but the American masters (Poe, Lovecraft, and Ligotti) cast a longer shadow.
Yes. I should clarify my comment by saying that Hodgson wasn't just tangentially related to Lovecraft's work, The House on the Borderland pre-empted a lot of Lovecraft's approaches to horror - it was the first 'Lovecraftian' story, before Lovecraft himself. So I would say Lovecraft's role in crafting cosmic horror in that specific brand is diluted by the existence of Hodgson.