Abstract:Horror art is a type of art that it stimulates people’s negative reaction like fear, anxiety and sickness. Through horrifying images, sounds and plots, people are scared. While horror art attracts readers’ interest, the need and demand for horror art reflects the psychology of humanity.  In  American culture,  three  classic  elements   of horror  art are vampires,  zombies   and werewolves.

This thesis reviews the history and cultural background of American horror art, analyses the the artistic features and the themes of horror art, appreciates horror film from the perspective of aesthetic acceptance the horror film, the elements of which are vampire, werewolf, zombie, and reveals the aesthetic  experience  of horror  art and their  impact  on culture  as a force  of American  pop  culture.

Key Words: horror  art, vampire,  werewolf,  zombie,  American  culture,  aesthetic    acceptance

摘要 恐怖艺术是一种激发人们恐惧、焦虑、疾病等消极反应的艺术。通过图像、声音和不同的角 度，人们可以感受到恐怖这种情绪。不仅吸引了读者的兴趣，而且细致的心理描写也使人们 反思人性。在美国文化中，恐怖艺术元素的三大经典代表是吸血鬼，僵尸和狼人。

本文回顾美国恐怖艺术的历史和文化背景，深入分析的恐怖艺术的创作特点与思想，从理论 和审美接受的角度分析以吸血鬼，狼人，僵尸为基本元素的恐怖电影，论述恐怖电影与恐怖 审美体验作为一种大众文化对社会文化的作用和影响。

关键词：恐怖艺术，吸血鬼，狼人，僵尸，美国文化，审美体验

CONTENTS

Acknowledgments i

Abstract ii

摘要 iii

1 Introduction 1

2 The Historical Development of Horror Art and its Elements 3

2.1 The Origin of Horror Art in America 3

2.2 The Development of Horror Art in America 4

3 Vampire in Horror Movies 7

3.1 The Cultural Significance 7

3.2 The Aesthetic Significance 8

4 Zombie in Horror Movies 10

4.1 The Religious Significance 10

4.2 The Social Significance 11

5 Werewolf in Horror Movies 13

5.1 The Scientific Significance 13

5.2 The Psychological Significance 14

6 Conclusion 15

Bibliography 16

1 Introduction

When it comes to the history of the art of horror in the United States, Edgar Allan Poe, a representative short story writer of Gothic genre and generally acknowledged as a precursor of detective story or the genre of suspense, is a dispensable part of the research. Poe’s stories were created while romanticism prevailed in the 19th century in the United  States.  Moreover, Poe’s stories largely address the aesthetic needs of his time. In the early 19th century, with the abolition of slavery and the birth of romanticism, Americans rethought their lives and their inherent ways of thinking. Some horror writers, such as Poe, are aware of these inner psychological changes  and focus on describing the bizarre psychology and abnormal behavior of the characters. The horror and strangeness of the plot caters to the reader. They cannot only arouse the reader’s interest, but also explore  human   nature  in  a new dimension.