‘Most stories of this type’: genre, horror and mystery in the silent cinema

An examination of ‘horror’ in the silent period, one many genres that is only supposed to have emerged 1930s. Through an analysis press coverage, article examines a clear vocabulary was used describe specific ‘type’ film at time. It also illustrates explicitly as generic noun name this but that, given negative term censorship campaigns, often avoided, except when clearly understood ‘hot’ genre. Consequently, genre more commonly described ‘mystery,’ included both and ‘detective stories,’ terms were largely seen be indistinguishable featuring investigations into ‘mysterious,’ ‘strange’ ‘eerie.’ In other words, ‘mystery’ staged confrontation between rationality irrationality way negotiated perceived transitions from Victorianism Modernity