Side Effects: H.P. Lovecraft's "Body Out of Time"

Dylan Trigg's thoughtful article over at the Side Effects blog deserves the attention of Lovecraftians with a soft spot for "The Shadow Out of Time." In somewhat obscure philosophical terms (at least to those not well schooled in formal philosophic studies), Trigg compares the conflicted self-hood experienced by Nathaniel Wingate Peaslee with the phenomenological conjectures of Maurice Merleau-Ponty, an early twentieth century French thinker. The selection of quotes from both Lovecraft and Merleau-Ponty by Trigg generates a commendable feedback array that illuminates the murkier aspects of consciousness and self-hood in Lovecraft's work. Out of the intelligent static comes a promising angle for dissecting some real unexplored territory nestled in HPL's literary subconscious. This is an example of the critical lens needed to propel Lovecraft studies into truly new, fascinating, and strange directions.

-Grim Blogger