H.P. Lovecraft, an early twentieth-century author of supernatural horror, was a materialist who believed that science had diminished the mysteries that previously existed in everyday life. To counteract this development, he felt that the arts could be a viable platform where reality, especially the dimensions of time and space, might be disrupted. His literary approach in achieving this effect was to introduce phenomena to the audience that were complex and vast in scope, potentially creating a sense of the sublime. Two particular elements that characterize such disruptive phenomena are repetition and symmetry. This dissertation considers Lovecraft’s aesthetic theories and his larger body of work in order to establish a theoretical framework concerning disruption which can be applied to visual culture. As a self-described “visually minded” author, Lovecraft’s literary approach bears a close relationship to visual culture, since he often appropriated existing artistic works and incorporated them through description within his literature.



To further connect Lovecraft’s literature and visual culture, this dissertation designates certain disruptive tropes within Lovecraft’s oeuvre that may be found in later visual adaptations. Intersecting the dimensions of time and space with elements of repetition and symmetry, this analysis establishes four disruptive tropes: repetition in time (montage), symmetry in time (ideograms), repetition in space (polyocularity) and symmetry in space (non-Vitruvian architecture). The elements of repetition and symmetry work within each respective disruptive trope to undermine anthropocentric notions of time and space. In chapter 1, this analysis establishes the dynamic between first-person point of view, the “inside” and the “outside,” which characterizes the disruptive tropes discussed in subsequent chapters. In chapter 2, Lovecraft’s short story “Pickman’s Model” is analyzed to demonstrate how temporal repetition can result in a fragmentation of the unity of the present. In chapter 3, the inclusion of ideograms in Lovecraft’s work as a means of creating asymmetrical relationships in time is discussed, particularly as it applies to the novella At the Mountains of Madness and the film, Prometheus. Concerning the repetition of form in space, Chapter 4 focuses on Lovecraft’s polyocular fictional bodies and the manner in which multiple focal points within space create anxiety for the audience. Finally, Chapter 5 addresses the asymmetrical relationship between the human body and alien non-Vitruvian architecture described in Lovecraft’s work.

