Does Lovecraft's The Colour Out of Space reference the concept of radioactivity?
I've read several interpretations and background information on "The Colour out of Space" by H.P. Lovecraft, which all say his goal was to create a kind of truly alien monster - a color instead of a bodily being.
However, today, the story sounds too much like a description of radioactivity: mutating plants and animals, creeping sickness and decay, the diminishing material of the meteor. Even the "strange colors" can be interpreted as gamma radiation (radioactivity was discovered when photo plates close to Uranium were changed, as if they had been exposed to light).
In 1927, when the story came out, radioactivity was already well known, but not so feared. In fact, it was still the time of radio-quackery, when slightly radioactive potions, creams and powders were sold as "miracle treatments", but the dangers also became known slowly.
Lovecraft put quite a lot of scientific elements in his stories, although not always correctly. Could he have known about dangers of radioactivity, which might be the basis for the effects described in this story?
inspiration h-p-lovecraft the-colour-out-of-space
edited 11 mins ago
Mithrandir
25.1k9132182
asked Apr 23 '15 at 19:05
Erik HartErik Hart
1713
add a comment |
I've read several interpretations and background information on "The Colour out of Space" by H.P. Lovecraft, which all say his goal was to create a kind of truly alien monster - a color instead of a bodily being.
However, today, the story sounds too much like a description of radioactivity: mutating plants and animals, creeping sickness and decay, the diminishing material of the meteor. Even the "strange colors" can be interpreted as gamma radiation (radioactivity was discovered when photo plates close to Uranium were changed, as if they had been exposed to light).
In 1927, when the story came out, radioactivity was already well known, but not so feared. In fact, it was still the time of radio-quackery, when slightly radioactive potions, creams and powders were sold as "miracle treatments", but the dangers also became known slowly.
Lovecraft put quite a lot of scientific elements in his stories, although not always correctly. Could he have known about dangers of radioactivity, which might be the basis for the effects described in this story?
inspiration h-p-lovecraft the-colour-out-of-space
edited 11 mins ago
Mithrandir
25.1k9132182
asked Apr 23 '15 at 19:05
Erik HartErik Hart
1713
2
I'm sure Lovecraft knew what radioactivity was as much as any educated layman. These similarities only go so far to match the effects in the story.
– Oldcat
Apr 23 '15 at 19:17
1
Good question! I've wondered about this myself.
– Joe L.
Apr 23 '15 at 19:18
All I know of Color out of Space is in this video: youtube.com/watch?v=PmdzptbykzI
– JohnWDailey
Nov 4 '18 at 2:45
add a comment |
I've read several interpretations and background information on "The Colour out of Space" by H.P. Lovecraft, which all say his goal was to create a kind of truly alien monster - a color instead of a bodily being.
However, today, the story sounds too much like a description of radioactivity: mutating plants and animals, creeping sickness and decay, the diminishing material of the meteor. Even the "strange colors" can be interpreted as gamma radiation (radioactivity was discovered when photo plates close to Uranium were changed, as if they had been exposed to light).
In 1927, when the story came out, radioactivity was already well known, but not so feared. In fact, it was still the time of radio-quackery, when slightly radioactive potions, creams and powders were sold as "miracle treatments", but the dangers also became known slowly.
Lovecraft put quite a lot of scientific elements in his stories, although not always correctly. Could he have known about dangers of radioactivity, which might be the basis for the effects described in this story?
inspiration h-p-lovecraft the-colour-out-of-space
edited 11 mins ago
Mithrandir
25.1k9132182
asked Apr 23 '15 at 19:05
Erik HartErik Hart
1713
I've read several interpretations and background information on "The Colour out of Space" by H.P. Lovecraft, which all say his goal was to create a kind of truly alien monster - a color instead of a bodily being.
However, today, the story sounds too much like a description of radioactivity: mutating plants and animals, creeping sickness and decay, the diminishing material of the meteor. Even the "strange colors" can be interpreted as gamma radiation (radioactivity was discovered when photo plates close to Uranium were changed, as if they had been exposed to light).
In 1927, when the story came out, radioactivity was already well known, but not so feared. In fact, it was still the time of radio-quackery, when slightly radioactive potions, creams and powders were sold as "miracle treatments", but the dangers also became known slowly.
Lovecraft put quite a lot of scientific elements in his stories, although not always correctly. Could he have known about dangers of radioactivity, which might be the basis for the effects described in this story?
inspiration h-p-lovecraft the-colour-out-of-space
inspiration h-p-lovecraft the-colour-out-of-space
edited 11 mins ago
Mithrandir
25.1k9132182
asked Apr 23 '15 at 19:05
Erik HartErik Hart
1713
edited 11 mins ago
Mithrandir
25.1k9132182
asked Apr 23 '15 at 19:05
Erik HartErik Hart
1713
edited 11 mins ago
Mithrandir
25.1k9132182
edited 11 mins ago
Mithrandir
25.1k9132182
edited 11 mins ago
Mithrandir
25.1k9132182
25.1k9132182
asked Apr 23 '15 at 19:05
Erik HartErik Hart
1713
asked Apr 23 '15 at 19:05
Erik HartErik Hart
1713
asked Apr 23 '15 at 19:05
Erik HartErik Hart
1713
1713
2
I'm sure Lovecraft knew what radioactivity was as much as any educated layman. These similarities only go so far to match the effects in the story.
– Oldcat
Apr 23 '15 at 19:17
1
Good question! I've wondered about this myself.
– Joe L.
Apr 23 '15 at 19:18
All I know of Color out of Space is in this video: youtube.com/watch?v=PmdzptbykzI
– JohnWDailey
Nov 4 '18 at 2:45
add a comment |
2
I'm sure Lovecraft knew what radioactivity was as much as any educated layman. These similarities only go so far to match the effects in the story.
– Oldcat
Apr 23 '15 at 19:17
1
Good question! I've wondered about this myself.
– Joe L.
Apr 23 '15 at 19:18
All I know of Color out of Space is in this video: youtube.com/watch?v=PmdzptbykzI
– JohnWDailey
Nov 4 '18 at 2:45
2
2
I'm sure Lovecraft knew what radioactivity was as much as any educated layman. These similarities only go so far to match the effects in the story.
– Oldcat
Apr 23 '15 at 19:17
I'm sure Lovecraft knew what radioactivity was as much as any educated layman. These similarities only go so far to match the effects in the story.
– Oldcat
Apr 23 '15 at 19:17
1
1
Good question! I've wondered about this myself.
– Joe L.
Apr 23 '15 at 19:18
Good question! I've wondered about this myself.
– Joe L.
Apr 23 '15 at 19:18
All I know of Color out of Space is in this video: youtube.com/watch?v=PmdzptbykzI
– JohnWDailey
Nov 4 '18 at 2:45
All I know of Color out of Space is in this video: youtube.com/watch?v=PmdzptbykzI
– JohnWDailey
Nov 4 '18 at 2:45
add a comment |
1 Answer
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Quite possibly. The "Radium Girls" were in the news at the time and Lovecraft owned a spinthariscope, which is a device used to view radiation. I don't believe there is any hard proof, though. The effects described in the story only vaguely resemble actual radiation poisoning.
answered Apr 23 '15 at 19:20
FuzzyBootsFuzzyBoots
90.7k12281434
1
Thanks for the link to the lovecraftianscience blog, really interesting site, when it comes to HPL's use of popular scientific knowledge (with some mistakes and a lot of artistic freedom)! I had already been wondering how his non-euclidian geometry in R'lyeh and Dreams in the Witch-house was supposed to look like, thinking of it a bit like an M.C.Escher drawing. So the color's effects do not exactly match real effects of radiation (not even Chernobyl is as dead as the blasted heath), but come close to popular belief what effects of radiation are like.
– Erik Hart
Apr 28 '15 at 18:24
add a comment |
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Quite possibly. The "Radium Girls" were in the news at the time and Lovecraft owned a spinthariscope, which is a device used to view radiation. I don't believe there is any hard proof, though. The effects described in the story only vaguely resemble actual radiation poisoning.
answered Apr 23 '15 at 19:20
FuzzyBootsFuzzyBoots
90.7k12281434
1
Thanks for the link to the lovecraftianscience blog, really interesting site, when it comes to HPL's use of popular scientific knowledge (with some mistakes and a lot of artistic freedom)! I had already been wondering how his non-euclidian geometry in R'lyeh and Dreams in the Witch-house was supposed to look like, thinking of it a bit like an M.C.Escher drawing. So the color's effects do not exactly match real effects of radiation (not even Chernobyl is as dead as the blasted heath), but come close to popular belief what effects of radiation are like.
– Erik Hart
Apr 28 '15 at 18:24
add a comment |
Quite possibly. The "Radium Girls" were in the news at the time and Lovecraft owned a spinthariscope, which is a device used to view radiation. I don't believe there is any hard proof, though. The effects described in the story only vaguely resemble actual radiation poisoning.
answered Apr 23 '15 at 19:20
FuzzyBootsFuzzyBoots
90.7k12281434
1
Thanks for the link to the lovecraftianscience blog, really interesting site, when it comes to HPL's use of popular scientific knowledge (with some mistakes and a lot of artistic freedom)! I had already been wondering how his non-euclidian geometry in R'lyeh and Dreams in the Witch-house was supposed to look like, thinking of it a bit like an M.C.Escher drawing. So the color's effects do not exactly match real effects of radiation (not even Chernobyl is as dead as the blasted heath), but come close to popular belief what effects of radiation are like.
– Erik Hart
Apr 28 '15 at 18:24
add a comment |
Quite possibly. The "Radium Girls" were in the news at the time and Lovecraft owned a spinthariscope, which is a device used to view radiation. I don't believe there is any hard proof, though. The effects described in the story only vaguely resemble actual radiation poisoning.
answered Apr 23 '15 at 19:20
FuzzyBootsFuzzyBoots
90.7k12281434
Quite possibly. The "Radium Girls" were in the news at the time and Lovecraft owned a spinthariscope, which is a device used to view radiation. I don't believe there is any hard proof, though. The effects described in the story only vaguely resemble actual radiation poisoning.
answered Apr 23 '15 at 19:20
FuzzyBootsFuzzyBoots
90.7k12281434
edited Apr 23 '15 at 19:47
answered Apr 23 '15 at 19:20
FuzzyBootsFuzzyBoots
90.7k12281434
answered Apr 23 '15 at 19:20
FuzzyBootsFuzzyBoots
90.7k12281434
answered Apr 23 '15 at 19:20
FuzzyBootsFuzzyBoots
90.7k12281434
90.7k12281434
1
Thanks for the link to the lovecraftianscience blog, really interesting site, when it comes to HPL's use of popular scientific knowledge (with some mistakes and a lot of artistic freedom)! I had already been wondering how his non-euclidian geometry in R'lyeh and Dreams in the Witch-house was supposed to look like, thinking of it a bit like an M.C.Escher drawing. So the color's effects do not exactly match real effects of radiation (not even Chernobyl is as dead as the blasted heath), but come close to popular belief what effects of radiation are like.
– Erik Hart
Apr 28 '15 at 18:24
add a comment |
1
Thanks for the link to the lovecraftianscience blog, really interesting site, when it comes to HPL's use of popular scientific knowledge (with some mistakes and a lot of artistic freedom)! I had already been wondering how his non-euclidian geometry in R'lyeh and Dreams in the Witch-house was supposed to look like, thinking of it a bit like an M.C.Escher drawing. So the color's effects do not exactly match real effects of radiation (not even Chernobyl is as dead as the blasted heath), but come close to popular belief what effects of radiation are like.
– Erik Hart
Apr 28 '15 at 18:24
1
1
Thanks for the link to the lovecraftianscience blog, really interesting site, when it comes to HPL's use of popular scientific knowledge (with some mistakes and a lot of artistic freedom)! I had already been wondering how his non-euclidian geometry in R'lyeh and Dreams in the Witch-house was supposed to look like, thinking of it a bit like an M.C.Escher drawing. So the color's effects do not exactly match real effects of radiation (not even Chernobyl is as dead as the blasted heath), but come close to popular belief what effects of radiation are like.
– Erik Hart
Apr 28 '15 at 18:24
Thanks for the link to the lovecraftianscience blog, really interesting site, when it comes to HPL's use of popular scientific knowledge (with some mistakes and a lot of artistic freedom)! I had already been wondering how his non-euclidian geometry in R'lyeh and Dreams in the Witch-house was supposed to look like, thinking of it a bit like an M.C.Escher drawing. So the color's effects do not exactly match real effects of radiation (not even Chernobyl is as dead as the blasted heath), but come close to popular belief what effects of radiation are like.
– Erik Hart
Apr 28 '15 at 18:24
add a comment |
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I'm sure Lovecraft knew what radioactivity was as much as any educated layman. These similarities only go so far to match the effects in the story.
– Oldcat
Apr 23 '15 at 19:17
1
Good question! I've wondered about this myself.
– Joe L.
Apr 23 '15 at 19:18
All I know of Color out of Space is in this video: youtube.com/watch?v=PmdzptbykzI
– JohnWDailey
Nov 4 '18 at 2:45