Science fiction, often called sci-fi or SF, is a type of storytelling that pictures future scientific or technological developments. Over time, common themes in science fiction have grown to include space travel, alien life, time travel, and robots. Later themes added parallel worlds, bad societies, and changes to living things.
Psychological horror is a type of horror and psychological fiction that focuses on the mental, emotional, and psychological feelings of people to scare, bother, or make them feel uneasy. This type of story often overlaps with psychological thrillers and uses mystery elements and characters who have mental issues or are not trustworthy to increase suspense, horror, drama, tension, and feelings of being watched or suspicious. These choices help create a scary, unpleasant, and unsettling environment.
Gothic fiction, also called Gothic horror in the 20th century, is a literary style that focuses on fear and haunting. The name comes from the Renaissance period, when the word “Gothic” was used as a negative term to describe something medieval and barbaric. This term originally came from Gothic architecture and the Goths, an ancient group of people.
A ghost story is a type of fictional story or play that includes a ghost or explores the idea of ghosts or people believing in them. The ghost may appear on its own or be called by magic. The concept of a “haunting” is closely related, where a ghostly presence is connected to a place, object, or person.
Body horror, also called biological horror, is a type of horror story that shows very disturbing or unpleasant changes to the human body or other living creatures. These changes can include unusual or disturbing sexual content, strange physical changes, injuries, turning into zombies, excessive violence, sickness, or body movements that seem unnatural. This type of horror was first used to describe a new kind of horror movies in North America, but it has been around since earlier in stories called Gothic literature.
Horror is a type of movie that aims to make viewers feel scared, either physically or mentally. These films often include dark themes and may cover unusual or taboo subjects. Common elements in horror movies include monsters, events that cause widespread destruction, and ideas from religious or traditional beliefs.
Science fiction, often called sci-fi or SF, is a type of fiction that imagines future scientific or technological progress. Over time, common elements in science fiction have expanded. These include space exploration, alien life, time travel, and robots.
A parody is a creative work that copies, comments on, or makes fun of something else using humor or satire. It often copies parts of another work, such as its theme, style, or author, but it can also copy real people, events, or movements, like a political figure or the French Revolution. Professor Simon Dentith, a literary scholar, explains that parody is a cultural practice that imitates another cultural work in a way that is somewhat controversial or critical.
Comedy horror, also known as horror comedy, is a type of story, movie, or TV show that mixes funny parts with scary or frightening elements. This genre includes three main types: black comedy, parody, and spoof. Comedy horror often uses humor by copying or mocking common horror themes, or it may use those themes to change the direction of a story.
Fantasy is a type of fiction that includes imaginary or magical elements, such as made-up worlds and creatures that do not exist in real life. This genre began in books and plays. Starting in the 20th century, fantasy stories spread to other forms of media, like movies, TV shows, graphic novels, manga, cartoons, and video games.