Classic literature that is 'creepy'

[Shelydon]

In an effort to generate a bit more interest for a group of high school boys, I am going to teach a literature class that is classic literature that falls under the catagory of creepy/scary.  I have works by Poe, Farenheit 451, Lord of the Flies, Frankenstein and the Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.  Any that you think I am missing? 

[8filltheheart]

I wouldnt personally classify some of those as creepy. Maybe intense or thought-provoking? I like Dracula more than many you have listed. 

If you want more short story suggestions: Rappaccini's Daughter, The Birthmark, The Veldt, The Lottery, Most Dangerous Game, 

[Paige]

Metamorphosis, Kafka. 

[El...]

I think Crime and Punishment is pretty creepy. Oh, and Rebecca by du Maurier.

[kokotg]

Some Hawthorne (Minister's Black Veil and some other short stories). Faulkner's A Rose For Emily. The Mrs. Havisham stuff in Great Expectations is super creepy, but I guess not the whole book. Bartleby the Scrivener has a creepy vibe to me. 

[Miss Tick]

The short story "The Landlady" by Roald Dahl was creepy!

[Sebastian (a lady)]

The Haunting of Hill House (novel) or The Lottery (short story) both by Shirley Jackson. 

Louisa May Alcott wrote some gothic stories. 

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Kindred by Octavia Butler has lots of suspense, but might not be old enough for this collection. You should preread it. It portrays slavery and I can't recall how detailed the descriptions are.

[Lori D.]

Agreeing with @8FilltheHeart -- I've taught both Lord of the Flies and Fahrenheit 451 in a co-op class, and while they were definitely a hit with both boys and girls, they don't fall under the creepy/scary heading.

Lots of good ideas by above posters. Here are a few that I don't think anyone else mentioned:
 

short stories
The Monkey's Paw (W.W. Jacobs)
The Bottle Imp (Robert Lewis Stevenson) -- LONG
The Signalman (Charles Dickens)
Pomegranate Seed (Edith Wharton) -- LONG

poetry
The Raven (Edgar Allen Poe)
Darkness (Lord Byron)
Rime of the Ancient Mariner (Samuel Coleridge)
Cristabel (Samuel Coleridge)
Who's in the Next Room? (Thomas Hardy)
I Felt a Funeral in My Brain (Emily Dickinson)
The Witnesses (W.H. Auden)

plays
Macbeth (Shakespeare)

novellas
The Portrait of Dorian Gray (Oscar Wilde)
Hound of the Baskervilles (Arthur Conan Doyle)

novels
Something Wicked This Way Comes (Ray Bradbury)

Edited April 14, 2023 by Lori D.

[Tiberia]

Hound of the Baskervilles has always been a hit here.

 

[Malam]

The works of Lovecraft, War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells, The Library of Babel and The Lottery in Babylon by Jorge Luis Borges, and I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream by Harlan Ellison (are they old enough to be considered classic, I wonder?)

[Eos]

The scary stories of Poe are really creepy.  What a great genre for teen boys!

[Shelydon]

19 hours ago, 8filltheheart said:

I wouldnt personally classify some of those as creepy. Maybe intense or thought-provoking? I like Dracula more than many you have listed. 

If you want more short story suggestions: Rappaccini's Daughter, The Birthmark, The Veldt, The Lottery, Most Dangerous Game, 

Thank you! I might classify them more as darker stories, but the boys called them creepy 🙂. Thank you for the short story recommendations, those will be good to go over while in class

[Shelydon]

12 hours ago, Malam said:

The works of Lovecraft, War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells, The Library of Babel and The Lottery in Babylon by Jorge Luis Borges, and I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream by Harlan Ellison (are they old enough to be considered classic, I wonder?)

 

16 hours ago, Tiberia said:

Hound of the Baskervilles has always been a hit here.

 

 

16 hours ago, Lori D. said:

Agreeing with @8FilltheHeart -- I've taught both Lord of the Flies and Fahrenheit 451 in a co-op class, and while they were definitely a hit with both boys and girls, they don't fall under the creepy/scary heading.

Lots of good ideas by above posters. Here are a few that I don't think anyone else mentioned:
 

short stories
The Monkey's Paw (W.W. Jacobs)
The Bottle Imp (Robert Lewis Stevenson) 
The Signalman (Charles Dickens)
The Pomegranate Seed (Edith Wharton)

poetry
The Raven (Edgar Allen Poe)
Darkness (Lord Byron)
Rime of the Ancient Mariner (Samuel Coleridge)
Cristabel (Samuel Coleridge)
Who's in the Next Room? (Thomas Hardy)
I Felt a Funeral in My Brain (Emily Dickinson)
The Witnesses (W.H. Auden)

plays
Macbeth (Shakespeare)

novellas
The Portrait of Dorian Gray (Oscar Wilde)
Hound of the Baskervilles (Arthur Conan Doyle)

novels
Something Wicked This Way Comes (Ray Bradbury)

Forgot about Something Wicked this Way Comes! 

I will definitely add some Poe and Hound of the Baskervilles. 

 

I feel like for this particular group, if we don't do Fahrenheit 451 or Lord of the Flies, they will likely never read those.

But I'm going to need to be choosy, or this class will have way too much homework. 🙂

[Shelydon]

Thanks again everyone!  How many total books do you  all in think is reasonable for a once a week class ?

 

We would read the short stories and analyze in class. 

Edited February 20, 2023 by Shelydon

[Lori D.]

On 2/19/2023 at 6:37 PM, Shelydon said:

Thanks again everyone!  How many total books do you  all in think is reasonable for a once a week class ?

We would read the short stories and analyze in class. 

It will totally depend on your reading list -- book complexity + student reading level. Some of the works are Victorian language with complex vocabulary and sentence structure, and some students will struggle with that. I always try to send them links so they can "listen for free online" while reading the book.

It will also depend on how deep you are diving into the works (so shorter chunks for more time to think about/discuss), or if reading more for exposure (so longer chunks and fewer weeks needed to cover the work).

When I do my co-op high school Lit. & Comp. sci-fi/fantasy/speculative fiction class, I shoot for 70-90 pages/week for reading at home -- depends on how complex/old the vocabulary/sentence structure is of the work. (I also create a lesson per week for them to do at home, with the vocabulary defined; some things to "be looking for" as they read; plus info on literature topics and literary elements; and then discussion questions to prime the pump for discussion/analysis in class.)

We have 15-week semesters, and we are usually able to cover 4-5 novellas/novels and 2, *maybe* 3, short stories per semester. Based on all of that, *usually*: 
- short stories take 1 week
- shorter YA and novellas take 2 weeks
- most novels take about 3 weeks
- long novels take 4 weeks

I only have 50 minutes for the Lit. and 40 min. for the Comp., so there aren't many short stories that are short enough to listen to/analyze in class -- I usually can find 2, and those are what I kick off each semester with. The longer short stories are read at home and then we discuss/analyze in class.
 

ETA
In case it helps, I have done some of the works or authors mentioned in this thread with a class, and here's what I scheduled those works for:

3 weeks each
Fahrenheit 451
Lord of the Flies
Something Wicked This Way Comes 
Portrait of Dorian Gray
Macbeth (if you have the time, a 4th week is nice, which you can use on the front end to prepare them for Shakespeare, and for the work itself)

2 weeks each
The Time Machine (HG Wells)
The Invisible Man (HG Wells)

For short stories done in class... I've done more straight sci-fi and fantasy as our in-class stories, BUT, as I recall, "The Monkey's Paw" was short enough to do an audio version, and annotated while listening, and then discussed it.

Edited February 21, 2023 by Lori D.

[Brittany1116]

I immediately thought of Metamorphosis (which I despise) and The Lottery (which I like).

[8filltheheart]

Just a heads up.....some of the short stories mentioned might be too long to read in an avg class time if you want to do anything other than read it aloud.

[lewelma]

I second Lovecraft short stories and Dracula.

Edited February 20, 2023 by lewelma

[borninthesouth]

Don't forget Edgar Allan Poe.  He has so many fantastically creepy short stories-- The Fall of the House of Usher, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Cast of Amontillado, The Pit and the Pendulum... just to name a few... 

[Shelydon]

On 2/20/2023 at 4:01 PM, borninthesouth said:

Don't forget Edgar Allan Poe.  He has so many fantastically creepy short stories-- The Fall of the House of Usher, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Cast of Amontillado, The Pit and the Pendulum... just to name a few... 

Will definitely have Poe!

[Shelydon]

On 2/19/2023 at 10:53 PM, Lori D. said:

It will totally depend on your reading list -- book complexity + student reading level. Some of the works are Victorian language with complex vocabulary and sentence structure, and some students will struggle with that. I always try to send them links so they can "listen for free online" while reading the book.

It will also depend on how deep you are diving into the works (so shorter chunks for more time to think about/discuss), or if reading more for exposure (so longer chunks and fewer weeks needed to cover the work).

When I do my co-op high school Lit. & Comp. sci-fi/fantasy/speculative fiction class, I shoot for 70-90 pages/week for reading at home -- depends on how complex/old the vocabulary/sentence structure is of the work. (I also create a lesson per week for them to do at home, with the vocabulary defined; some things to "be looking for" as they read; plus info on literature topics and literary elements; and then discussion questions to prime the pump for discussion/analysis in class.)

We have 15-week semesters, and we are usually able to cover 4-5 novellas/novels and 2, *maybe* 3, short stories per semester. Based on all of that, *usually*: 
- short stories take 1 week
- shorter YA and novellas take 2 weeks
- most novels take about 3 weeks
- long novels take 4 weeks

I only have 50 minutes for the Lit. and 40 min. for the Comp., so there aren't many short stories that are short enough to listen to/analyze in class -- I usually can find 2, and those are what I kick off each semester with. The longer short stories are read at home and then we discuss/analyze in class.
 

ETA
In case it helps, I have done some of the works or authors mentioned in this thread with a class, and here's what I scheduled those works for:

3 weeks each
Fahrenheit 451
Lord of the Flies
Something Wicked This Way Comes 
Portrait of Dorian Gray
Macbeth (if you have the time, a 4th week is nice, which you can use on the front end to prepare them for Shakespeare, and for the work itself)

2 weeks each
The Time Machine (HG Wells)
The Invisible Man (HG Wells)

For short stories done in class... I've done more straight sci-fi and fantasy as our in-class stories, BUT, as I recall, "The Monkey's Paw" was short enough to do an audio version, and annotated while listening, and then discussed it.

@Lori D.-- do you use any particular literature guides for short stories?  As I am creating the homework lessons, I am worrying that I am missing something or leaving out important concepts.  I'd love to double-check myself against a literature guide. 

Edited April 12, 2023 by Shelydon

[Lori D.]

19 hours ago, Shelydon said:

@Lori D.-- do you use any particular literature guides for short stories?  As I am creating the homework lessons, I am worrying that I am missing something or leaving out important concepts.  I'd love to double-check myself against a literature guide. 

No, I've never found any guides for short stories.

Sometimes I find that I can come up with something if I do an online search for "guide for (name of short story)".

I also look for background information on the author/times, plus articles at Wikipedia, Sparknote, etc. about reoccurring themes and ideas in that author's works that could be discussed in context of the short story.

I also include info on how short stories differ from novels -- things like:
- so short that every sentence, every word counts
- so short that there is no room for deep character development, and usually only 1-2 characters get much of any "fleshing out"
- so short that it can usually only develop one major theme or "big idea"
- title, first sentence/first paragraph, and last sentence/last paragraph are often extra important in pointing you toward what the author wants to share as the most important idea

Short stories can also be a way to focus closely on just 1-2 literary elements.
 

[Shelydon]

22 minutes ago, Lori D. said:

No, I've never found any guides for short stories.

Sometimes I find that I can come up with something if I do an online search for "guide for (name of short story)".

I also look for background information on the author/times, plus articles at Wikipedia, Sparknote, etc. about reoccurring themes and ideas in that author's works that could be discussed in context of the short story.

I also include info on how short stories differ from novels -- things like:
- so short that every sentence, every word counts
- so short that there is no room for deep character development, and usually only 1-2 characters get much of any "fleshing out"
- so short that it can usually only develop one major theme or "big idea"
- title, first sentence/first paragraph, and last sentence/last paragraph are often extra important in pointing you toward what the author wants to share as the most important idea

Short stories can also be a way to focus closely on just 1-2 literary elements.
 

Perfect.  This is basically what I am doing.  Thank you so much!

Edited April 12, 2023 by Shelydon

[Lori D.]

So... Once you have settled on your lit. list, we'd all love to see what you're doing for the year! 😄 

[Shelydon]

On 4/12/2023 at 7:05 PM, Lori D. said:

So... Once you have settled on your lit. list, we'd all love to see what you're doing for the year! 😄 

It is so hard not to do too much! 

[Shelydon]

So -- I would like to pull scary or creepy stories from several genres and also make students think about what makes something creepy.  Genres I would like to include are dystopian, horror, gothic, mystery and  science fiction (some books or short stories fit multiple categories, which I like.)  I would like to include classic novels that students need to read to be educated people but are also enjoyable to read and not a huge struggle to get through. Class will be primarily 9th grade boys.   With that in mind, I am definitely going use:

 

 

Poe-- Fall of the House of Usher, Tell-Tale Heart and  ???

Most Dangerous Game

The Lottery

 

Frankenstein (gothic)

Hounds of the Baskervilles (gothic/mystery)

Fahrenheit 451 (dystopian/science fiction)

Something Wicked This Way Comes (horror)

 

Considering:

Lord of the Flies

and something Lovecraft

Lovecraft IS the epitome of creepy, but man was he a total jerk

I am also reading through several other short stories to pick up a couple of more,

I am trying to find a modern novel that is 9th grade appropriate that falls into the creepy category as well, finding something clean is a bit challenging.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Lori D.]

4 hours ago, Shelydon said:

...I am definitely going use:

Poe-- Fall of the House of Usher, Tell-Tale Heart and  ???
[idea = "The Raven" (a classic, atmospheric, and then you'd have a long short story, short short story, and a poem by Poe)
Most Dangerous Game
The Lottery

Frankenstein (gothic)
[adding an idea here from your original list = The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde -- short novella and excellent pairing with Frankenstein]
Hounds of the Baskervilles (gothic/mystery)

Fahrenheit 451 (dystopian/science fiction)
Something Wicked This Way Comes (horror)

Considering:
Lord of the Flies [I think this one would work, as long as you don't have super-sensitive students]
and something Lovecraft [idea: "The Outsider", a short story]

I am also reading through several other short stories to pick up a couple of more
ideas from up-thread posts:
- The Legend of Sleepy Hallow (Irving)
- something by Nathaniel Hawthorne
- The Signalman (Dickens)
- The Monkey's Paw (Jacobs) -- a classic!
- Bartleby the Scrivener (Melville)

I am trying to find a modern novel that is 9th grade appropriate that falls into the creepy category as well, finding something clean is a bit challenging.
idea -- maybe a YA book, such as:
- 2008 = The Graveyard Book (Gaiman)
- 2002 = Coraline (Gaiman)
- 1993 = The Giver (Lowry) -- dystopia
- 1974 = House of Stairs (Sleator) -- dystopia

Or, maybe a short story by Stephen King? Check out this Teacher Vision online article/guide for ideas.

Ideas in red above inserted into quotation of your post. 😄 

[madteaparty]

On 2/16/2023 at 3:54 PM, Sebastian (a lady) said:

The Haunting of Hill House (novel) or The Lottery (short story) both by Shirley Jackson. 

Louisa May Alcott wrote some gothic stories. 

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Kindred by Octavia Butler has lots of suspense, but might not be old enough for this collection. You should preread it. It portrays slavery and I can't recall how detailed the descriptions are.

Adding We have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson. It’s not a hard read.