Howard Phillips Lovecraft

A cura di C. Aira, A. Finotto e J. Pignet 
 Five short stories by the great American writer of fantasy and horror fiction, who was E.A. Poe's follower and Stephen King's main inspirer: The Alchemist (his first tale written when he was 18), The Color Out of Space (one of the most famous short stories of cosmic horror), The Outsider (considered his best short story by many critics), The Thing on the Doorstep (shocking story of occultism and body transmigration), Imprisoned with the Pharaohs (commissioned by Houdini, the great illusionist famous for his apparently impossible escapes).
 The reader is accompanied by in-depth analyses on Lovecraft's themes (among which supernatural horror), his debt to his predecessors (Poe, Hawthorne, Bierce, Stoker), the gothic novel and the 'double', as well as his influence on writers, cinema, music and games. 
 
 Teacher's Resources available online: Answer Key - Audioscripts - Summing-up Activities
 
 Cinque short-stories del grande scrittore americano della narrativa fantastica e horror, epigono di E.A. Poe e ispiratore di Stephen King: The Alchemist (il primo racconto scritto all’età di 18 anni), The Colour Out of Space (uno dei più famosi racconti di orrore cosmico), The Outsider (da molti considerato il suo più bel racconto), The Thing on the Doorstep (allucinante storia di occultismo e trasmigrazione dei corpi), Imprisoned with the Pharahos (dedicato a Houdini, il grande illusionista famoso per le sue fughe impossibili).

Lovecraft’s Themes

Story 1 - The Color Out of Space

Extension: Supernatural horror

Story 2 - The Outsider

Extension: Lovecraft’s debt to his predecessors

Story 3 - The Thing on the Doorstep

Extension: The double

Story 4 – The Alchemist

Extension: H.P. Lovecraft’s influence and fortune

Story 5 – Imprisoned with the Pharaohs

Extension: Films, games and music inspired by Lovecraft’s works

Summing-up activities

Glossary

Imprisoned with the Pharaohs BEFORE READING 5 Story 1 Answer the following questions by ticking the correct option. a. Where did the Egyptians live? North Africa East Asia Central Europe North America b. What was their sacred river? The Thames The Tiber The Nile The Ganges c. Who ruled the Egyptians? The Knig The Rex The Pharaoh The Khan d. Which animals were sacred to the Egyptians? (Tick more than one) crocodile wolf ibis hippopotamus cat horse scarab lion e. Which old monuments can you still see in Egypt? (Tick more than one) Pyramid Circus Sphinx Labyrinth Temple 2 Find in column B the opposites of the words in column A. a. familiar b. clear c. quiet d. centre e. sunset f. middle g. lift h. open 1. dawn 2. edge 3. close 4. descend 5. strange 6. mysterious 7. suburb 8. noisy 3 Complete the sentences choosing the appropriate word from the following. completely   courage   doctors   experience   fell   stronger   suddenly   trick a. For a man of my ........................, it was easy to get free from the ropes. b. I was ............................... covered by the rope. c. This fact gave me new ............................ to take action. d. The current of air became ........................ and more detestable. e. I ............................. down some black stone stairs. f. The ..................... said my wounds were the consequence of the ropes. g. ............................... my attention was caught by strange sounds. h. It was the ............................... I used to stop nightmares. 68 

Weird Stories Imprisoned with the Pharaohs Story 5 Written in March 1924 and published in  Weird Tales  in May of the same year, the story is narrated by Harry Houdini (1874-1926). He was a Hungarian-American illusionist and stunt performer, noted for his sensational escape acts. The tale describes his frightening adventure in the land of the Pyramids. Mystery attracts mystery. Among the strange narratives and events I met during my tours, there is one of which I don t speak with pleasure. Fourteen years ago, I visited Egypt before going to Australia on a professional tour. My wife was with me and we planned to visit the principal historical places of Egypt. We landed at Port Said, a small and uninteresting European town, and decided to proceed to Cairo and the Pyramids. Our railway journey was not too bad and we were able to see much of the Suez Canal and have a taste of Old Egypt. At last we stopped at the great Gare Centrale in Cairo, but were disappointed because everything was European except the costumes and the crowds. The Shepherd s Hotel where we stayed was perfectly Anglo-American and very far from that mysterious East and its ancient past we hoped to see. The next day, however, led us pleasantly into the heart of the Arabian Nights atmosphere. With a good guidebook in our hands, we walked through the streets of Cairo and went to the native quarter1, where we soon found an efficient and noisy guide who showed us round. This man had no beard, a strangely deep voice and looked like a Pharaoh. He called himself Abdul Reis el Drogman and appeared to have great power over his countrymen, though later the police said they didn t know him. They explained that reis is just a name for any person in authority, and  Drogman  is an alteration of dragoman, the word for a leader of tourist parties. 1. quarter: area in a town. 69 

Esplora 5 short-stories di Lovecraft: The Alchemist, The Colour Out of Space, The Outsider, The Thing on the Doorstep, Imprisoned with the Pharaohs.

Weird Stories Collana RAINBOWS

Level B1 • Pre-Intermediate - Collana RAINBOWS

Weird Stories

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