Beauty and Glory
It came to me that beauty and glory are the same thing.
Or aspects of the same thing.
Perhaps one is feminine tinged and one is masculine tinged.
But still the same basic thing.
You might find it interesting to swap ‘beauty’ and ‘glory’ in the scriptures. Sometimes that will give you fresh insight into the meaning.
The beauty of God was on Moses; therefore he could endure His presence.
(from Moses 1 — a chapter where glory is a strong theme btw)
And the sight of the beauty of the Lord was like devouring fire
(Ezekiel 42)
Horror stories usually rely on things that are human but not quite human. Down in the uncanny valley of brokenness. Slenderman, for instance.
I don’t know that I’ve read a story where the horror is the encounter with perfect beauty. With a being that is better than human and reveals what we ourselves are in the uncanny valley of divinity.
I have not read such a story. I do not think it could be done. But it would be more true to life.
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Evenstar
January 18, 2022
I think you could find that in the gap between what we are and what we could be.
E.C.
January 18, 2022
I believe that you are looking for something in the vein of Phantastes, by George MacDonald, or The King of Elfland’s Daughter, by Lord Dunsany. Or perhaps The Wood Beyond the World by William Morris.
Look to the old fantasies. They have more truth in them than we of this modern age can bear.
Zen
January 19, 2022
This theme is present in Tolkien, if not as horror, then certainly as peril. His McGuffins are things of beauty, Arkenstones, rings, gems (Simarils). You can see people driven to sin by the desire they entail. You can see this in Lord of the Rings, where Galadrial almost decides to take the Ring, but chooses to give everything up instead.