The Beast in the Cave Analysis The horror genre of literature has lasted due to the desire to know what is unknown. Its psychological aspects keeps readers continuing to tantalize themselves as they ponder answers to questions such as “What is behind the door?” Author H.P. Lovecraft understands this concept when he states “The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear,'' and creates tormenting sensory details within his stories (Handler 1). Written at age 14, The Beast in the Cave shares the same question asked by so many readers (1). Many questions about what exactly this beast is create suspense in readers, leading to a twist in what it truly is, potentially as a symbol for racism. The negative attitudes and moods within Lovecraft’s writings are likely attributed to his tragic childhood. Howard Phillips Lovecraft was born in Providence, Rhode Island in 1890. At the age of three, his father developed a mental disorder via syphilis that was untreated (H.P. 1). After three years, his father was hospitalized in Providence until his death in 1898. Lovecraft lived a reclusive life, departing high school before receiving a diploma due to a nervous breakdown (H.P.). Lovecraft died on March 15, 1937 from cancer, and after death, grew more popular over time. His stories have inspired writers such as Steven King and Neil Gaiman (2). The Beast in the Cave is a short story of the horror genre, regarding the adventures of an unnamed man through Mammoth Cave. This narrative begins with a man who had previously been with a guide, but had been separated from him. “I was lost, completely, hopelessly lost. . .” (Lovecraft 1) shows that the protagonist is losing his hopes of leaving this cave. After an inner monologue of what could become of him, the unnamed man begins to hear sounds similar to an animal. Believing that it is a mountain lion or a carnivorous beast, he begins to think that his life is about to be cut short. To defend himself, he grabs a piece of stone to throw in hopes of incapacitating the unknown beast. The protagonist manages to succeed in knocking out this mysterious beast, and finds his guide once more. The two now relight a torch to inspect the body of the animal, only to discover that it had been a man, taking his final breaths. Although this short story was only the first of many to come from Lovecraft, it still remains haunting to this day. It can be viewed as scary both in a literal and a metaphorical sense. On the page it states that the narrator finds the creature grotesque, like an “anthropoid ape of large proportions” (Lovecraft 5). It is clear that it would be terrifying to be approached by this creature in a dark, lonely cave. Other descriptions of the creature add to its eeriness, such as its “snow-white” hair, which the narrator deduces as an effect of the “bleaching action of a long existence within the inky confines of the cave,” and the fact that the monster is preternaturally thin (5). Apparently it looks as though it can sometimes walk on all fours, but it can still walk on two if it would like to do so, and it has grown fingernails and toenails that are longer than normal, giving them the appearance of claws (5). These observations make it clear to the reader that this monster has spent most or all of its life in the cave, adapting to its surroundings in order to survive. The realization that the creature was once a man shocks the narrator. He knows then that if he had not found his guide, he might have become lost in the caves forever, and he might have become the same monster that frightened him. Early in the story, the narrator thinks to himself that he would rather die than wander hopelessly around the caves forever. Every letter in the word “man” at the end of the story is capitalized, which captures the cold fear in the narrator, the fear that had no one found him, he would have evolved into the same grotesque beast that had terrified him, striking fear into the hearts of lost travelers.
Metaphorically, this story has great significance, even more than a century after it was published. During early twentieth century America, people did not display nearly the same level of tolerance toward different groups that they do today. Discrimination based on race and gender was commonplace, and one could claim that H.P. Lovecraft had been brainwashed into believing that he as a white man was inherently better than people of other races or genders. However, The Beast in the Cave can be read as an argument against that kind of intolerance. When the narrator first describes the creature, he compares it to an animal, symbolizing how people sometimes see a person of a different group as savage, barbaric, and lesser than them, simply because they have a different origin. The effect of capitalizing all the letters in the word “man” has a more significant meaning in this reading than in the literal one. Here, the narrator has realizes that the “thing” he kills is not a monster, but another human, albeit one who looks unusual and has had abnormal experiences. This is equivalent to a person of a higher status realizing that they have dehumanized another person, valuing that other person's life as less than their own, simply because they do not understand the culture of the other. The narrator has realized that he has treated this caveman like a sub-human mongrel because the former did not know the latter's struggles and what he had been through. The crippling darkness of the cave represents people's inability to see other groups of people for who they are. It represents the act of brainwashing people into believing other groups are inferior. The narrator of the story, trapped in the blackness, believes his only company is a monster. However, when the group sheds light on the creature, they realize that it is a person just like them. The light represents an open mind and an ability to look past prejudices. Once one thinks objectively, the dehumanization of other groups makes no sense. The unnamed protagonist of The Beast in the Cave experiences a downward spiral of emotions throughout the story. Beginning with initial hopelessness, transcending to the “instinct of self-preservation,” (Lovecraft 2) and ending with his dreadful conclusion that he has taken the life of another man. Throughout this time, Lovecraft creates an immersive reading experience through his first person perspective and use of imagery. This protagonist is relatively rounded via his lengthy internal monologues about his potential death, and the wonder of hearing his guide return. Lovecraft’s written thriller, much like his life, ends tragically. H.P. Lovecraft’s The Beast in the Cave is on the surface a short story designed to make one check under their bed at night, but holds a secondary meaning of racism and prejudice underneath. With light, one is better able to distinguish from one-another. This light is visible and figurative; visible being needed by the short story’s protagonist to identify whom he had killed, and figurative to distinguish that the human race is a collective population. The true beast within the cave is ignorance, which with light, can be eradicated. Lovecraft creates sensory details grim as his own personal life, creating an eerie story written by a sickly man.

Works Cited
Handler, Daniel. "'H. P. Lovecraft': Unnatural Selection." New York Times. (2005): 3. Web. 20
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"H.P. Lovecraft." 2014. The Biography Channel website. Mar 22 2014, Web.
Lovecraft, Howard. The Complete Fiction. New York: Barnes & Noble, 2008. Print.