Paulina Lovato
Ms. McDonald
Comp. 1
Essay
Nightmares Heart racing, cold sweat, head pumping with confusion and desperation, its silent and dark, your vision is blurry, and you can’t tell if it was real or just a dream, perhaps it was just a nightmare. The actual definition of “Nightmare” is: A horrific or terrifying dream in which the dreamer experiences feelings of regret, anxiety, helplessness, and extreme sorrow. The origin of nightmare is different in every language. The mare in nightmare comes from Old English (maere), “goblin or incubus.” In 1300 the word nigt-mare was referred to an evil female spirit bothering and afflicting sleepers with a feeling of suffocation. By the mid 1300’s nigt-mare became nytmare, and by 1440’s it was nyghte mare. The idea of nightmare has influenced many artist, writers, filmmakers, and musicians to elaborate and create haunting stories.
Often nightmares are triggered by our own: insecurities, stress, phobias, medication, anxieties, unresolved issues, and fear. Those who can’t find an outlet of expressing them selves will subconsciously allow those emotions out when they sleep or nap. In one night alone we have six to seven dream cycles… our nightmares occur during our second (or third) to last dream cycle. Technically, it’s not considered a nightmare unless you wake up from it. Many people and scientist question whether or not if you can prevent nightmares, the real answer to this is unknown. It’s recommended to eat a healthy proportioned meal, and NO bedtime snacks, best to refrain from scary books or movies before sleep, make a regular sleep schedule, and to meditate to lower stress levels.
A nightmare is different in everyone’s eyes and can be perceived to be many things. For example Edgar Allan Poe wrote a narrative poem called The Raven, in which he describes a feeling that can be interpreted into many things for different people. My perception is the man in the poem reached insanity with death knocking on his window. Another king of horror is Stephen King, who has written over 40 books exploiting his reader’s most intimate fears. One of his best selling books is one about my very own personal nightmare. It’s a story about a clown, called “It”. “It” is about a killer clown that comes to children in the middle of the night, taunting them and eats them. It was King that made me realize my fear for clowns. Literature is just one way of expressing ones fear for something.
In 1984 an “American classic” was created, and released. And this classic is very well known for being one of the most haunting stories of its time. “A Nightmare on Elm Street” was released on November 16th, 1984. Nightmare on Elm Street is a story about Freddy Krueger, a man that murdered several children with a glove specifically outfitted with straight sharp razor blades attached to the fingers. Krueger is best known for the man that burned alive by a mob of angry parents, whose children were terrorized by him. The ghost of Freddy is haunting the children’s dream, but when teenagers are winding up dead in their sleep, this nightmare becomes reality. The main character Nancy must find a way to fight evil and stare death right in its eyes.
Another way I (myself), and other musicians have expressed them selves, is to tell a story through music. One of my most favorite bands in the entire world, otherwise known as Avenged Sevenfold came out with their 8th studio album titled “Nightmare” on July 27th, 2010. Although A7X (Avenged Sevenfold) is already dark and moody, with a hint of Metallica and hint of GNR (Guns ‘n’ Roses) this album was different right off the bat. With the death of their drummer/singer/song writer (and my personal hero), Jimmy “The Rev” Sullivan passed away in late December, days after Christmas. He was found unconscious and unresponsive in his Huntington Beach home. Months later the autopsy was returned, and the conclusion is it was an “accidental overdose”, although some speculate whether or not it was intentional or accidental, it still is an open wound many are trying to recover from.
Their album “Nightmare” is dedicated to Jimmy and all of his many accomplishments. It’s a tribute, but also as well talks about how “The Rev” departing them, IS their walking, talking, and living nightmare. The album deals with a lot of hate, sorrow, pain, and at one point questions God. It absolutely amazes me how talented and ruthless these men are. With in months they managed to replace Jimmy with his favorite drummer Mike Portnoy, finish and release an album by July (months after his death), and kick off the “Rockstar Energy Drink Uproar Festival”, which I attended V.I.P. September 15th, 2010 (The tour kicked off August 17 and ends October 4), and even after all of this they are going to Europe to tour until May of 2011, and taking one month off, during December to remember and celebrate The Revs life.
Nightmares can be many things. But to me when I think of the word nightmare along with it comes the words elegant and beautiful. It’s all about how you take something the frightens you and turn it into something that can possibly make you stronger. From art, to books, to movies, and musicians nightmares influence us in everyway possible. Tis is the season, right? When will your next nightmare be? Sweet dreams.
