Recently I learned that H.P. Lovecraft had undergone a surprising and dramatic political transformation in the final years of his brief life. I wanted to read a few of Lovecraft's letters and discuss his views on capitalism, socialism, and the influence of the profit motive on artistic expression. (In the middle part of this episode, I also indulge in a bit of culture war stuff, so consider yourself warned.) In these letters from the last several years of his life, his notorious racism seems to fade, and he explicitly rejects the reactionary political ideology he held prior to 1931. He ruthlessly critiques capitalism, speaks glowingly of Marx, and warns us that our only options are socialism or barbarism. Anyone familiar with the author knows how out of kilter this feels compared to the absurdly reactionary person who most of us know as Lovecraft.

First episode on Lovecraft

@waldenpod

Lovecraft Letters:

1937, Catherine Moore

1936 Arthur Sechrist

1934, Helen Barlow

Lovecraft Audiobooks:

Dagon

The Call of Cthulhu

At the Mountains of Madness

The Shadow Over Innsmouth

/ timestamps /

00:00 Introduction

02:53 Flawed Characters, Real and Fictional

09:30 Letter to Catherine Moore (1937)

13:00 Letter to Helen Barlow (1934)

15:32 Letter to Arthur Sechrist (1936)

17:23 Art & the Profit Motive

19:52 The Shadow

Transcript