At the mountains of madness, 1931 H. P. Lovecraft

"Science fiction. Literature and more" by Diego Cuenca Vidal

The Book and Its Universes

Before discussing the book, it is necessary to introduce the reader to a dark, shadowy, arcane world, situated between ancient myths and madness. The world of the Cthulhu Mythos, the world of the darkest nightmares that any human being could imagine.

This "universe" was created by the writer Howard Phillips Lovecraft and continued even after his death by other writers. It comprises a series of dark science fiction stories that blend the fantastic with Gothic horror.

They all share a common denominator: a series of ancient beings, much older than humanity itself, who return from their worlds to torment humans in stories filled with horror. These beings can be ghosts, demons, beings from other worlds in the universe, or beings that have always been on planet Earth, for example, in the depths of the oceans.

In another review, we will discuss this universe in detail, and this particular one in particular, so much so that it has survived to this day, even with arcane books considered real, such as the "Necronomicon." Yes, the "Necronomicon," a grimoire¹ with which one can summon demons, does not exist; it was an invention of Lovecraft for one of his stories.

As for the book in question, it was written in 1931, although it was not published until 1936 in several issues of the American science fiction magazine "Astounding Stories"; one of those pulp magazines² that contributed so much to the dissemination of science fiction among the general public.

In the book, as a warning for an upcoming expedition being prepared to go to Antarctica, the events that occurred during the exploration voyage carried out by Miskatonic University³ to that same continent in 1931 are recounted. The narrator, Dr. William Dyer, the sole survivor along with a student named Danfort, recounts, first in general terms and then in greater detail, the terrible events that transpired.

Trying not to reveal too much of the plot, I will say that the expedition accidentally stumbles upon strange frozen bodies, mountains far taller than expected (the tallest on the planet) in the center of the continent, and the remains of what appear to be immense cities millions of years old, hidden in the far reaches of the planet. Of course, the expedition suffers great setbacks and catastrophes, but thanks to having several airplanes, they manage to penetrate the heart of this forgotten world and begin a detailed exploration that will yield shocking and, above all, terrifying answers.

Both the premise and the story itself successfully immerse the reader in that famous Lovecraftian atmosphere of ancient worlds, terrifying myths that become reality, and epic adventure, masterfully blending adventure with the macabre. Thinking about it, it reminds me a bit of Jules Verne's story "The Lighthouse at the End of the World" because of its dark tone, but, of course, much darker. The hand of "Cthulhu" is clearly guiding Lovecraft's prose.

The autor

Born in Providence, Rhode Island, on August 20, 1890, into a middle-class family, he grew up under the overprotective wing of his ultraconservative mother, feeling like he belonged to a puritanical and racist elite in a prosper post-Civil War America. His father died when he was very young, and his mother when he was 31. He felt a strong connection to his grandfather, Whipple Van Buren Philips, whose library provided him with countless stories.

After his grandfather's death, his family fell into serious financial difficulties, which, combined with his peculiar personality, led Lovecraft to live a taciturn and withdrawn life.

He worked as a writer for the "pulp" magazines of the time, both contributing his own stories and revising the work of other authors. Through this work, he met many writers with whom he established intense epistolary relationships, and who would later form what became known as the "Lovecraft Circle."

He married in 1924, but this marriage only lasted two years, and financial problems continued to plague Lovecraft, who found himself unable to achieve economic stability even while living in an immigrant neighborhood in Brooklyn, to top it all off, his racismo.

He spent his final years sick until his death on March 15, 1937, at only 46 years old.

Lovecraft is considered one of the "precursors" of science fiction literature, along with others such as Edgar Allan Poe, Jules Verne, H. G. Wells, and Arthur Conan Doyle. His writing is highly descriptive (it reminds me of Jules Verne) and sometimes a bit slow by today's standards, very much in the style of thrillers, where the action and rhythm are relentless. This book, like most of Lovecraft's works, employs a narrative style known as "Weird Fiction," which envelops us in the mysterious, macabre, and terrifying.

However, there is a consensus regarding H. P. Lovecraft that his literature is divided into 3 stages; “the gothic” (1905-1920), influenced by Edgar Allan Poe, where he writes classic horror stories; “the dreamlike” (1920-1927), influenced by Lord Dunsany and where he places his stories in ancient and magical worlds that draw from Mediterranean legends (in a way of paralleling Tolkien in terms of Norse legends and mythology) and the last and best known, “The Cthulhu Mythos” (1927-1937) where he develops his own much more macabre and terrifying style.

Influences

Rarely has an author who died so young managed to exert such a profound influence on contemporary and subsequent literature. And if we look to the present day, his influence extends beyond literature to other art forms such as film, painting, comics, music, video games, merchandising, and more. His terrifying worlds of the Cthulhu Mythos have become mainstream in their own right. A universe of their own, on par with those of Tolkien or Asimov.

We can find countless examples of Lovecraft's legacy everywhere. I will only mention a few works, but the list is endless.

Regarding films, we can mention "Dagon la secta del mar" (2001) and "Cthulhu" (2007), based on the short story "The Shadow Over Innsmouth" (1931), or "Cold Skin" (2017), an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Albert Sánchez Piñol, where the influence of the Cthulhu mythos is more than evident.

Others include "The Dunwich Horror" (1970), "The Palace of the Spirits" (1963), "The Resurrected" (1992), "Color Out of Space" (2019), "The Call of Cthulhu" (2005), "Re-Animator" (1985), and "Underwater" (2020), where the Cthulhu universe takes over, culminating in an epic finale.

There are dozens more works inspired or influenced by Lovecraft, in addition to curious nods and references, such as the fact that the psychiatric prison in Batman's Gotham City is called "Arkham Asylum," a clear allusion to the city at the heart of the Cthulhu Mythos.

If we look at television series, we can mention the episode "In Vaulted Halls Entombed" from "Love, Death + Robots" or the episodes "Pickman's Model" and "Dreams in the Witch House" from “Guillermo del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities," although the entire series by del Toro exudes a Lovecraftian atmosphere. These two series are, without a doubt, among the best I've seen in recent years.

As for computer games and tabletop role-playing games, the existing ones are countless, and many more will continue to be created, since the Lovecraftian cosmology offers a wealth of possibilities.

Lovecraft has also influenced music, as exemplified by Metallica's song "The Thing That Should Not Be," released on the album "Master of Puppets."

Currently, Guillermo del Toro deserves special mention as a Lovecraftian artist, not only for the aforementioned Cabinet of Curiosities series, but also for other projects such as the exhibition "At Home with My Monsters" and, especially in relation to the book at hand, for his long-standing project to adapt "At the Mountains of Madness" for the screen. So far, this hasn't been possible due to the sheer scale of the film, but given his 2025 "Frankenstein," it seems less impossible.

So what?

Just because it's obvious doesn't mean we shouldn't repeat it. What is it about fantasy and science fiction that takes us through space and time to worlds we thought were impossible? For some, myself included, the world and life wouldn't be the same—in fact, it would be much worse—without fantasy and science fiction. And why do I say all this? Because IMAGINATION (yes, Imagine in capital letters) is one of the most powerful tools human beings possess.

So, let's imagine. Wouldn't it be wonderful if something like what's described in the book were discovered in Antarctica? Why not? If we forget the theory of evolution and what we know through paleontology and archaeology… two hundred million years ago, the supercontinent Pangaea began to break apart, with Antarctica located at much more equatorial latitudes than it is today. Could there have been conscious life two hundred million years ago in a warm, humid climate? Well, within the realm of science fiction and fantasy, why not?

Imagine for a moment that we wake up one day to the news that reports from around the world reveal the discovery of archaeological remains of an ancient civilization, two hundred million years old, contemporary with the dinosaurs. Were they native to Earth? Or could they be an extraterrestrial race that settled on the planet? Then, would hominids descend from them? Or were they entirely different branches, and did they become extinct? The idea is fantastic, partly explored by Edgar Allan Poe in "The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket" (1838) and by Jules Verne in "The Sphinx of the Ice Fields” (1897), and masterfully developed by Lovecraft.

I honestly don't know if such news would be even more impactful than contact with extraterrestrial intelligence. What do you think?

For those who want a quick look at the Lovecraft Circle:

If you're intrigued and dare to delve into the Lovecraftian universe (I can't promise you'll never be able to leave), I recommend one of the Lovecraftian anthologies, such as "Howard Phillips Lovecraft and Others: The Cthulhu Mythos" (1969), published by Alianza Editorial. This book presents, in addition to a very informative introduction, 21 stories by Lovecraft and other writers, structured into three main chapters: stories from the precursors, stories from the mythos, and posthumous mythos.

Notes: Since not everyone knows everything, here are the definitions of some terms that appear above and are specific to the language of science fiction.

• Grimoire: A book of spells and incantations of a magical nature, common in the Middle Ages. Several of these historical books have been cataloged. (Source: Myself).

• Pulp Magazines: Cheap, low-quality publications specializing in stories and comics of various genres of fiction, which were very popular in the United States from 1896 until the late 1950s (Source: Wikipedia).

• Miskatonic University: A fictional university located in the also invented town of Arkham, which appears in many of the Cthulhu Mythos stories. Arkham would be located in the state of Massachusetts, on the Atlantic coast. (Source: My own work).

• Lovecraft Circle: A literary movement of writers, primarily of so-called weird fiction, who generally published in pulp magazines, especially Weird Tales. Contrary to what its name might suggest, Lovecraft did not exert influence as a leader, but rather as a unifying force and common link among these authors, several of whom already had established literary careers and whose membership in the Circle encompassed only a portion of their work. It was his eagerness to connect with like-minded people and establish endless correspondence with them that ultimately created Lovecraft's image as the "center" of this Circle for future generations. Alongside Lovecraft were, among others, Robert Bloch, August Derleth, Robert E. Howard, Henry Kuttner, Clark Ashton Smith, Donald Wandrei, and Frank Belknap Long. (Source: Wikipedia).

• Weird Fiction: A subgenre of speculative fiction that originated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It can be said to encompass ghost stories and other tales of the macabre. Weird fiction is distinguished from horror and fantasy by its blend of supernatural, mythical, and even scientific tropes. Some British authors who adopted this style often published their work in mainstream literary magazines even after American pulp magazines became popular. Among the most popular weird fiction writers are Edgar Allan Poe, William Hope Hodgson, H. P. Lovecraft, Lord Dunsany, Arthur Machen, M. R. James, and Clark Ashton Smith. (Source: Wikipedia).

Supernatural tropes: Recurring narrative motifs that draw on familiar expectations and yet can be told in a new way time and again. One example is the "supernatural hunter", where the combination of a police thriller structure with fantastical elements creates a compelling effect. The investigator offers opportunities for identification and moral depth, especially when the rules of the magical world are not black and white. Another example is "secret societies or magical underworlds" with their own hierarchies, rituals, and rules that coexist invisibly with modern society. A final example is "the role of the chosen one against their will", where the protagonist begins as an ordinary person who is suddenly drawn into a magical world through an inheritance, a vision, or a misfortune, realizing that the world needs them. This trope places the reader in this same position. Suddenly becoming important, possessing powers, or fulfilling a prophecy creates an intense "what if..." feeling. This trope is particularly strong in young adult fiction, but also in more mature urban fantasy series. (Source: Fantasy News & Lifestyle)

• Mainstream: The prevailing trend or majority current, usually applied to mass media, including literature. Currently, this media no longer only includes television, radio, and literature, but also the internet and social media. We could consider the mainstream as the antagonist of the underground. (Source: Myself)