The Cancer of Superstition explained

The Cancer of Superstition is an unfinished book by H. P. Lovecraft and C. M. Eddy Jr. that investigates ideas and trends of superstition throughout history. They were commissioned to write a book on the subject by famed magician and escapologist Harry Houdini from an outline provided by Lovecraft.[1]

Background

The incomplete 31-page manuscript was discovered in a collection of materials procured by a private collector from a magic shop that had closed. Houdini and Lovecraft scholars knew of the book previously, but until this incomplete manuscript (which has pages missing) was found in 2016, no version of the work was known to exist. It remains unclear what parts were written by Eddy and what by Lovecraft.[2] A synopsis of the book, as well as a single chapter titled "The Genesis of Superstition", was published in the 1966 as part of the book The Dark Brotherhood and Other Pieces.[3]

In The Dark Brotherhood and Other Pieces 1966 August Derleth writes:

In The 13 Gates of the Necronomican: A Workbook of Magic (2012) author Donald Tyson referred to the Lovecraft/Houdini collaboration as follows:[4] Tyson misidentifies Eddy as Barlow in the above quote and book.

Conclusion

The Cancer of Superstition states: "all superstitious beliefs are relics of a common 'prehistoric ignorance' in humans", which lays a foundational sense of the book's thesis and French: [[wikt:raison d'être|raison d'être]]. Both Lovecraft as a writer of horror fiction and Houdini as an illusionist relied on people's superstitions in their careers, playing on audiences' and readers' senses of the unknown for heightened entertainment, while also advocating for greater skepticism in society.

Legacy

In April 2016, the typewritten manuscript sold at auction for $33,600.[5]

Further reading

Guarde-Paz . César . August 2022 . The Authorship of The Cancer of Superstition and Lovecraft's Late Readings on Folklore . Lovecraft Annual . 16 . 166–190 . 1935-6102 . 27204680 . none.

Notes and References

  1. News: Alison . Flood . Lost HP Lovecraft work commissioned by Houdini escapes shackles of history . The Guardian . 16 March 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161008115009/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/mar/16/hp-lovecraft-harry-houdini-manuscript-cancer-superstition-memorabilia . 8 October 2016 . live . dmy-all.
  2. News: Jeremy . Mikula . 31 March 2016 . Houdini manuscript 'Cancer of Superstition' divides opinion over Lovecraft, Eddy ghostwriting . Chicago Tribune . https://web.archive.org/web/20160402041626/http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/books/ct-prj-houdini-lovecraft-manuscript-auction-20160331-story.html . 2 April 2016 . live . dmy-all.
  3. Web site: Mathew . Hart . Found: H. P. Lovecraft Manuscript Commissioned by Houdini . The Nerdist . 18 March 2016.
  4. Web site: John . Cox . Houdini, Lovecraft, and The Cancer of Superstition . Wild About Harry . 12 February 2011 . dmy-all . 20 March 2016 . 19 March 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160319041340/http://www.wildabouthoudini.com/2011/02/houdini-lovecraft-and-cancer-of.html . live .
  5. News: Donita . Naylor . Houdini-Lovecraft manuscript sells for $33,600 in Chicago auction . 9 April 2016 . Providence Journal . Providence, Rhode Island . https://web.archive.org/web/20160411122801/http://www.providencejournal.com/news/20160409/houdini-lovecraft-manuscript-sells-for-33600-in-chicago-auction . 11 April 2016 . live . dmy-all.