The Horla

The Horla, Guy de Maupassant
Tr. Spa-Eng from a Shvoong review

 It is a fantastic story appeared first in 1886, by one of the masters of the genre, the Frenchman who was inspired, among others, by Flaubert and Balzac, and inspired geniuses like Lovecraft or Quiroga. In its defintiive version, a year later, it relates, in diary form, the protagonist's mind-blowing experiences, who supposedly becomes mad because of the compelling presence of an invisible, but specific, being he calls The Horla. That being, which is repeatedly described by Maupassant throughout the story as a probably superior being, come from the future or from other worlds, a substitute for the human being---Darwinism was very popular in its dimmer interpretations---, invades him from the beginning, as he was watching a strange and beautiful Brazilian ship. The main character greets it enthusiastically, and soon it is already hinted what is to come when he experiences some discomfort, as if the mysterious creature had landed choosing its victim. Anxiety overtakes the central character, who will suffer inexplicable situations, a kind of madness that may not be such because the peaks of lucidity he shows when analyzing himself, being aware of his new evil, which is not but the infallible certainty that he is not alone. 

 The topic of the invisible presence is persistent in the author's work, the inadequacy of our senses to perceive, in their full dimension, the phenomena that surround us, and the puzzling nature of our psyche. He also expresses in some passages materialistic skepticism, and criticizes national symbols and rulers, the French society of his time. 

 Some say that this story is the product of the author's own mental disorders, from syphilis. However, we must also take into account his fascination with Mesmer's bizarre theory of magnetism, hypnosis, and his visionary estimation of the power suggestion may have in the minds of individuals. 

 In short, The Horla is one of the best stories of the genre, and apart from enjoying it as a lively and compelling reading, we can use it to meditate on certain issues it arises from perspectives that perhaps many have not focused in the same way.