Silent Spring by Rachel Carson introduces the nonfiction aspect of eco horror narratives. Different modes of fear strive to create the idea of an ever-present fear that resides with the audience or a psychological imprint that will make the horror memorable. However, the fear in Silent Spring creates a magnitude large enough to develop a universal fear by an aspect involved in every biological process possible as humans: air. Fast spreading and instantaneous, the speed and presence of pollution as an aspect of horror lives with us everyday as soon as we are conscious about it.

Ignorance & Misconception

          As a critical point of literature in the period before awareness of chemical hazards, Carson delves into a bold introduction towards the possibilities that continued use of pesticides can lead to. Although horror may be perceived as a genre containing mostly fictional works, due to the emphasis on fear through cinematic build ups or short excerpts of immediate intimidation, some nonfiction works present the sheer truth, which can be terrifying in itself. As a self-reflection on the damage done to earth, the documentation of the dangers for nature along with the man-induced chemicals presents a shocking element that does not necessitate for a fictional aspect to be present: it reaches more personal than other possible fears. 

          The structure of Silent Spring creates an emphasis of the widespread magnitude of the chemicals even in daily life. She first opens with a description of the idea of a flourishing American town, both biologically and socially. However, she immediately proceeds with a description of the different chemicals, such as Chlordane which is in the same family as DDT. Carson explores the “little hint of the true complexity of the chemical world of the hydrocarbons” by explaining the intricate structure, such as how if scientists “take away three hydrogen atoms and substitute chlorine [from methane] and we have the anesthetic chloroform” (Carson 19). She further explains about the history of DDT and its introduction during the wartime. However, transitions into its current use, along with how biological impacts from that time have still remained.

Ecological Harm

          By describing each chemical bit by bit and its effect on daily activities that use such chemicals, Carson develops a personalization of the text and inserts context for the more scientific jargon that might not have been viewed as a real issue. Many misconceptions from the past ideas of DDT and toxic chemicals are disclosed with the historic and scientific details. The introduction of scientific build up of these pesticides, described in detail with theoretical topics, focus on not only the airborne aspect of these chemicals, but also the scientific nature of them. They are all either manmade and organic, but undergo the pathway of causing harm in the environment. The use of science along with organic processes to produce these pollutants are another common thread of this book, as it warns its readers about the unregulated use. Carson also accommodates the scientific details with relative numbers to extend the magnitude. From describing a synthetic weed killer called 2,4-D to how “some 27,000 acres in southeastern Michigan…were heavily dusted from the air with pellets of aldrin, one of the most dangerous of all the chlorinated hydrocarbons,” Carson makes sure to relay the extent of the pollution through consumable numbers that readers can view (Carson 53). All of Carson’s explanations to accompany the dangers of pollution in her ecohorror book reflect a recurring theme of ecological damage recently: the large amount of damages delivers the sense of exponential damage along with a lack of personal connection to damaged nature. The use of objective numbers and jargon add onto this stern tone, mirroring the effect that many human processes or chemicals have on nature, brought to light in Silent Spring the same way they are introduced to land. 

Aftermath & Conclusion

          The controversy created through the Silent Spring further portrays the unexpectedness, along with the previous disregard of the airborne damage that has been continuing for a while. Whether the ignorance was intentional or uninformed, the disclosing of direct information led to an impact in both supply and demand for the pesticides and substances mentioned in the book, reaching to a shock beyond just a reader of the book. The universal coverage of the dangers reflected the amount of fear that it brought to anyone exposed to the previously ignored pesticides and how prominent this danger was. Even herself, as stated in “An Interview With Rachel Carson” published in The Washington Star, “shudder[s] to think of some future species viewing museums filled with the bones of creatures - ourselves - for whom the environment was no longer suitable” (Koltun 18). The stemming of purpose from a sense of fear and imagination develops the core elements of horror that creates her writing of Silent Spring. It slowly, but realistically, directly shows the consequences from pollution and pesticides. The strikingly overt expressions of fear of the information presented, through both media and in the anecdotes presented in the nonfiction, share a common thread relating to the dangers of damage to nature through pollution. It spreads much more quickly, both the damage and the fear, and enforces a lasting impact that is to be prevented.