Short Fiction · Chapter
The Haunter of the Dark explained
Robert Blake, a writer and painter obsessed with the occult, returns to Providence and becomes fascinated by a deserted church on Federal Hill, once home to the Starry Wisdom sect.
What happens
Robert Blake, a writer and painter obsessed with the occult, returns to Providence and becomes fascinated by a deserted church on Federal Hill, once home to the Starry Wisdom sect. He discovers a mysterious glowing stone, the Shining Trapezohedron, and a skeleton in the church tower, unleashing a dark entity that haunts the darkness. Blake's diary entries detail his growing terror and the entity's influence, culminating in his mysterious death, which some attribute to lightning and others to a supernatural encounter.
Themes in this chapter
Forbidden Knowledge and Occultism
Blake's investigation of the Starry Wisdom sect and the Shining Trapezohedron represents a quest for forbidden knowledge that leads to his doom.
Horror of the Unknown
The Haunter of the Dark, an entity that exists in darkness and is banished by light, embodies the terror of the unknown and unseen.
Madness and Psychological Decay
Blake's diary reveals his growing obsession and psychological deterioration as he becomes entangled with the entity.
Characters to notice
- Robert Blake
The protagonist, a writer and painter who returns to Providence and investigates the deserted church, ultimately encountering the Haunter of the Dark.
- Unknown Narrator
The narrator who presents Blake's diary and the events surrounding his death, offering both skeptical and supernatural interpretations.
- Edwin M. Lillibridge
A reporter who disappeared in 1893 after investigating the church; his skeleton is found by Blake in the tower.
Key passages
“I have seen the dark universe yawning Where the black planets roll without aim— Where they roll in their horror unheeded, Without knowledge or luster or name.”
The narrator describes a vision of a vast, aimless, and terrifying cosmos where planets drift in darkness, ignored and without meaning.
Opening poem sets the tone of cosmic horror and the theme of the unknown.
“Cautious investigators will hesitate to challenge the common belief that Robert Blake was killed by lightning, or by some profound nervous shock derived from an electrical discharge.”
Skeptics argue that Blake's death was a natural accident, not a supernatural event.
Introduces the skeptical perspective on Blake's death.
“Young Blake returned to Providence in the winter of 1934–5, taking the upper floor of a venerable dwelling in a grassy court off College Street.”
Blake moved to Providence in late 1934, renting an apartment in an old house near Brown University.
Establishes Blake's return to the city and his new residence.
“The Italians whispered of unaccustomed stirrings and bumpings and scrapings in the dark windowless steeple, and called on their priests to banish an entity which haunted their dreams.”
Local Italian residents reported strange noises from the church steeple and sought religious help to exorcise a haunting presence.
Describes the growing fear among the community about the entity in the church.
“Something, they said, was constantly watching at a door to see if it were dark enough to venture forth.”
The entity was believed to wait for darkness before emerging from its hiding place.
Highlights the entity's dependence on darkness.