Times change so rapidly, and it can’t be denied that culture changes just as fast. Booming cities come and go, the demand for jobs decreases and new jobs arise along with innovative technology, styles of clothing take hold and die out, and even ethnic populations are constantly changing as integration becomes more prominent. However, some things seem to hang onto civilization as generations pass. Some of these consistencies include the broad view that childbearing is important, the acknowledgement of different societies with distinct rules and regulations, and the sacredness of family and cultural traditions. One concept of consistency that is frequently overlooked and is also a rare topic of conversation, however, is the idea of superstitions. …show more content…
In other words, McClearn is stating that superstition is believing that performing or observing a certain action or ritual will somehow affect an outcome to which one prefers, or prevent an unpreferred outcome from occurring. It is made evident that this form of luck has been present in history due to accounts of literature from hundreds of years ago and it continues to be popular in the modern world by subconscious use of superstition in everyday life. Another psychology professor from Connecticut College, claims that “roughly half of Americans say they are at least slightly superstitious(Vyse PhD, LA Times, 25 Oct, 2010), proving that superstition plays a significant role in people 's lives even …show more content…
In athletics, it is seen as wearing a ‘lucky sock’ or ‘lucky headband’ in order to believe that the athlete’s performance will be improved because of the special clothing being worn. Before taking a test, some students tie their shoes a certain way or even keep a lucky object in their pocket to ‘ensure’ a good grade. The most general and popular forms of superstition today, however, is taking certain actions in order to receive good luck in any way, shape or form. Examples of this include picking up a penny ‘heads-up,’ avoiding stepping on a crack in the sidewalk, knocking on wood when something is said that could lead to a particular bad fate, looking away when a black cat is spotted on the street, and staying home on Friday the 13th to avoid any bad luck at all possible costs. Of course these superstitions have probably been altered as they’ve been passed on year after year, but that’s the beauty of time - it is possible to look into the past and see how much things have changed over numerous
Many cultures ascribe to some kind of superstition, magic, or faith. Merriam-Webster defines superstition as “a belief or practice resulting from ignorance, fear of the unknown, trust in magic or chance, or a false conception of causation” ("Superstition”). This definition makes superstition sound like it belongs in a lower developed country that lacks the ability to have scientific knowledge. However, magic and superstition are alive and well in developed countries, such as the United States. Sports are rife with superstitions. Many players use “ritual, taboos, and fetishes to manage the anxiety generated by unpredictable events that challenge human control” (Gmelch 266). Superstitions are entirely psychological; a way to create a reason for an event that has occurred. In his article “Baseball Magic,” George Gmelch examines the rituals, taboos, and fetishes of American baseball and how they compare to the magic of the Trobriand Islanders.
Since the beginning of time, mankind began to expand on traditions of life out of which family and societal life surfaced. These traditions of life have been passed down over generations and centuries. Some of these kin and their interdependent ways of life have been upheld among particular people, and are known to contain key pieces of some civilizations.
Human beings have been known to become strung up on following tradition. In the short story The Lottery by Shirley Jackson, the villagers demonstrate this fact. While following traditions has its benefits, doing what is customary can be hazardous.
An example of this would be the fortune telling hairball and the rattlesnake skin. Jim also states during the first few chapters that his body hair is a sign of his future wealth. The signs have no correlation to their meanings and seem ludicrous and silly to those reading about them. Another moment where superstitions became important would be after Jim and Huck Finn 's separation in the fog. When Huck Finn lies to Jim about their separation being a dream Jim begins to tell Huck his interpretation of the dream as a warning. It shows that to the superstitious, signs and meanings can be applied to everything and anything. Later on in the book, while helping Jim to escape, Tom and Huck Finn lie to Nat about odd occurrences caused by their plans. Because Nat is superstitious he is quick to blame witches and believes Tom and Huck Finn 's lies. This allows Tom 's overly complicated plans to take off without a
The first aspect of superstition impacting our lives we’ll explore is the idea of superstitions causing us to spend money. According to the financial firm Forbes, “Superstition is a billion dollar industry. Every year, Americans spend a substantial amount of their disposable income on superstitious items such as 4 leaf
Everyone in the world belongs to a subculture. Each subculture has its own sets of traditions, relics, and artifacts. Relics and artifacts are symbolic, material possessions important to one's subculture. Relics are from the past; artifacts are from the present. These traditions, relics, and artifacts help shape the personalities of individuals and how they relate with others. Individuals know about these items through storytelling in the subculture. Families are good examples of subcultures. My family, a middle-class suburban Detroit family of Eastern European heritage, has helped shape who I am through story telling about traditions, artifacts, and relics.
Belief is one of those words that might mean something different to every person asked. The Oxford Dictionary of English gives the definition of belief as – “Trust, faith, or confidence (in someone or something)” (151). There are many beliefs that we see practiced by the characters of the book and still practiced today that have ties to a much older time – a time before science. In that time much knowledge was actually what would today be referred to as cultural knowledge, based on patterns sensed in life and nature, including the unseen and the unproven. The rituals and beliefs based on these patterns are what we refer to today as superstition. O'Brien tells us, “The things they carried were determined to some extent by superstition” (O'Brien 12). Janet Goodall provides an updated overview of superstitious action, “such actions are attempts to exercise human agency in situations where other avenues of influencing outcomes have either already been taken or are not available” (Goodall 310). Some categories that are based on cultural knowledge (superstitious beliefs) and these patterns to be discussed are fated, fated but fixable, rituals of avoidance, positive superstition and folklore.
Culture often means an appreciation of the finer things in life; however, culture brings members of a society together. We have a sense of belonging because we share similar beliefs, values, and attitudes about what’s right and wrong. As a result, culture changes as people adapt to their surroundings. According to Bishop Donald, “let it begin with me and my children and grandchildren” (211). Among other things, culture influences what you eat; how you were raised and will raise your own children? If, when, and whom you will marry; how you make and spend money. Truth is culture is adaptive and always changing over time because
The concept of culture refers to the perceived generation to generation and is somewhat durable. To call such behavior cultural does not necessarily mean that it is refined, but rather means that it is cultured. Hence it has been acquired, cultivated and persistent. Social scientists have invented the notion of a subculture to describe variations, within the a society, upon its cultural themes. In such circumstances, it is assumed that some cultural prescriptions are common to all members of society, but that modifications and variations are discernible within the society.
Many examples of this are seen, with octopuses deciding the “winner” of the next Super bowl, to a tradition of watching a game get a desired outcome for the Stanley Cup. Areas, where people see this, are mainly in sporting events but are not limited to that area. I have dealt with this when going to any football game, hockey match, or Magic the Gathering tournament. It seems everyone thinks that their own ritual will change any situation.
However, just because an event seems to influence another, as stated above, the first does not necessarily cause the second to occur. Usually, these events happen out mere coincidence and are not related to each other in any way. In some cases the false cause fallacy is convincing because it is usually is hard to determine whether or not the two events are causally related. Unless, however, a person is an expert in both events taking place, and even then, there can be doubt. In addition, the fallacy relates to many superstitious sayings that exist today. In fact, many of society’s superstitions derive from use of the false cause fallacy. For decades people always hear about the person who broke the mirror and were struck with seven years of bad luck, or the bad luck th...
Ono, K. (1987). Superstitious behavior in humans. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 47(3), 261-271.
Having read Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" (1948) several times now; the biggest thing I've learned is that just because something is tradition, that doesn't make it right. In our lives it's easy to get in the habit of doing things because that's how our parent's or grandparent's did it. It is important to make sure we are in God's word, examining our actions to make sure that they line up with what God wants of us.
In the end, what we learn from this article is very realistic and logical. Furthermore, it is supported with real-life examples. Culture is ordinary, each individual has it, and it is both individual and common. It’s a result of both traditional values and an individual effort. Therefore, trying to fit it into certain sharp-edged models would be wrong.
Psychological susceptibility to various faiths in the fact that human life is exposed to supernatural forces that affect a person's fate, and often prejudge its outcome, always existed in all human societies and cultures. One of the major determinants of this psychological susceptibility is superstitions that appear as the main engines of believe in the intervention of supernatural forces in human’s life. According to Encyclopaedia Britannica (2010) ‘superstition’ could be defined as ‘belief, half-belief or practice’, which does not have any rational explanation or basis. Despite this fact, according to Behringer (2004) the amount of believers in witchcraft and superstitions are significantly higher than in XVII century.