Humans have over time developed many different tools to enhance their games and play. Many of these tools take the form of boards, or balls, or cards and in many cases games were created using the culture and topics of the time as a basis for their play. Card games are one type of tool which have long reflected the society and culture of the time in which it was created and played. In very early Chinese culture playing cards were created and developed even further when the Chinese invented their own paper. Many years later, through the travels of merchants, paper playing cards came to the European countries (McDonald, “The Real History of Tarot”). The first mention of playing cards came from Belgium, Germany, and Italy where they were mentioned as they were being banned from use as gambling games. Eventually this ban on card games is relaxed and cards become a more integral and legal form of entertainment (“Early References”).
Tarot is one of the oldest card games in Europe which has long been associated with the occult and is often grouped with other future-predicting methods used by clairvoyants and psychics. However, Tarot’s origins were actually far simpler than that of predicting the future. The original intent of Tarot cards was the same as all other games; they were designed for fun and entertainment. Tarot cards originated in the 1400s in Italy as a fun game which reflected the culture and history of the time period. Tarot was created originally for the ruling class in Italy, but the game quickly spread to the common people (“Tarot History”). Italy in the fifteenth century was very Catholic and still ruled by a monarchist government. Italy was also the birthplace of beautiful art and many artists, and unsurpris...
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...d the common card suits, Hearts, Clubs, Diamonds, and Spades and the cards within that suit from the aces and court to the generic cards from two to ten. Today’s trick playing games are also derived from the methods that were developed for the original Tarot cards with games such as Bridge and Setback and many more mirroring the gameplay of a typical Tarot game. There is even evidence that the Joker card included in every set is a remnant from the Tarot’s Fool card. Finally, the images for each of the face cards are very old links to the original Tarot cards in Italy. While the images have changed drastically and are no longer very similar to the original images, Tarot cards provided a very strong basis for the typical modern card deck. Tarot birthed and developed many different forms of entertainment which have more than served their purpose through the years.
McCarthy, Erin. “A Brief History of the Ouija Board”. 31 October 2012. Web. 3 March 2014.
Out of This World is an outstanding card effect that many magicians have improved upon and performed with their own unique twist, including me. Out of this world has been billed as “The Greatest Card Trick of The Last Century,” and also “The Trick That Fooled Winston Churchill.” According to Curry a magician by the name of Harry Green performed Out of This World for Churchill, the effect fooled Churchill so he demanded it be shown to him again. Harry Green did so, he performed it six more times for Churchill and left him completely baffled every time. The method is simple yet deceptive, and it is truly a classic of card magic. So now with much excitement, I present to you my re-telling of Paul Curry’s Out of This
The thought of magic, witches, and sorcery to be fact is seen as preposterous in modern America. Coincidence is accepted as such and accusations of possession and bewitchment is extinct. When North America was first colonized by Europeans, however, the fear of magic and the like was all too real. Alison Games’s “Witchcraft in Early North America” describes the effects of the Europeans’ on the Native Americans and vice versa. As decades progressed, the ideas on witchcraft of the Spanish and British changed as well. “Witchcraft in Early North America” introduces different beliefs and practices of witchcraft of Europeans before colonization, Native Americans after colonization, the Spanish of New Mexico, and the British Colonies.
The author of this website, which would be the National Council on Public History, is specifically looking at what exactly is public history and what exactly is meant by public history. Public History can be defined as history in the field. It is the use of history in real life situations. It is history applied and goes outside the realm of academic history. The author does mention that while there used to be clear definitions between public and academic history with public history being more multi-disciplinary, history as an academic subject has also increasingly become multi-disciplinary. Public historians have many different names such as archivists, museum professionals, and local historians. The author’s main argument surrounding these definitions of public history is that there are different forms of history with public history being the kind that the average person sees. Public historians can deeply impact their local communities and many collaborate with local community members on projects to ensure that the history they’re detailing is that of the community who is affected by it. The author does note that while many public history projects can be educational, the purpose might be more for an intellectual history like for a business’s archives. Public history projects could also be used to promote the local town or for the town’s own economic development.
All throughout history, the religion of Voodoo, or Vodou, has been hushed, covered up, and considered evil. This background essay will go through the history, the opinions and fears, and a few aspects of rituals. The exact history of the religion is unknown, which only adds to the ignorance and the confusion of Voodoo. Some say it came from the Italian exiles from the Italian Revolution (Hall, 1995) while others say that the origins are elusive (National Geographic). As many as four million individuals practice this official religion. From the early eighteenth century to the late nineteenth century, Voodoo progressed into a feared religion by many in New Orleans and beyond. With zombies, queens, rituals and more, Voodoo has become more popular than ever, however, with popularity comes controversy.
I wanted to learn about a religion that I had no clue about a religion that was not like my own in any way, or so I thought the more I studied this religion the more I found out that Voodoo and Christianity are very similiar. I have always grown up in a Christian religion I have never really studied about any other religion. I chose to learn about Voodoo. Voodoo itself means spirit. This is not like any religion that I have ever read about. “Voodoo originated in the West Indies country of Haiti during the French Colonial Period (1699 to 1763), and it is still widely practiced in Haiti today. The foundations of Voodoo are the tribal religions of West Africa, brought to Haiti by slaves in the seventeenth century (Brandstotter).”
Throughout the ages, mankind’s fascination with the unknown has resulted in the beliefs of different theories of magic, sorcery and other supernatural activities. While it is a natural trait for humans to be curious of what they do not know, there is something to be said for the mass conviction in these paranormal topics. It’s a mystery in itself how groups of people of all ethnicities and nationalities can have the same beliefs and interest in these topics. From witchcraft to UFO’s, it can be seen all throughout history that humans have been attracted to the unexplained.
Dangerous, thrilling, addictive—however you choose to describe the modern game of polo, you can be sure that someone used those same words thousands of years ago for the same purpose. Polo, as it is played today, is merely a refinement of games played as early as the sixth century B.C. It has been said, in many languages and in many time periods, “He who plays polo once will sacrifice his money and body to play again.” Polo has survived for over two thousand years; its addiction must be as powerful as players claim.
HIST303 Witch Hunting 1400-1700 Essay 1: Describe the nature of "witchcraft"and explain why it was threatening to Christianity. Prepared by: Sikiki Angela Lloyd Due: 4 April 2014 Student Number: 203139861 Image: The Witches' Sabbath.
(Attention Getter) Since 1972 with the creation of pong, video games have been one of the leading ways to spend free time around the world. (Link to Audience) With the creation of all sorts of different
Welcome back to Divination. Over the past few weeks we have looked into many different ways to unleash your inner eye. Today we shall be looking at an art form that is very close to my own heart. Cartomancy, more commonly known as Tarot is a valuable skill for any Seer to learn. You will see on the table in front of you my own Tarot deck laid out. I must ask that you do not touch, as you may
It all began as a lawn game similar to the croquet played sometime during the 15th century in Northern Europe and probably in France and has evolved from that point into present day's style of billiard/pool table and rules. Playing the game moved indoors to a wooden table with green cloth to simulate grass, and a simple border was placed around the edges. The balls were shoved, rather than struck, with wooden sticks called "maces." The term "billiard" is derived from the French language, either from the word "billiart", one of the wooden sticks, or "bille", a ball” (Pool Tables). The story of how billiards came to be has unique qualities such as the way the term “billiards” came to be.
The twentieth century constantly grappled with the idea of literary history, and the ambition it entailed, as an attempt to explain the laws governing the evolution of literature, the coherence of literary periodization, the inter-linkages and exchanges between genres with reference to either the movement of history as an ever-present backdrop or in reference to formal aspects of the literary system itself. The last decades of the century threw this ambition into disarray. Positivist literary historiography claimed a certain degree of objectivity, valorized a group of writers and texts, created problematic distinctions such as popular and mass literature and foregrounded the dominance of certain genres in certain periods among other questionable
An example of bad fortune is the Friday the 13. Westerners still regard ’13’ as an unlucky number because of the famous painting
Superstition is the fear of what is unknown and mysterious, but does it in fact impact our everyday actions? In the play “Macbeth” by William Shakespeare superstition is a significant contribution to the characters actions. An analysis of Macbeth reveals that superstition causes insanity, rash decisions, and affects how people conduct their lives. Showing in fact, that superstition has a significant impact on thoughts and actions.