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Essay on popular superstitions
Essay on popular superstitions
Superstitions and its effects on humanity
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Everywhere in the world superstitions live, even every homeland on the planet has its own localized superstitions. Some of the most widespread superstitions have to manage with cats, alcoholic beverage, and death, strolling under ladders, shattering a reflector, pacing on sidewalk chinks, skulls, the number 13, composing in red, bats flying around you, and following someone with a broom, etc.
People have loved and have constricted cats longer than any other living organism so it creates sense that there are countless superstitions global involving them. There is a trust that if a black cat passes your road, you will have evil-minded luck. Whoever troubles or kills a cat will find with great misfortune in Germany. There is a superstition that it is evil-minded luck to pass a river sustaining a cat in France. It is considered that if you give a cat gin in the past sunset you will have a great trade of misadventure in the Ukraine.
Alcohol is considered to be the curse of society by many people worldwide. Since alcohol has many superstitions associated with it because it was existed for thousands of years. In the Czech Republic it is considered bad luck to serve alcohol on Christmas. In the US, it is considered bad luck to not serve alcohol on Christmas. In Germany it is believed to be good luck to drink three or more drinks with the groom immediately before the wedding. In Poland they believe that if one consumes alcohol before noon, one will die young.
The most fearful thing anyone in the world is scared by it is death! They attempt to give good reason for death by creating superstitions. Many of these superstitions have to do with agriculture. It is believed that when a farmer’s child dies on a harvest moon, there will ...
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...any reappearing themes for superstition. Some of these themes are cats, alcohol, and death. Every country has its own localized take on each theme. These are just a few examples of things one might associate with Bad Luck Omens. Some are more powerful than others.
Works Cited
Blackburn, Bonnie, and Leofranc Holford-Strevens. The Oxford Companion to the Year: An Exploration of Calendar Customs and Time-Reckoning. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc., 1999.
Hatch, Jane M. The American Book of Days. 3rd ed. Ed. George William Douglas. New York: Wilson, 1978. Mercatante, Anthony S. "Freyja." The Facts on File Encyclopedia of World Mythology and Legend. 1988.
"Tuesday." Funk & Wagnalls Knowledge Center. 1998. 24 Sep. 2000. http://voices.yahoo.com/common-bad-luck-superstitions-omens-6580036.html http://www.csicop.org/superstition/library/common_superstitions/
A grand example of a tradition that deserves to fade with time comes from “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson. Through this story, one learns that the end result of the lottery, which is played by the town folks, is the death of one of their citizens. There are hints throughout the story to explain why the lottery is played in the town. The most prevalent explanation is given by a character named Old Man Warner who said “Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon” (Jackson 31). This shows the most reasonable explanation for this group’s participation in the tradition, they call the lottery, is to increase the yield of their crops through human sacrifice.
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.
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
When Dobbin’s believes in the lucky pantyhose, when the platoon started to think that they’re lucky too, and when the pantyhose continue to be lucky after they broke-up are all examples of superstition are shown in the novel. Dobbin’s believed the pantyhose were lucky since he never got hurt/injured wearing them. After, the platoon starts to believe because they don’t dispute the facts. Lastly, his girlfriend breaks-up with him and he believed the “luck” didn’t go away. Seven years of bad luck for breaking a
Foster, Mary H., and Mabel H. Cummings. Asgard Stories: Tales from Norse Mythology. New York: Silver, Burdett and Company, 1901. Kindle file.
The narrator in “The Black Cat” first believes that the black cat is evil as his drinking problem worsens, he believes the cat is evil and causes him to do bad things to his wife and animals. The narrator blames the cat for his current state and even kills his beloved cat Pluto. In the story “The Black Cat,” Edgar Allan Poe uses imagery and specific details to symbolize darkness and evil. The narrator was a happy man he like his animals, and loved his wife he got a cat named “Pluto” “He was very large and beautiful animal; he was black black all over and very intelligent”(Poe 1). Conclusion: In the short story “The Black Cat” “Edgar Allen Poe uses The Black cat as named pluto as a symbolic representation of darkness and
Next, symbolism is always an integral part of any Poe story. The most obvious of symbolic references in this story is the cat’s name, Pluto. This is the Roman god of the underworld. Pluto contributes to a strong sense of hell and may even symbolize the devil himself. Another immensely symbolic part of “The Black Cat” is the title itself, since onyx cats have long connoted bad luck and misfortune. The most amazing thing about the symbolism in this story or in any other of Poe’s is that there are probably many symbols that only Poe himself ever knew were in his writings.
People during the Elizabethan era placed most of their luck on certain objects, or performed certain actions in hope that they will be endowed with good luck or protection. The main reason why people during the Elizabethan era took superstitions as an integral part of life was because most people during that time displayed ignorance and also lived in fear because of their minimal knowledge about anything more than the physical world around them (Alchin, “Elizabethan Superstitions”). This included unseen external forces such as the supernatural, nature, or God. Some superstitions that were a part of Elizabethan England still exist in today’s culture in America. One example is when a person sneezes,
Superstitions have been around for many centuries. Just like in Shirley Jackson’s, The Lottery, it is believed that, “Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon”. Many of the superstitions that are common today have a colorful history that are not based on facts, but simply on perceptions and beliefs.. For example, walking under a ladders considered to bring bad luck. It tempts “Fates” and awakens spirits. However, this can be counteracted by placing a thumb between the index and middle finger and holding it for 5 seconds. Similar to superstitions, stereotyping is an age old problem of beliefs and perceptions. Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery, challenged the typical stereotype that it is always the man that dies. Likewise, today’s stereotypes are being
In the short story “The Lottery”, the tradition being practiced is merely continued to keep the tradition alive. Danger is not the worst outcome of blindly following an old tradition, but the effects that it is causing, which is death. It is natural for traditions to change over a period of time and it is important to continue to learn and have knowledge on why one practices and participates in this tradition. However, by attaching to one single tradition and continuing to practice that tradition without change brings the village back to a level of their traditions’ originators, which causes tragic outcomes. It is clear that these villagers have completely forgotten the meaning of this traditional lottery. The main problem is that an outcome of this ignorance, is that they continue to practice these traditions regardless and commit murder every year on June 27th. Shirley Jackson portrays the dangerous, and inhuman outcomes of when a village blindly follows a tradition ignorantly. The message in the short story “The Lottery” is prevalent in our everyday society and readers must learn from these stories, and educate themselves on all their traditions they are following the best they can and modernize them as needed. Traditions continuously revolutionize as our world does, we mustn’t let ourselves be ignorant to what we practice within our hometowns, country, and
In Germany, it was believed that if a pregnant woman were to walk over a grave then the child will die. Also, if she goes to a cloth bleaching area, then her children will come out pale. During labor, the woman should put on the slippers of her husband.
Thanks to the linear time structure of the western world, time is no longer infinite. People of our culture constantly have to stress over rushing to arrive at an appointment on time, turning in an assignment by a particular day, or having a prepared meal on the table at 5 o’clock on the dot. As days are filled with schedules dictated by time, the time itself just seems to slip away. This passing of linear time creates the worry that life is too short and this generates the concern about death, especially about what happens when one dies. In the western world, we as a people are highly conscious of milestones measuring passing time as these marks signal the approach of the enigmatic death and remind us that our time is limited.
Superstitions are a fascinating and thrilling part of life. Various people believe that superstitions are ignorant and foolish, but my family knows for a fact that they are genuine beliefs. How do we know this? My family, the Winchester’s, and myself, Alice, have recently endured countless hardships that were caused by the simple mistake of not knocking on wood when bad luck was looming in the air.
Throughout the village of Umuofia, a belief the villagers have, is the belief in the earth, sun and rain gods. The villager’s religious values are very sacred. If one does not abide by a ritual such as bringing a little kota to an elder or friend, one does not respect. Other beliefs such as whistling at night, and creating violence in the village’s annual week of peace are meant to be a bad omen. The one who is at fault is believed to be cursed.
Superstitions are a natural part of any culture's make-up. However, some superstitions are firmly rooted in one specific culture. This is evident in Baby Sugg's statement to Sethe where she says, "Not a house in the country ain't packed to its rafters with some dead negro's grief" (Morrison 5). Similarly, Ella comments to Stamp Paid, "You know as well as I do that people who die bad don't stay in the ground" (188).