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SUPERSTITION
a sample essay of classification
I met a lady the other day who was really upset and worried. She seemed to me to be on the point of tears. I sort of eavesdropped on her conversation with a friend. It seems that what she was almost hysterical about was the fact that someone had given her sister, as a gift, an expensive kitchen knife. From what I could tell, the sister hadn't made a big deal of it, but the lady I overheard was certain that disaster was sure to follow. Apparently, to her, the gift of a knife would cut short the life of the recipient, or cut off her good luck--something like that. The lady was so convinced of this that she was wondering out loud if the gift giver was incredibly ignorant and thoughtless, or a secret enemy, intending great harm to come to her sister.
I have always been amazed and often amused at people's superstitions, but this was a new one on me. This scene wasn't very amusing, however. Here was a woman who looked to be fully capable of taking some sort of serious revenge on a kind person who had given her a sister a present. Not all superstitions are taken that seriously, of course, but I find it hard to understand how there can be so many varieties of superstition still around, at the beginning of the 21st Century.
One type of superstitious person might be called the "Magic Worlder," because to him the world is, literally, filled with magic. Whenever anything happens, the Magic Worlder immediately thinks not in terms of simple physical causes and random coincidence, but in terms of magic. His personality and mood is controlled by the stars. Luck is a real thing that he courts and woos like a fickle mistress. To him the universe is alive and interested in him--he must keep on its good side. He considers the money he spends getting the supernatural spirits on his side, or at least not against him, to be a good investment. He believes in everything, even when some of those beliefs are contradictory. Good luck charms, the evil eye, ghosts, the Ouija board, palm reading, astrology, demon possession, Fate, Bigfoot, and UFOs are all as real to him as the sun in the sky. Save your breath trying to convince him otherwise. He will regard you as either hopelessly ignorant and doomed, or under some evil influence, trying to lure him away from the Truth.
Another variety of superstitious person would be offended if you called him superstitious. Perhaps he would never be caught dead at a palm reader, and he would never give away all his possessions because he expects the End of the World tomorrow--but he blows on the dice before he throws them. He wears a lucky pair of socks when he plays golf. He doesn't worry a lot about ghosts or the Bermuda Triangle, but he figures there must be something to it. He probably laughs at supermarket tabloid nonsense, but he is pretty sure he has a little psychic ability himself. He probably knocks on wood when he mentions something that he wouldn't want to happen. It's hard to tell what motivates him in his beliefs: it could be wishful thinking (the world would be more fun and interesting if some of these things were true); or he could be playing it safe (just in case knocking on wood prevents disaster).
Of course there is a whole range of people somewhere in the middle. Some are close to being Magic Worlders, while some have only one "pet" belief--perhaps one that's "in" this year. There are probably a lot of people out there who are a lot more superstitious than they let on, however. Surveys show that most Americans have at least a few beliefs that can be classed as superstitions.
The rarest breed of all, however, is the hard-core rationalist. Since he is the opposite extreme from the Magic Worlder, perhaps he should be called the Physical Worlder. To him, there are no magical influences whatever. Everything in the world has a physical cause. Even seemingly strange events turn out to be simple, meaningless coincidence. Other people's "magical," "spooky," or "psychic" experiences he attributes to trickery, gullibility, and wishful thinking. He would prefer to take flight 13, because it will be less crowded. No spirits protect him, and none are out to get him. He wears no medallions to guard him against a universe which, as far as he can tell, is completely impersonal and doesn't care if he exists or not. The rationalist's world may seem much less interesting than those worlds full of spirits, influences, and mysterious psychic powers, but to him the physical causes of things are every bit as interesting as the "Powers Beyond" are to the Magic Worlder. And he is not likely to take revenge on someone for putting a curse on his sister by giving her a knife.
Perhaps the most amazing thing about the whole range of superstitious belief and disbelief is that they can coexist at all. The Magic Worlder drives down the expressway protected with medals, statues, charms, and a favorable horoscope. The rationalist drives carefully.
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(crass commercialism)
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Other possibly interesting essays, on evolution and other topics |
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darrwin@aol.com
Use or repost at your pleasure, just leave my name on it, please.
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