History+of+Ghost+Stories

This possible explanation as to why ghost stories exist comes from reading an article by Alison Smith who is involved with the [|Skeptical Analysis of the Paranormal Society]. It seems that belief in ghosts is very strong and a very deeply rooted part of many cultures around the world, and this very fact shows that perhaps not all these stories are merely fictional. If so many cultures worldwide have some sort of ghostly tale to go around, does that not mean that at least one or two stories must be true? A common theme among most ghost stories is that usually the ghost or haunting in question is there because they left some aspect of their mortal life unfinished when they died. For example, Consuela in "The Girl in White" died before her first dance, thus even in death she is determined to carry out that deed. In addition, since the Neanderthal time it seems, people have always had an instinct to bury their dead, for they feared that if they should not do so, they would be cursed. Ghost stories may have been created to scare people into burying their dead, since some ghost stories are about ghosts being angry and haunting people if their graves are disturbed. For example, in "The Bells", the poor man dug up the treasure which was a part of the skeleton’s grave, thus the skeleton awoke. On a last note, stories such as "La Llorona" could possibly have been created to show women what will happen if they don't follow societal expectations of them. It is terrible and frowned upon to drown your children, and "La Llorona" shows that if you do this, your soul will wander the world in an anguished state for all eternity. These are just theories, and until a person really has a ghostly encounter of their own, skepticism will always remain.



Citation:  Smith, Alison. “The History of Ghost Stories.” //Skeptical Analysis of the Paranormal Society.//

2007. 22 Nov. 2011. http://www.skepticalanalysis.com/reports/ghosts/history.html

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