Category Archives: Magic

Ritual actions engaged in to effect changes in the outside world.

The George Santos Curse

Nationality: American

Occupation: Student

Residence: San Diego, CA

Text:

In March of 2023, just before opening day, Congressman George Santos published a video on Twitter wearing a Mets jersey where he incorrectly chanted “Let’s go Mets”. This video was posted while he was enveloped in an enormous fraud scandal, which would ultimately lead to him being expelled from Congress and sentenced to seven years in prison. The moment that the video was released, my friend was convinced that George Santos had just cursed the Mets for the 2023 season. Despite starting the year as World Series favorites, the Mets went on to win less than half of their games and miss the playoffs. In 2024 after George Santos was expelled from Congress, the Mets unexpectedly made a playoff run which was proof to my friend that Santos cursed the Mets and the curse was lifted when he was gone.

Context:
My friend lives in New York’s third congressional district, which is the district Santos represented and where the Mets play home games. He was not old enough to vote when Santos was elected, but he hated him and wanted him to be removed from office. After Santos posted the cringeworthy video on Twitter, jokes appeared online that he had just cursed the Mets and that the Mets could never win with him in office. My friend latched onto this idea, and throughout the season whenever the Mets lost he would text me about how the George Santos curse is killing the Mets.

Analysis:

This belief is a clear example of Frazer’s idea of the Law of Similarity in magic. The Law of Similarity states that a magician will produce a desired effect by mimicking it. In this case George Santos was (unintentionally) the magician, and he transferred the negativity surrounding himself onto the Mets by wearing their jersey. Following this idea, it makes sense that the curse would be lifted after Santos was expelled. Prior to being expelled from office Santos was hated for being a fraudster, but after he was expelled people began to find him amusing. This changing energy surrounding Santos was reflected in the Mets turnaround, where they unexpectedly had a great season in 2024.

No Hitter Jinx

Nationality: American

Occupation: Student

Residence: San Diego, CA

Text:

When a pitcher is throwing a no hitter or a perfect game, nobody in the dugout is allowed to talk to the pitcher and nobody at all (including teammates, fans, broadcasters, and anyone else watching) is allowed to say the words “no-hitter” or “perfect game”. If you talk to the pitcher or if you say no-hitter you will jinx the pitcher and they will give up a hit.

Context:

Both of these rules are common practice across baseball, and my friend has experienced both of them first hand. In high school, one of his teammates had a perfect game going through 6 innings; when he was not on the mound the pitcher sat by himself at the far end of the dugout and nobody, including the coaches would talk to him. Normally coaches would ask how a pitcher is feeling after every inning and give them advice, but the coach stayed far away. The pitcher successfully finished the perfect game. As a fan, my friend was in attendance when the Mets pitched a no-hitter in 2022. Everybody knew that the Mets had a no-hitter going, and the crowd became more and more excited as they got closer to closing out the game, but nobody ever said the words “no-hitter”. People would count down the number of outs left, or ask each other questions like “do you think they’ll pull it off” but everyone carefully avoided the words “no-hitter”.

Analysis:

Both of these rules are in line with Frazers principles of sympathetic magic. The refusal to talk to a pitcher can be seen as wanting to avoid contact with the pitcher along the lines of the Law of Contact. If a pitcher has a perfect game going and you come into contact with him, then your imperfections could influence the pitcher and ruin his perfect game. The refusal to say the words “no-hitter” or “perfect game” follows a similar idea, but here you are not interacting with the pitcher but rather with the perfect game itself. By saying “perfect game”, a person is indirectly contacting the perfect game (if the perfect game is to be thought of as an object), and by contacting the perfect game the person risks magically ruining the game. Beyond the magical beliefs of a perfect game, there is major societal pressure involved with these rules. If you break one of these rules and a pitcher gives up a hit, people will blame you for it. To avoid the risk of being blamed, people follow these rules whether they believe in magic or not.

Family Hamsa

Nationality: Algerian, American
Occupation: Student
Residence: Champaign, Illinois
Language: English

TE has a family heirloom in his pendant necklace, which he says is a hamsa. This necklace was given to him by his father last year. When not wearing it, he keeps it by his front door. The necklace is said to prevent evil spirits and bad luck from harming its wearer.

TE is unsure of the origins of the hamsa, saying its either a part of his culture as either north African or from Islamic roots. This necklace came from his father, who was born and raised in Algeria, and TE is pretty sure that it was passed down from generations upon receiving it last year. As a piece of his cluture, TE is very proud of his hamsa and wears it almost every day.

This necklace is a piece of tradition from either North Africa or Islam, and helps TE connect with parts of their heritage they come from. As part North African, he feels a responsibility to honor his familial roots, especially seeing how this necklace has been directly passed down to him from his father. The ancestral connection to this necklace may be why it is said to ward off evil spirits, as the spirits of his ancestors are protecting him as they did his father before him. While speaking to TE, it was clear that in the year since receiving the pendant, he cared deeply about it and made sure to take care of it. The deep respect for his past was solidified in his hamsa, and thefolkloric tradition of passing it down makes its significance personal for TE. As a piece of protection, TE didn’t seem to necessarily believe that it would ward off evil spirits, but was of the impression that it was far better safe than sorry in regards to its spiritual powers. The notion that it wasn’t belief of spirits, but rather lack of evidence to disprove spirits, is an interesting as it shows the trust in their heritage, drawing upon the beliefs of those before him as indication of its efficacy. This necklace is a strong piece of contagious magic, requiring the user to physically wear it to appreciate its effects, or to hang it up by the front door when protecting the home from spirits entering.

Pregame Ritual

Nationality: American
Occupation: Student
Residence: Bristol, Rhode Island
Language: English

Whenever TC plays soccer, they have a very specific pregame ritual that they have to perform every game, or else they will not play as well. He wears the exact same base layer of socks with his cleats every single game. While the top layer of longer socks are cut out to fit the shin guards, the base sock layer was the exact same pair for 2 years straight. After TC finishes warming up, the next time they step onto the field, whether it be walking out with the starting lineup or subbing in, he makes sure that his left foot is the foot stepping past the line onto the field every single time.

TC first mentioned the reason why he wore the same pair of socks was due to his trouble finding socks that fit in his cleats well, with them sliding in his boots too much for his liking. One game, he decided to try a cut pair of socks with a base pair of socks, which saw him play exceptionally that game. Ever since then, he wore those same socks for every game to replicate the success he saw there. Additionally, the left foot out first when stepping onto the field is a good luck charm he says helps him play better. If he notices that he’s stepped onto the field with the wrong foot, he’ll go back and redo his entrance to prevent bad luck.

This ritual is highly repetitive, requiring the exact same set of circumstances every single time he plays soccer. TC does not call himself a very superstitious person, but holds this ritual to be very important to his success on the field. By limiting the variance before he plays the game, it gives him the same exact mentality as every other day, letting him focus on the game at hand. The emphasis on putting the literal best foot forward, which can be interpreted as homeopathic magic while stepping onto the field creates a barrier between the game and the world outside of it. By putting his best foot forward, TC can also be confident of his footwork in the game. No matter what is going on outside the game, once TC has stepped onto the field game ready, he can switch to competition right away. The placebo effect is extremely important, because even i changing socks or the walk-on ritual doesn’t have any major effect on TC’s physical being, mentally the pressure that he’s cast bad luck on himself can create a downward spiral leading to a poor performance .

Mommy’s Magic Medicine

Text: “Growing up a little ritual we had when we were younger kids was that every time we got injured my mom would put Neosporin on our little cut or scrape and call it Mommy’s magic medicine. And so every single time I got hurt as a kid I remember my mom putting the Neosporin on my cut and at the time I didn’t know it was Neosporin, I always only knew it as Mommy’s magic medicine. And so I always felt relieved when that happened and it’s something that has resonated with me my whole life.”

Context: This story was shared by the informant, a law school student, who reflected on a childhood ritual involving minor injuries and the comforting presence of their mother. The informant recalls that whenever they got a cut or scrape, their mother would apply Neosporin while calling it “Mommy’s magic medicine.” At the time, the informant didn’t recognize it as a commercial product—they only understood it as something their mother used to make them feel better. This phrase, repeated over many years, became a deeply ingrained part of their childhood experience and remains a memorable, emotionally significant ritual that they continue to associate with safety, love, and maternal care.

Analysis: This is a great example of folk medicine in a family setting. Even though Neosporin is a store-bought product, the way the mom framed it as “Mommy’s magic medicine” gave it a kind of homemade, personal meaning. It wasn’t just about the ointment—it became a small ritual that the informant associated with healing and comfort. Calling it “magic” added a sense of wonder, and also helped make the pain feel less serious or scary.

This kind of thing is really common in folk medicine, where the emotional support is just as important as the treatment itself. Parents often use little sayings, routines, or made-up names to soothe their kids, and those moments become part of how children learn to handle pain or fear. In this case, the ritual shows how folk practices can exist right alongside modern medicine—what matters is the meaning attached to it. For the informant, that meaning stuck with them, even long after they found out what Neosporin actually was.

Informant Info

Race/Ethnicity: White

Age: 23

Occupation: Student

Residence: Oak Park, CA

Date of Performance: April 22, 2025

Primary Language: English

Other Language(s): N/A

Relationship: Brother