Category Archives: Folk Beliefs

Richard, the School Theater Ghost

Age: 20
Performance Date: 3/31/2024

Text:

“Ok so basically, Richard loved the kids at our school, he didn’t really care about the things we did, he enjoyed our performances but you could tell when he was angry. Richard lived on the catwalk, which was only accessible by the ladder. RARELY USED because nobody dared to disturb Richard. The only time students were allowed to go up the catwalk was at the end of their senior year to say “I’ve been on the catwalk”, but really was to say goodbye to Richard. Richard also protected us. We had a really mean director, who shan’t be named, but anyways this woman would always degrade us whenever she had the chance because she had power over us. The last show she did, she was really pissing everyone off, rude to everyone and made morale really low. Richard must have not liked this and decided to go to work during hell week. Our opening night was on Friday, and Richard clocked in on Thursday. Thursday however was considered a “performance” because we invite all faculty and staff to watch the show for free while we are polishing our performance. Our director decided to go back stage and started screaming at us. Richard saw the opportunity to have her trip and took it. Out of no where a paper was on the ground, my director slipped and fell face first. (She deserved it). The following day, Richard even left the school campus. The end of the school day was an assembly to promote our show, but the director was NO WHERE TO BE FOUND. (She was supposed to be there by 12:30, assembly started at 2), she shows up and lets everyone know that she was in a minor car accident (she was fine just a fender bender), but was it a coincidence that it happened during Richards wrath? No. Anyways the show was not looking good until very last minute. After that assembly, our show was performance ready. We had our performance, everything was good. Richard made sure the show was good for us. The following year, our director was fired. Thanks Richard”

Context:

C is a 20 year old student from Chester, NY who was a part of their school’s theater productions for many years. He first heard of the ghost that lived in the catwalk of the school theater from an older classmate (about 4 years older) that had been in previous productions at the school. It had been a sort of legend among the students at his high school, and pretty much everyone knew about it, even if they weren’t a part of theater. C says that he feels “a little bit of both” when asked if he believes in ghosts or if this experience is a sort of joke from high school. He believes that people who passed away can still send us messages, but he doesn’t know the full origin of Richard, therefore making it sort of mysterious as to if it is real or not.

Analysis:

The story of Richard from C’s high school theater encapsulates various themes of community, tradition, justice, belief, and transformation. It reflects the values and dynamics inherent within high school culture, while also exploring the human need for connection, justice, and the transcendence of oppressive forces. The story reflects a strong sense of community within the school, particularly among students involved in theater. The tradition of visiting the catwalk at the end of senior year to bid farewell to Richard suggests a shared ritual that binds students together across different graduating classes. Richard, the alleged ghost inhabiting the catwalk, symbolizes a connection to the past. Despite being a spectral figure, Richard is revered by students, indicating a respect for the history and traditions of the school’s theater program. The story portrays Richard as a protector of the students, intervening to rectify injustices perpetrated by the director. Richard’s actions, such as causing the director to trip and orchestrating events that lead to her dismissal, serve as a form of retribution for her mistreatment of the students. The ambiguity surrounding Richard’s existence blurs the lines between reality and folklore. While some may view Richard as a fictional construct or a product of collective imagination, others, like C, entertain the possibility of supernatural intervention, reflecting a belief in the existence of forces beyond rational explanation. It is also common across history for theater and the supernatural to be combined, as shown in the tale of “Macbeth” being a word never spoken in a theater or else bad things will fall upon the actors/show.

The Lady with the Pearl Necklace

Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Performance Date: 3/31/2024

Text:

“My mom told me a story about when she saw a ghost/dead person before, she said that she was walking down the street with her cousin, and then she saw this woman and she had a pearl necklace. The lady was like ‘oh would you like to buy this from me?’ and she said ‘oh I can’t buy the necklace let me go just tell my mom and see if she has any money’. Then the lady was like ‘no just like, like you can have it, you can have it you don’t have to pay for it I just want you to have the necklace’ and my mom said ‘ no no I can’t take it for free let me go see’. So then my mom remembers that this like elder lady had a green sweater on. Then she goes back into her house and there were a bunch of people surrounding her dining room table and she was very confused so she goes in and she’s like ‘oh mom this one lady like she was asking me to buy her pearl necklace, can I have some money to give to her?’ and then her mom was like ‘oh what did she look like, who was this woman, have you ever seen her before?’ and my mom was like ‘no I haven’t seen her’ so then my grandma was like ‘okay what did she look like’. My mom starts describing this woman and telling her like that she had a green sweater on and then the entire room goes silent, and just goes quiet, and they’re like ‘okay go to the other room’ and then my mom was like ‘okay that was weird’ so then she goes to the other room but stays near the door. Then my grandma was telling her sister that the woman that my mom had described had just been like, they had just had her funeral mass. Like the woman was dead and they were going to put her body in the ground and my mom was freaked out and she got chills and everything and then they never saw the woman again, obviously, because she had died.”

Context:

M is a 19 year old student from a town right outside of Chicago, IL, and she explained to me a ghost story that her mother told her about when she was younger. M explained that her mother grew up ‘not wealthy’ which is contextual to the story where she declines to buy the necklace, as this was when she was younger. M’s mother grew up in a small town in Mexico, El Sauz, Guanajuato. She thinks that this was around October when she was very young, probably about 9 or so. Although her mom experienced this and fully remembers it, M doesn’t think her mom fully believes in ghosts. M also doesn’t fully believe in ghosts herself, she thinks she would first try to explain a situation with logic and reasoning, before fully believing that it was a spirit.

Analysis:

M’s ghost story reflects a complex interplay of personal beliefs, cultural narratives, and family dynamics. It highlights the enduring significance of folklore and tradition in shaping individuals’ perceptions of the supernatural, while also underscoring the human capacity for skepticism and rational inquiry in the face of mysterious encounters. It encapsulates the tension between belief in the supernatural and skepticism. While M’s mother experienced a seemingly paranormal encounter, both she and M approach the story with a degree of skepticism. M’s mother’s hesitation to accept the pearl necklace for free and her subsequent confusion when she learns about the woman’s death reflect a blend of belief and rationality. The story takes place in a small town in Mexico, where beliefs in ghosts, spirits, and the afterlife may be deeply rooted in cultural folklore and traditions. The encounter with the ghostly woman wearing a green sweater and offering a pearl necklace resonates with traditional ghost stories that often feature encounters with benevolent or unsettled spirits. The story unfolds within the context of family interactions, with M’s mother consulting her own mother about the encounter. The family’s reaction to the description of the woman and the revelation of her death underscores the importance of familial connections and shared experiences in processing supernatural events. The story’s setting in a small town in Mexico adds layers of historical and cultural significance, contextualizing the encounter within a specific geographic and temporal framework. The time of year, possibly around October, may also carry symbolic meaning, aligning with cultural traditions such as Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) when the boundary between the living and the dead is believed to be particularly porous.

The Lady of The Lake

‘ In the late 1800s, in the Adirondacks in upstate New York, there were what were called great Adirondack camps which were these big, elaborate, retreat type of things for wealthy families from New York City and they would spend a few months here during the summers. In one of these families at the campsites, there was a woman who went out onto Lake Placid to go kayaking. Legend has it that she never came back, and the family never found her or solved the mystery of where she was. But, in the late 1900s, at the base of Pulpit Rock, which is now a cliff jumping site, it is also the deepest part of Lake Placid, a team of divers were exploring this area. In the gloom of Lake Placid, there’s no sunlight that reaches the bottom in this part. It was completely dark, and the pair of divers had reached the bottom and found what seemed to be a mannequin… until they realized, there was a chain and anchor strapped to the “mannequin’s” legs, making them aware that this was in fact a real person. At the time, they didn’t know this was the woman who went kayaking decades before and never returned. But they found this woman at the bottom of Pulpit Rock… so, one of the divers went back up to the boat to call for help while the other stayed behind to keep the location of the body. Essentially, because there was no sunlight, and the mineral content of the water at that depth and temperature was just right, such that the skin was preserved almost perfectly, looking like a wax sculpture… But it freaked out the second diver so much that he decided to bring the body back to the surface because he didn’t want to stay there in the dark with this horrifying figure. When he starts bringing the woman up to the surface, the sunlight coming in, the temperature of the water growing warmer, and the changing mineral content caused her body to melt away in his arms… it disintegrates and falls apart. It fades into nothingness right in his hands. So now, in today’s world, when you are climbing out of the lake after cliff jumping, many people say they can feel the lady of the lake grabbing at their feet as they step onto their boats.’ – NZ

This story was told to NZ by his father, during their first family trip to his favorite place on earth, Lake Placid. He and his family went to their cottage up in the Adirondack Mountains and decided to spend their summer day cliff jumping at Pulpit Rock. As they hiked towards the rock his dad shared with him and his brother this legend of the Lady of the Lake. As a little boy, he was horrified of this ghost that lives beneath the water, but also curious as to wether or not he would feel the Lady of the Lake pulling at his ankles when he got back onto his boat. His curiosity got the best of him and nothing could hold him back from cliff jumping. Even to this day, every time NZ goes back he jumps in to try and feel the Lady of the Lake grabbing at him as he escapes the cold water. Now, whenever he takes his friends or family to this spot, he never fails to share and pass this legend onto them to add to their folklore repertoire.

I had never heard of this specific legend, but I have heard many similar ones in the area I grew up in. This piece of folklore offers a legendary tale, a ghost story meant to capture the imagination of those who heard it, a “enter if you dare” tale. It also follows the supernatural elements read in many folklore myths and legends, something that while you can’t prove that it exists, its been told and passed down so many times, there is no reason not to believe it. This legend allows for the local superstition to become tradition and a ritual storytelling experience for those who visit and families who are raised in this area. This story originated as an oral piece of folklore, one can imagine that it was even acted out around campfires in Lake Placid, in which performance is a key aspect of folklore. NZ also noted that he has heard multiple variations of this tale, as when they are passed down orally, they are often changed or even misremembered, thus altering the story for those who continue to share it. The Adirondacks have many myths and legends, and this tale only adds to the mysterious environment the Adirondacks have to many.

A Lucky New Year

“At the beginning of every new year, my mom and dad put an item related to school in front of Ganesha to bless my brother and I for the year to come”

At the beginning of each year, their parents pray and place an item, usually dealing with education, in front of Ganesha, one of the most worshipped Hindu deities or gods. In Hinduism, Ganesha is associated with success and removes obstacles in one’s life. This is done to bring blessings to the kids for the new year and to bring success and well-being into their lives. For her, her mother places textbooks and a student ID in front of Ganesha. Education is considered to be extremely sacred in Indian culture, specifically for her family. Education, and objects pertaining to it, are symbolic of her whole life “in the eyes of Ganesha” and seen as a sacred pursuit, thus the obstacles on this path will be removed. She also emphasized that it is a ritual and tradition she will carry on for her own family as well.

My first interpretation of this tradition was that it would bring good luck and success into their educational journey, and while that has an aspect, it also encompasses practically their entire life, rather than just the education portion. Due to the importance that education has in Indian religion, it can be seen as one of the more important factors to put blessings into. This ritual was learned through the Hindu culture, demonstrating that something like textbooks can be considered a folklore object, and the act of placing them as a gift for a deity is a folklore practice passed down through families and communities. While folklore is often word of mouth stories and myths, it can intersect with religion and the culture that surrounds it, in this case Indian culture. This practice connects her and her family to their heritage just as folklore intends to do, additionally with the prayers spoken by the parents have been passed down through their ancestors, continuing on today.

The Safety of a Dollar Bill

“Every time I leave to go on a trip, I put a dollar bill in front of Ganesha to bless myself with safety for my travels to whatever destination”

Whenever she is traveling, she never forgets to put a one dollar bill in front of a statue of Ganesha, one of the most worshipped Hindu deities or gods. In Hinduism, Ganesha is associated with success and removes obstacles in one’s life.The dollar bill is an offering to Ganesha in order to receive a blessing of peace and safety on her next adventure. This money is never touched again and never removed. Every dollar bill she has placed in front of Ganesha throughout her life still sits right as she left them. While her parents taught her this practice, this ritual has been passed down many generations of her family and is a largely shared practice in the Hindu religion and culture.

I had never heard of this spiritual ritual before, especially when traveling or embarking upon a new adventure. My familiarity with an act like this is something similar to leaving a dollar or a trinket on a shrine of a god or a spiritual entity one believes in. For example, in Catholicism, Saint Christopher is the saint of protection and guidance for those on journeys, and people in this religion will wear a pendant with this saint on it for a sense of safety. This demonstrates the variability and immense diversity in folklore; some traditions are similar and hold comparable values while coming from totally different heritages and backgrounds. While folklore does not always stem from religious beliefs, this shows that it can interlace with so many different categories of life and be passed throughout centuries, while still holding on to key aspects of the tradition, story, practice, etc. Overall, this ritual that this person practices examples how traditions are passed down throughout generations and entire cultures with adaptability to circumstance and environment. For example, this person and her family use a dollar bill to represent the token given to Ganesha, while in India, or other countries where Hinduism is practiced, these tokens may be different, whether it is a different currency used or something completely different, such as a special trinket. Folklore has the ability to shape individuals practices and beliefs all while creating and sustaining a connection to cultural communities.