Category Archives: Legends

Narratives about belief.

A Ghostly Encounter (Ghost Story)

Informant’s Story:
My informant shared a ghost story their dad has told since they were in kindergarten. “My dad was hired for a freelance construction job at a hotel, with compensation offered as an unlimited bar tab instead of cash. As he worked late into the night, a man who appeared to be part of the hotel staff served him drinks. Upon finishing the job, the worker thanked him, saying, ‘Thanks for helping my hotel.’ Later, when speaking with the hotel manager, my dad mentioned the drinks he’d received, only to learn that the hotel had no alcohol available that night. Confused, my dad pointed to a painting on the hotel wall, identifying the server. The manager, astonished, explained the painting depicted the hotel’s original owner, who had been deceased for over 40 years.”

Context:
This story was first introduced to my informant in kindergarten by their father, who regularly recounted it throughout their childhood. My informant vividly recalls the fascination and mystery surrounding this tale, noting the profound impact of hearing it from a trusted source like their father. This familial narrative holds special significance because it merges supernatural elements with personal and familial experience, creating a deep connection to the story that transcends mere entertainment.

Analysis:
At its core, this ghost story conveys powerful themes of reciprocity, karma, and moral responsibility. The informant strongly resonates with the lesson their father emphasized through the narrative: “If you take care of something, someone or something will take care of you.” The ghost’s gratitude and mysterious provision of drinks symbolizes the reciprocal nature of kindness, suggesting a deeper cosmic or moral balance at play. The informant interprets this as a powerful statement on karma: good intentions and actions inevitably result in positive outcomes.

Additionally, the informant highlighted a nuanced understanding of life’s interconnectivity, noting, “For every twenty dollars you find, someone has lost twenty dollars.” This insight demonstrates the story’s deeper exploration of life’s ethical and existential complexities. They also linked this lesson metaphorically to contemporary global issues such as climate change, further illustrating the story’s enduring relevance. Ultimately, the tale serves as a reflective medium, prompting listeners to consider deeper ethical responsibilities and interconnectedness in their everyday actions.

The Legend of Elias White (Ghost Story)

Informant’s Retelling:
“It all began in the dense, foggy woods of Bass Lake, a place so quiet you could hear your own heartbeat echoing through the trees. Legend has it that many years ago, a slave named Elias White escaped into these woods, never to return. Elias was a big man, known for his piercing white eyes that seemed to glow in the dark. Some said he had a gift for seeing things others couldn’t—things that weren’t meant to be seen.

One cold October night, Elias vanished. The slave owner searched for days. When they caught him, he was hung. A group of young campers watched from the brush. Elias, hanging from a tree branch, staring at the hikers, screeched in a strangled voice: ‘The forest keeps what it takes.’

The woods became a forbidden place after that. People whispered about strange lights flickering between the trees and an eerie voice that called out to anyone who dared enter. But the most terrifying part? Those who ventured too far into Bass Lake claimed they saw two glowing white eyes watching them from the shadows.

Fast forward to a summer night not too long ago. A group of teenagers, much like you guys, decided to test the legend. They laughed off the warnings, armed with flashlights and bravado, and headed into the forest. As they ventured deeper, the air grew colder, the trees seemed to close in, and a strange silence fell over the group.

Then, they heard it—a low, raspy whisper. At first, it sounded like the wind, but the words became clear: ‘The forest keeps what it takes.’

Panic set in, but when they turned to leave, they realized the path they came from had vanished. The forest had shifted, trapping them in its maze. One by one, their flashlights began to flicker and die. And then, they saw him.

Standing between the trees was a figure cloaked in shadows, his glowing white eyes piercing through the darkness. He didn’t move, but the teens could feel his presence, heavy and suffocating, as if the forest itself was breathing down their necks.

One of the teens, desperate to escape, shouted, ‘What do you want from us?!’

The figure tilted its head, and in a voice that sounded like leaves crunching underfoot, it replied: ‘To see what you’ve seen.’

The next morning, the search party found the teens huddled together at the forest’s edge, pale and trembling. They were alive, but something had changed. Their eyes—every single one of them—had turned a ghostly white, glowing faintly in the sunlight. To this day, they refuse to speak of what they saw, but they all agree on one thing: ‘Elias White is still out there, watching, waiting… and the forest keeps what it takes.'”

Context:
My information first encountered this chilling legend at a summer camp, narrated by an older counselor around a nighttime campfire. The setting enhanced the story’s eerie effect, amplifying its emotional impact and embedding it deeply in their memory. According to them, counselors would often use the tale of Elias White as both entertainment and a subtle warning to campers not to stray into restricted or dangerous areas of the forest. My informant recounted that the legend served as a rite of passage among campers, marking their initiation into the collective camp culture and identity.

Analysis:
The legend of Elias White embodies classic motifs found in ghost stories—escape, pursuit, punishment, and enduring hauntings—and taps into broader themes of historical injustice, lingering guilt, and retribution. Elias’s ghost symbolizes unresolved historical traumas and the oppressive past of slavery, turning a personal tragedy into a supernatural warning.

This narrative structure effectively uses fear to reinforce community boundaries, functioning as both a cautionary tale and a mechanism for social control within the camp environment. The transformation of the teenagers’ eyes symbolically conveys a loss of innocence or an irreversible awareness of darker truths.

Additionally, the phrase “the forest keeps what it takes” alludes to nature’s dominion over humanity, reflecting anxieties around human vulnerability and the unknowable mysteries lurking just beyond civilization’s edge. Thus, the legend of Elias White persists not only as entertainment but as a potent reminder of historical injustices and the enduring power of folklore to express cultural anxieties and collective memories.

The Legend of Paul Bunyon

Text:
“The story that comes to mind for me is the legend of Paul Bunyan. The gist of the story is that Paul is a giant lumberjack who cut down trees in Wisconsin and Minnesota with his blue-colored ox, Babe. He goes on adventures, fights other giants, and helps to build up the Midwest. While I’ve heard many variations, these facts always stay the same, along with the ending—he goes west and drags his axe across the ground, carving the Grand Canyon.”

Context:
My informant first encountered the legend of Paul Bunyan around age 3 or 4, initially introduced by his grandfather during an overnight visit at his grandparents’ home. Shortly after, his parents continued sharing variations of the tale, reinforcing its familiarity. He specifically remembers his grandfather’s spontaneous storytelling, vividly associating it with the comfort of bedtime narratives. This story typically follows a serialized format, beginning with Paul finding and befriending his iconic companion, Babe the Blue Ox.

Beyond its role as a comforting bedtime story, my informant emphasized its significance as a source of regional pride, especially prominent within Wisconsin and Minnesota. He noted its pervasive presence in Northern Wisconsin, stating, “Paul is everywhere, and people are proud to say they come from his legacy.” The story functions as a cultural identifier, often shared with younger generations, family friends’ children, or even in casual conversations sparked by attire featuring Paul and Babe.

Analysis:
The legend of Paul Bunyan serves as more than mere entertainment; it actively reinforces a sense of community and cultural identity unique to the Midwest. Paul Bunyan’s mythos encapsulates a romanticized, larger-than-life portrayal of Midwestern pioneering spirit and resilience. By attributing major geographical landmarks—such as the Grand Canyon—to Paul’s extraordinary feats, the story implicitly elevates the cultural and historical importance of the region, framing the Midwest as foundational to America’s growth and folklore tradition.

Historically, Paul Bunyan emerged from oral storytelling traditions among loggers, symbolizing exaggerated but relatable qualities of strength, bravery, and ingenuity. These tales reinforce communal pride, distinguishing the Midwest culturally from other regions of the United States. Additionally, the informant’s experience highlights the legend’s intergenerational nature—passed down from grandparents to parents to children, symbolizing a collective effort to preserve regional heritage and foster a shared Midwestern identity.

In essence, Paul Bunyan’s enduring popularity underscores folklore’s capacity to bind communities together, foster regional pride, and sustain cultural continuity across generations.

How the Paoay Lake Formed

Text: A long time ago, there used to be a small town in the Ilocos Norte region in the Philippines. One day, an old beggar woman went there to beg for food, but they “cast her out.” She went to many houses, but many of them were not generous and despised her because of how dirty and  poor she looked. After visiting all the houses, the old woman said, “These rich people are selfish” and suddenly transformed into an angel. She then casted a spell and drowned the entire village—making it the Paoay lake that it is known today. Apparently, this legend has circulated around Ilocos Norte for years after this incident occurred and many people started to believe that the old woman did that. However, people say that years later, large pieces of houses and jewelry still surface. 

Context: This was the first legend my grandma had told me after I asked her to tell me a folk narrative of some kind. Lake Paoay is one of the biggest lakes in the Philippines and is found in Ilocos Norte which is where my family is from and where my grandma had spent the first half of her life. She had originally learned this legend from her parents and older relatives but also mentioned that this legend was always in circulation in the Ilocos Norte region and considered true by everyone invluding herself.

Analysis: At first, I thought that my grandma had told me a local legend of some kind. The Filipino region that I’m from is not really common among the Filipino-Americans I know, so I was curious to know how local this story really was. I looked it up on the internet and was surprised to find out that other legends that were entirely different from what my grandma had told me. I had found multiple sources siting a Sodom and Gammorah rivalry type legend about this lake, but with the same ending: it is true because there are bits of houses and jewelry that float up to the surface. I thought it was interesting how this part of the story had remained the same despite the stories differing a lot. I also thought about how my grandma’s version of it was similar to the beginning of something like the Beauty and the Beast story. A stuck-up rich person shunned an old beggar woman because of her appearance. I also can’t help but think that this version had emerged in our family specifically because of religious implication. My family, my grandma and all her older relatives specifically, was/are very religious and into Catholicism. Maybe this version was the one that was told, but was changed to be more religious to get the children to like Catholicism more.

Duende

Text: The duende are small dwarf-like creatures that exist in Filipino folklore. Many older relatives that live in the Philippines have probably had an interaction of some kind with the duende when they were a child. My grandma and her sister had told me that their aunt in the Philippines used to be friends with the duende, but only the aunt could see them. When my grandma and her sister visited my aunt’s house, the aunt introduced the duende to them. She said, “These are my nieces so don’t hurt them,” but my grandma and aunt were confused because they couldn’t see them. However, they still believed that they existed because of other stories that their older relatives had told them about the duende. Upon asking, they don’t remember any of the stories specifically, but they did remember one story that their sister-in-law had told them a long time ago describing their appearance. She to described them with green clothes, pointy hats, and pointy shoes. Their sister-in-law told them that they were playing on her window sill when she woke up on the middle of the night. She just quietly watched them and they were playing hide and seek. 

Context: This story was jointly told by my grandma and her sister and they had constantly asked each other throughout the story for details. I had put an abridged version of the interview in the text, but if I were to ask questions about the duende’s appearance or mannerisms, they would tell half of a story about some relative that told them about personal interactions with the duende before they would just go onto another story when they started to forget the details. They actually told about 5 different stories, but I had included the main two in the text above.

Analysis: I had always heard stories about the duende from all of my older relatives while growing up. I think I have always categorized them as something that was fake in my head like fairies or elves. I think hearing these stories again and asking for more details made me realize the importance of the uniqueness in these specific memories and stories that they hold. The fluidity that oral storytelling has is something that can’t be looked up or even recorded through writing. It also makes me think about how these stories will live on in my generation. All of my grandmother’s children and grandchildren live in America. There are no new duende stories that can be added onto the family folklore. It makes me wonder about how these stories will further be told and interpreted in my generation and the next.