Legend of Flight MH370

Text: Below is a performance about a Legend of Flight MH370:

Interviewer: So what conspiracy theories have you heard or do you believe?

Interviewee: This is not one that I believe, because, I think there is no definite conclusion on what happened, but, for sure one I’m interested in, like, the disappearance of flight MH370, an airplane that took off in, like, Singapore, or something like that, and, like, rerouted and no ones knows where it’s been, no one can find out any materials of its crash, or anything, and it’s, like, really fascinating because that points to so many other conspiracies, like aliens, or other life on Earth, or whatever it is, like, for a flight to completely lose contact, and, like, for no one to be able to find the people in it, or find the remains of it, is very scary, very interesting, given that it hasn’t been solved yet. It’s, like, a conspiracy theory that really interests me, and, I mean, I sometimes want to, like, try to think on my own, like, what could have happened?

Interviewer: Do you have any, like, belief of what’s possible, of what could’ve happened, any theories?

Interviewee: I feel like, definitely, it was not related to aliens. I think it was probably, like, an inside job, or something, by like, you know, I don’t know who I might’ve been because, like, a lot of those controls that you have to turn off for it to get off the radar, are stuff you can only do from the cockpit, so, like maybe, along those lines, but, it for sure probably crashed somewhere where it’s going to be really hard to find, and they probably crashed there because it’s hard to find, and, in general, I think, like. barely anything of the ocean has been explored, so given that, it’s probably somewhere in the ocean.

Context:

This question was asked to a fellow USC Forms of Folklore student after a class discussion.
This interviewed student grew up in America and is from a Southern Indian immigrant family.

Analysis:

This example illustrates how mystery naturally leads to the creation of folk narratives. Because there was no definitive, full explanation of the crash, multiplicity and variation arises as everyday people try to gain understanding about the flight. We also are able to see how folk narratives overlap each other, as bearers of this legend about the flight use other folk beliefs, like aliens, to make sense of the disappearance.

White Vans Superstition

Interviewer: “I’ll give an example to start turning the gears in your head. A superstition my friends have is never splitting a pole because it gives you bad luck. Can you think of any similar practices?”

MA: Yea its kind of niche, but in high school there was this really bi superstition that if you wore shoes or white clothing when taking a test your mind would go blank and you’d perform poorly. If anyone was wearing white they always would dirty their clothes or shoes very slightly in order to do well on the exam.”

Context: MA is a sophomore at USC, however she is the youngest of her siblings and cousins who all attended the same high school. When she learned about this ritual, she was wearing white shoes to class, and her cousin, who is her age, scuffed her shoes slightly and told her about this practice to help her destress for the test they were about to take.

Analysis: This functions as a control ritual. In high stress environments like midterms, tests, exams etc, students often create causal links in order to relieve stress or justify grades. This functions as a folkloristic mechanism to manage anxiety, often employed by students across various cultures.

Knocking on Wood

Interviewer: “OK, personally some rituals i’ve grown accustomed to and practice are mostly related to theatre. Superstitions such as avoiding naming the play “Macbeth” in the theatre, never wearing your costume outside of rehearsal and performance, and a created folk song that was local to my high schools theatre department. What are some rituals or superstitions you believe in?”

AB: “I always knock on wood when I say something I don’t want to jinx, I don’t really even think about it anymore its more of an automatic reaction out of fear or something”

Interviewer: “Why do you think that works, like why do you use it?”

AB: “I don’t know, it makes me feel like i’m undoing evil energy, like your correcting it before some karmic lesson is taught to you, its like proactive.”

Context: The informant learned this practice from her parents. Her parents are very spiritual and superstitious and thus this, among many other practices, have become common place in her life. She recalls using the practice of “knocking on wood” since she was very little, around 9 years old. She is unsure if this practice has a tangible affect on her life, however she still uses it as a method of providing comfort to herself, proactively “saving” herself from an event before it occurs.

Analysis: This interview highlights how folk beliefs persist even when individuals do not fully rationalize or consciously believe in them. AB repeatedly framed their practices, such as knocking on wood as accidental or habitual, suggesting that these rituals function more as a medium to grant oneself peace of mind rather than superstition. This suggests that these rituals function less as explicit belief systems but more as engrained cultural behaviors where the action of knocking on wood takes less energy than the worry that accompanies bad karma.

Dumpster Pasta Ritual

Interviewer: “Thank you for meeting with me can you please tell me more about ritual practices you and your family perform?”

DA: “The one that comes to mind is this tradition we have where we make pasta every week. The pasta is called dumpster pasta because we use whatever is left in the fridge in the end of the week to make a pasta dish. The ritual started when my dad lost his job, money was tight so we tried making unfortunate financial circumstances into fun ritual practices in my family”

Interviewer: “Thank you for sharing that with me, do you still perform the ritual?”

DA: “Yes even though my family is doing better we still do the ritual as an act of gratitude to remind us of our struggles.”

Context: This ritual started in her immediate family and became an event for her and her family to break bread weekly and share a meal together. She mentioned that although her families finances are stable now, that she and her family still do the ritual, and she still partakes from her college dorm.

Analysis: This ritualistic practice spans distance as she still performs it even though her physical connection from her family is severed. It can be considered a ritual of healing for them now, and serves as a sort of liminal ritual as her family transitioned from financial statuses.

Haunted Film Camera

Interviewer: “Tell me more about this haunted film camera”

TN: “Ok so basically I heard this story of this girls creepy experience with a film camera. She allegedly bought the camera from an estate sale for like 20 bucks because it was a dead guys camera. When she was on vacation she took pictures on it. It was a really old like vintage film camera where you have to get it developed.”

TN: “When she got it developed they shipped the photos to her house and in the package with her pictures was like old photos from the guy who died. Photos of him with family and like his kids, and some really blurry pictures it was really weird cause she didn’t know the camera was used.”

TN: “But the thing that was scary is that his face showed up in pictures she took of her and her parents. Like a shadow behind her in the pictures, and you could see his teeth and his eyes on a lot of the photos, like he was haunting her.”

Interviewer: “Wow thats really creepy, thank you for sharing!”

Context: The informant learned this story on a trip with friends. They all told ghost stories and tales at the fire at night, and this is one of the stories that was performed. The informant is aware that there is no verifiable truth to this story as it came from a friend of a friend of a friend, as is the nature of folklore. However, it has become a ritualistic practice for him where he tells the story whenever prompted, essentially acting as a mechanism for entertainment for audiences.

Analysis: This story is a classic example of contemporary legends or “urban legends” because it blends supernatural horror with relatability and modern technological mediums. This makes the story feel more modern and accessible because cameras are engrained in every aspect of daily life, making it feel visceral and contagious. The story also has “friend of a friend credibility” which isn’t completely valid, but the storytelling nature and the transmission of the story makes it folklore, regardless of its truth. The story essentially is a warning tale, cautioning listeners to not take from the dead, and to leave the past in the past.