By Kelsey Gabalis ‘27
Superstitions have been a normalized phenomenon in our society since the beginning of time. For some, superstitions are present in everyday life; for others, the thoughts may have never crossed their mind. Sometimes it’s not a conscious decision to believe and take part in them. More like a habit, maybe you knock on wood every time you jinx yourself but don’t actually believe that it has any consequences, or maybe you’re the opposite and without even deciding, simple things like seeing a black cat or looking at the clock at the wrong time can ruin your day.
Recently I was in a dance class when someone jinxed something, and all of us took the time to take a step back from what we were doing to knock on wood so that the jinx wouldn’t come true. After this incident I started questioning if the floor that we had knocked on was even real wood. I’m having all this anxiety about bad omens and I don’t even know where I got these ideas in the first place, and was confused at why I made a connection between speaking a jinx and responding with the appropriate action. Do I even believe that knocking on wood changes anything? Deep in my core, no. But because I’ve been doing it for so long and because it’s so largely accepted to be fact, I’ve come to perform these rituals without a second thought. Superstitions can be so common in our day to day lives that we don’t even recognise them sometimes. For example, many businesses and hotels do not have 13th floors because of the stigma around the number. Think about it, even simple things like saying “bless you” when someone sneezes is considered a superstition. I had never truly considered how many superstitions of any kind can affect our day to day life, and it made me question how widely believed they truly are and where we even got them in the first place.
What are superstitions?
According to the Oxford Dictionary, superstitions are “a widely held but unjustified belief in supernatural causation leading to certain consequences of an action or event, or a practice based on such a belief.” Basically, this means that superstitions are events that people believe can cause something without any rational explanation. Like carrying a lucky penny and then getting an A on your math test. Realistically, the reason you got an A is because you worked hard and had nothing to do with the penny. It’s unreasonable to connect the penny to the good grade on your test, but it’s more reasonable to say that you studied hard and paid attention in class and that’s why you got a good grade.
Why are superstitions still commonly believed?
So if superstitions are so irrational and we acknowledge this, why are they still so largely believed? I think that one of the main reasons for having superstitions is because they give us a sense of control in instances where we don’t really have full control. Like in a sports game, the final score does not only depend on you but on the whole team. Games can be stressful and cause many athletes to take superstitious routes to feel as if they have a larger impact on the outcome of the game. Superstitions like this are harmless and can give people more confidence in themselves. It is the unpleasant ones like walking under a ladder or breaking a mirror that can have negative effects.
Where do superstitions come from?
Many superstitions stem all the way back to ancient Greece. According to a paper from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, “where ignorance and fear are surrounded by danger they will always grope for a way of escape. Thus superstition is born. A belief in the existence of spirits antagonistic to man gave rise to most of the old superstitions.” I encourage you to look into some of the superstitions that you practice because for me, seeing the idiodic beginnings of some that I perform, I have found myself able to drop them and the stress that surrounds them.
Are superstitions still relevant today?
In my own research amongst my classmates, I have found that superstitions are becoming less and less widely believed. Most people that I talked to did not consider themselves to be superstitious nor did they believe that any of the superstitious behavior that they participate in has any effect. Though like I said many still practice superstitions out of habit.
To sum up all that has been stated, superstitions are irrational beliefs formed long ago but still believed by some. They can have both positive and negative effects on people and are likely formed as a way to keep control. Based on my research, they are becoming less popular and widely spread with age. If you do consider yourself superstitious and it is serving you well then I see no reason that you should stop. It just seems to me that superstitions are fading away, and in many ways I think this is for the best.
