8-1Superstitions

HAT WERE COMMON SUPERSTITIONS, BELIEFS AND “OLD WIVES TALES” IN ELIZABETHAN ENGLAND? //Answer prepared by Maddy W//

The Elizabethan England time period was known for its many superstitions that still exist today. Phoebe Sheavyn, the author of __The Literary Profession in the Elizabethan Age,__ writes that "... imaginative. Among the ignorant, imagination readily turns to credulity and superstition ; the Elizabethan was haunted by superstitious fears of devils, spirits, ghosts, witchcraft, ..." (Sheavyn 189). According to “The Elizabeth Superstitions” website, people trusted that the old wives tales were true because of the “fear of the supernatural and forces of nature or God.” Throughout history people have constantly feared being different or “special”. It was believed that sneezing allowed the Devil to come into your body. To prevent this saying, “Bless you” was adapted to prevent the devil from taking over their body. Another superstition was that when cooking if the food was to be cooked counter-clockwise than it would bring bad luck to the people eating the prepared food and would ruin the food. A third superstition was that it was not good to be evil or to be overly nice. It was important to have a balance between the two. This was especially noticeable while the plague was traveling through England. Similar to today’s society people believe small actions will make a difference and in my opinion that is the way to be. Weather it is to stir a pot in a specific direction or to bless someone after sneezing it is important for the mind to train yourselves that good things will happen if you change the small things first. __ Works Cited __ Books: Chisp, Peter. //Shakespeare DK Eyewitness//. New York: Dorling Kindersly, 2004. Print. Sheavyn, Phoebe. //The Literary Profession In the Elizabethan Age//. Kessinger Publishings LLC, 2006. Print.

Websites: "Elizabethan Superstitions." //Elizabethan Witchcraft and Witches// Web.3 Apr 2009. .

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