Throughout the ages, legends and myths have been formed to entertain, explain, and scare. With Halloween approaching, it’s almost certain that scary tales will be told-some old and some new-to welcome in the terrifying holiday.
“I feel (scary stories) is a great tradition. I love scary stories because they really help to get people into the spirit of Halloween,” said sophomore Susan Lafler.
Urban legends have been told for many years, in not only America, but other countries as well. Scary stories have commonly been told on Halloween, at sleepovers, and late nights. Each culture has stories that teens and adults recognize from their childhood.
One of America’s urban legends is the tale of “Aren’t You Glad You Didn’t Turn on the Light?” The story is told in many versions, each depending from whom you’re hearing it. One version is about two girls rooming together in college. One roommate was going back to her room late at night to grab her things before heading over to her boyfriends’. It was late, so she left the lights off, not wanting to wake her roommate. The next day she came back to her room to find her roommate dead; on the wall was written “Aren’t you glad you didn’t turn on the light?” The roommate had walked in on her friend being murdered and had a close run in with death.
Another story is “Click Click Scratch.” This tale takes place in a town that is victimized by a serial killer who only appears at night. The killer lost both of his legs and uses his long fingernails to drag himself, creating the “click click scratch” sound. One day, a girl wanted to visit her friend, and promised to be back home before dark. After playing with her friend, the girl noticed how dark it was getting. Hurrying home, she found her door was locked and to her horror, she heard the click click scratch sound behind her. The next morning, when the mother went outside, she found her daughter dead, and written next to her were the words, “Mommy, why didn’t you open the door?”
A superstitious story, widely known by many is the tale of “Bloody Mary.” The story tells of a girl who was killed brutally, and she was covered in blood. If someone says her name three times in front of a mirror, they will see her in the mirror and as a result she will kill them out of revenge. The trick has been tested by many people, and though some say it is just a myth, others testify to seeing a horrifying image, or gaining a scar that wasn’t there before.
On the Bloody Mary legend, sophomore Rachel Rich said, “I love it. There are a lot of good Halloween stories but Bloody Mary is a classic and I find it very entertaining.”
“The Slit Mouth Woman” is a tale of Japanese origin. This story is more of a caution to children not to go out late, than an actual scary tale. The Slit Mouth Woman is said to have her mouth split ear to ear, causing a bloody gash where her mouth is. At night, if a child is out alone, she will corner them with her mouth covered, so she appears beautiful. Before the child can react, she tears the mask off, asking, “Am I pretty?” If the person answers, “No,” then she will kill them, and if they answer, “Yes,” she will kill them as well. The only way to be safe is to respond, “So-so,” or, “Alright.”
Senior Freddy Hodgin said, “I think its fun to be scared, I enjoy the adrenaline. I guess if scary stories are well told then yes, they help you get scared.”