 "Photo: Carrie Kirk")
For many Marshall University students, Friday, Feb. 13, will just be any ordinary day while other students might take the extra precautions of knocking on wood or keeping that lucky charm handy.
For anyone who might be superstitious, Friday the 13, the day of "bad luck" will occur three times this year in February, March and November.
Many superstitions that are familiar to most people deal with bad or good luck. Some of these superstitions include not walking underneath a ladder, carrying a lucky charm, not opening an umbrella while indoors, the number 13 and even Friday the 13th.
The fame of the "unlucky day" has even sparked several movies in the "Friday the 13th" series where the character Jason Vorhees goes on a brutal killing spree.
Superstitions associated with the number 13 date back to the Egyptians, who thought the number was good luck, according to the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry's Web site, which is an organization that looks at paranormal claims from a scientific view.
The site also explains the number's history further when the Romans saw 13 as an unlucky number and that the number 13 also has "unlucky" associations in Christianity and the Last Supper, where 13 men dined together and one betrayed Jesus. In Norse mythology's superstition of Loki, the god of mischief was the 13th guest who showed up uninvited to a dinner for 12 invited deities and caused one deities' death.
Keith Beard, associate psychology professor who teaches a course on paranormal psychology, said the history of superstitions dates back many years. Beard said many of the well-known superstitions were passed down, like tradition. He explained it as a societal phenomenon.
"We want control and we want meaning. People try to look for ways to control their fate or their destiny," Beard said.
Beard said there are other reasons for why superstitions and urban legends exist and why people believe them.
"We look for associations in things, we need to find meaning, or look for an explanation of why something bad happens. It (Friday the 13th) sometimes gives us an excuse when something bad happens," he said.
One student said that Friday the 13th does concern him.
"I'm very superstitious. You hear a lot of myths about Jason Vorhees," said Maurice Graham, senior counseling major from Fresno, Calif. "I don't believe any of that. I just hear about bad luck, so I try just to be extra careful."
Shaleena Ross, freshman economics major from Wayne, W.Va., said that bad luck associated with Friday the 13 does cross her mind, but she said she doesn't buy into all of the superstitions.
"I'm not really superstitious about it, but it does cross my mind 'What if something bad could happen?'" Ross said.
"I never buy anything that adds up to $6.66," she added.
Yavonna Nowak, freshman graphic design major from Hancock County, W.Va., said she's not really worried about Friday the 13th, but is excited for the next "Friday the 13th" movie to come out. While Nowak said she doesn't believe in superstitions, she said she does have jewelry that she considers lucky.
"Some pieces of jewelry (are lucky), but mainly they were given to me by someone important," Nowak said.
Adam Mathis, senior history major from Lincoln County, W.Va., said he's neutral of what he thinks about Friday the 13th.
"My grandma was born on Friday the 13," Mathis said.
Other students said they weren't superstitious at all and also weren't familiar with any of the urban legends or superstitions that are associated with the day of "bad luck."
"I'm not real deep into superstition. Maybe (it's) an old wives' tale that started way back when," said Wisam Khader, sophomore biomedical major from Huntington.
"I'm not superstitious. I just know people here in America think that 13 is an unlucky number," said Jaimee Smith, freshman biochemistry major from Huntington.
Warren Shelton, sophomore computer science major from Lincoln County, W.Va., said he doesn't believe in luck.
However, Beard said that it's actually unusual for people not to think of any superstitions.
"They probably are (superstitious) in more ways than they realize," Beard said. "The fact they would even consider Friday the 13 is a superstition."
The other major superstitions associated with the "unlucky Friday" also have significant histories and why they are still associated with luck to this day. According to the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, the history of bad luck associated with umbrellas started when people used them for sunshade. In many past cultures, the sun was highly regarded or thought of as sacred, so it was thought to be an insult to the sun if an umbrella would be opened indoors.
For those who knock on wood for luck, the origin was said to have a religious link. The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry listed the association of wood and luck with Jesus and the cross he was crucified on, so wood was linked to safety and good fortune. For those who won't walk under ladders, the superstition is linked with medieval times and people thinking a leaning ladder looked like the gallows. The Web site said that people in medieval times thought that if one walked under a ladder, one would be acting his or her own execution.
Kelly Christian can be contacted at christian55@marshall.edu.
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