A Scary Story: Believing in Ghosts Exist in Real World

Have you ever heard a crazy ghost story? A scary story that sounds so crazy that a child may have made it up? When you think of ghosts, you might often think they are embodiments of people who have died, which appear in a somewhat cloudy or smoky figure. The topic of ghosts existing is a largely debated topic that has countless theories and unique stories made throughout the years. This topic is a widely speculated while some believe ghosts to be mythological figures with no honest true merit. Although I don’t believe a ghost is simply a cloudy figure that walks through walls, I believe that ghosts in some shape or form exist and can appear in many forms that humans may not be naked to the human eye. My belief is based upon my experiences and encounters that I have had with ghosts.

Firstly, I believe that ghosts exist in some way or form because an encounter I had growing up. This encounter related to a picture frame that continuously fell over, onto the ground with no apparent external pressure or force of nature. As a child, I lived in an old mansion in the central west end. My family had lived there for four years prior to my birth and after my arrival, we moved a short two years later. In a room on the second floor, which was my brother Javis, there was an old fireplace where many paranormal ghost activities occurred. An example of this is when a picture frame fell off the wall. My father went to check that all the windows were closed and that the air conditioning was off. All things seemed to be in order leading us to the conclusion that there was no influence of the picture falling. Throughout the course of the next two years that same picture frame persistently fell to the ground with the same conditions. As it is well understood, no item simply just falls to the floor. In fact, it goes against the laws of gravity. No external pressure that my family could see could have moved the picture frame, which was perfectly stable before it had fallen. Due to this fact, it leads me to the conclusion that there was external presence in that room that caused the picture frame to fall, this external presence being a ghost.

In addition, I believe ghost exist in some way or form because of yet another encounter I had with ghosts growing up. This incident being a tree suddenly and randomly dying. This instance occurred in the exact room that the picture frame continuously fell. In the room, a mini tree sat in the corner as that was where my parents had just placed the new and healthy tree. The next morning my dad went to go water it, only to notice that the stem was still upright, but the top petals had died and became completely crippled and overall lifeless. My parents were scared because no one had been in that room since they placed that tree in there. It was a vibrant tree with color the night before and somehow, overnight, the same tree had lost its beautiful pigment and petals. It’s understood that healthy trees don’t die over a time span of 24 hours, they die over time often due to malnourishment. As no one had been in that room after my parents placed the tree there, I was led to the conclusion that something paranormal was the cause of this random occurrence. This led to me think that if a ghost is embodiment of a dead person which takes place in different forms, that a ghost could cause something like a tree to die.

Lastly, I believe that ghosts exist in some way or form because of the other encounter I had with ghosts growing up. This one is about a conversation we had with the new owners of our old mansion. The owners had told us of a specific encounter they had with ghosts. When we returned to see the house after we had moved out, there was a young woman living there with a little girl. My father noticed that the chandelier on the second floor next to my brothers’ room was broken. He proceeded to ask the woman what had happened only for her to reply that she heard a loud noise come from the second floor one day while she was playing with her daughter. She carried her daughter to see what had happened, and the daughter exclaimed, “Mommy who is that little girl swinging from the chandelier?” Although it was a child who claimed she saw the ghost, under these circumstances, it left us questioning the truth of it. All the recurring incidents to me don’t seem to be random coincidences. A chandelier can’t shatter out of anywhere nor can a young child quickly exclaim that a girl is hanging from it.

Although the idea of a ghost is a concept that can be scary or unbelievable, I have had paranormal incidents that have led me to believe in the idea of a being that can take up many forms. We can classify and name these ‘beings’ as ghosts. As explained above, I had been exposed to many incidents from picture frames randomly falling, to healthy trees dying overnight. Items don’t fall over multiple times with no outside external presence causing it to fall. Healthy trees don’t die overnight as it goes against the laws and common knowledge of nature. These things led me to believe that the house I previously lived in had to have something that was caused these things to occur. Although I look back and am scared of what I remember, ghosts are something I believe to be real whether they are the way we often picture them to be.

The Role of Transformation in a Scary Story (essay)

Have you ever wondered what scares a reader or character in a story? Well in a scary story there are many elements that are used to give you a good scare; such as an eerie setting, villian or some sort of creature that raises hairs, but one thing that truly plays an important role in scaring us is transformation. Transformation in a scary story plays an important role in inducing fear into the reader and even the character.

An important role that transformation plays in a scary story is by producing tension. For example, In the story Where is Here the father seems to have conflict with the stranger in which he is trying to hide, “ But you love them – of course ‘ the father controlled his anger ‘ Of course ‘ ( Where is Here, 24). This quote builds almost another problem into the story. The strangers visit already is unsettling enough, but introducing the father have some growing anger is almost fearful for what’s about to come. Transformation in a scary story is very important, since it can build tension which could have the reader fear for the future.

Transformation in a story can create uncertainty, which could cause the readers to grow in fear or even a character. For instance, in Where is Here the father tells the stranger to leave ‘ He watched the stranger walk away out to the sidewalk to the street, disappearing into the darkness. Had the street lights gone out? ‘ ( Where is Here, 37 ). This quote is a great example of uncertainty, since as a character he seems to question on how he disappeared, because he was uncertain that he could have just disappeared. He even asks if the street lights had gone out. Also as a reader they may ask a similar question like; where did he go? Uncertainty in a story can cause the reader/character ask questions in fear.

Transformation in a story could be something like changing the setting in a dramatic way, which builds fear in both the reader and character. For example, in The Fall of the House of Usher ‘ … the deep and dank tarn at my feet closed suddenly and silently over the fragments of ‘ The House of Usher ‘ ( The Fall of the House of Usher, 50 ). This is important because it shows that the setting changed, in a very dramatic manner. The whole house fell due to the death of usher, and we could all assume how that made the reader and the person who left the house; fearful. Also, in Where is Here the setting changed ‘ … lights were flickering as if they were on the brink of going out; the patterned wallpaper seemed drained of color… Even the robust green carpet looked faded. Much like the Fall of the House of Usher the setting changed. It made the father question his own reality. Even a little later in the story the father wonders if he is seeing the house in its original state which confuses him and sparks fear. When the setting changes in a scary story because of Transformation it can scare both the character and the reader.

The role that transformation plays in scary stories is very important, since it’s a main factor in what induces fear into people. Transformation can do many things, like introduce uncertainty, tension, and even change the setting which can create a whole new mood. So why don’t you try and read a scary story and see what it does to scare you, I guarantee you it’ll do one of those.

Works Cited

1. Bader, C. D., & Mencken, F. C. (2013). Paranormal America: Ghost Encounters, UFO Sightings, Bigfoot Hunts, and Other Curiosities in Religion and Culture. NYU Press.
2. Carroll, R. T. (2016). The Skeptic's Dictionary: A Collection of Strange Beliefs, Amusing Deceptions, and Dangerous Delusions. John Wiley & Sons.
3. Houran, J., & Lange, R. (2001). Hauntings and Poltergeists: Multidisciplinary Perspectives. McFarland.
4. Radford, B. (2017). Investigating Ghosts: The Scientific Search for Spirits. Rhombus Publishing.
5. Hallowell, R., & Hallowell, P. (2010). The Ghost Hunter's Field Guide: Over 1000 Haunted Places You Can Experience. Clerisy Press.
6. Braude, S. E. (2003). Immortal Remains: The Evidence for Life After Death. Rowman & Littlefield.
7. Wiseman, R. (2014). Paranormality: Why We See What Isn't There. Macmillan.
8. Nickell, J. (2012). The Science of Ghosts: Searching for Spirits of the Dead. Prometheus Books.
9. Koestler-Parapsychology Unit. (2020). Ghosts in the Machine: How Can We Study Them? The Paranormal Review, (95), 14-19.
10. Sheldrake, R. (2019). The Sense of Being Stared At: And Other Aspects of the Extended Mind. Crown House Publishing.