The Impact of Urban Legends Throughout History and Around the World
Urban legends have always intrigued me. I am unsure if it is the scare factor that intrigues me, the way in which some of them are told, or some of the lessons that are supposed to be taken from them but one thing I know for sure is that I do not stand alone in this belief. In fact urban legends are told all over the world, even in countries that many have never heard of before. Many people of all backgrounds find them to be mystifying and sometimes even alarming. It seems as if urban legends have the ability to draw any person in ranging from a young child to the typical adult male. Whether or not you believe these incredible tales is almost irrelevant in many cases because for many different cultures and societies the primary purpose of urban legends are for entertainment and shock effects. This in many cases taken to the extreme with some of the different versions created to intensely horrify listeners.
The way in which I conducted research for my field report was quite simple. After I realized that I planned to do a report on urban legends, I went to the main library to look for a few books that I had already found online. After searching through the stacks for a good amount of time, I finally found the books that I was looking for and proceeded to check them out. Another source of information that I used in my report was from various notes that I had taken in class. These notes helped to formulate the overall idea I wanted to take with my field report. Still not exactly sure of what I wanted my title to be, I searched through the books I had checked out and took out any key ideas that I figured would be interesting to analyze. I wrote these ideas...
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...e of the mysteries that urban legends display, from just reading many different urban legends that have originated from all various corners of our planet gives a great deal of insight. They uncover the primary purpose for some ancient civilizations such as the Incas while greatly horrifying other civilizations with gruesome stories of people that made a vital mistake throughout their lives. For whatever reason a legend exists in a particular society one thing is known for sure; these legends are not going anywhere anytime soon.
References
Bennett, Gillian and Smith, Paul. 1996. Contemporary Legend: A Reader. Garland Publishing, Inc. New York and London.
Brunvand, Jan Harold. 2000. The Truth Never Stands in the Way of a Good Story. Urbana: University of Illinois Press.
Cavendish, Richard. 1982. Legends of the World. Orbis Publishing Limited, London.
Harmon, William, William Flint Thrall, Addison Hibbard, and C. Hugh Holman. A Handbook to Literature. 11th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2009. Print.
Meyer, Michael. The Bedford Introduction to Literature. Ed. 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2008. 2189.
Perkins, Geroge, and Barbara Perkins. The American Tradition in Literature. 12th ed. Vol. 2. New York: McGraw Hill, 2009. Print
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Japanese internment camps were located around the Western United States with the exception of Arkansas (which is located further east). On December 7, 1941, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. This sparked a period of war-time paranoia that led to the internment or incarceration of 110,000 Japanese Americans. Almost all of them were loyal citizens. Actually, many of them were not allowed to become citizens due to certain laws. Although these camps were nowhere close to as horrible as the concentration camps in Europe, the conditions were still pretty harsh for a while and caused internees to have various physical and psychological health effects and risks in the future.
The Japanese internment camps started in February, around two months after the Pearl Harbor bombing, which was also the reason America decided to enter the war. People’s suspicions of Japanese led the government, passing an order to uproot 120,000 people from their homes, lives, families, everything they knew. WWII brought lots of change, although their families were being contained, many young Japanese joined the U.S. army in the fight against Germany and Japan. It’s important for people to learn and remember who the really is against. “Sure enough, 40 days later January 20, 1942, came a letter that said, greeting from the President of the United States you are now in the army, and that was my draft notice.”( Interview with Norman Saburo
2nd ed. of the book. New York: St. James Press, 1995. Literature Resource Center -. Web.
The problem with Japanese American treatment during World War II was harsh and cruel but was approved of at the time. The japanese descendants were taken from their homes and businesses because the government had passed a law that said the Japanese Americans had to move inland to safe camps that were ready for them. The truth was that the government and the military was scared of the Japanese Americans going to fight with the japanese. Some may of wanted to go peacefully but others did not want to leave everything behind, there were protests from the Japanese Americans, that are listed in multiple documents, in which they wanted to stay by the coast. The government had made it sound as if the movement was like a wonderful vacation where everything was taken care of and the living conditions were amazing but the conditions were actually rough and cruel but everyone thought the government was treating them kindly.
During WWII, many Japanese-American citizens were imprisoned. They were imprisoned for being from the Japanese decent. There was no evidence to convict these people but they still were imprisoned. Many Japanese came to the West Coast, which caused Americans some paranoia. Americans thought that the Japanese might be terrorists in disguise. In February of 1942, President Roosevelt ordered Americans of Japanese to be sent to concentration camps which were located in various areas of the United States. There were many aspects to the imprisonment of the Japanese-Americans such as their life before coming to the camps, the executive order 9066, and what it was like being in the concentration camps.
Soon after the attack on Pearl Harbor, as a result of pressure, on February 19, 1942, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, which relocated more than 100,000 Japanese and Japanese-Americans from their homes in the West Coast and were placed in numerous camps around the country. Leaders in California, Oregon, and Washington, believed that by moving the Japanese American citizens inland would prevent another attack and keep their West Coast homes safe. According to the article “Did the United States put its own citizens in concentration camps during WWII?” by Jane McGrath, FDR and the US government referred to these camps as “concentration camps”, that t...
In the midst of WWII, the U.S. trust of Japan spiraled downward as explosions flew over Pearl Harbor. On December 7,1941, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. After the attacks, the Japanese-Americans were placed in internment camps. They were removed from their homes, and placed in homes and camps on the Pacific Coast. Many people argued whether the internment of Japanese-Americans was justified or not justified. The internment of Japanese-Americans was definitely justified because the U.S. needed to protect the West Coast, the U.S. wasn’t taking any chances during WWII, and the Japanese could help the U.S. with the war efforts.
I originally became very interested in this phenomenon after seeing the film Urban Legend several years ago. My curiosity on the subject matter was rekindled when Stacey Burleson presented on "Legend" in our class. To be quite honest, I did not realize that UL was considered as being part of a genre of literature until Ms. Burleson's presentation. This newfound interest in the subject, as well as a desire to dig beyond the surface of the subject matter, is the reason I chose this topic. In doing this research, I realized that I have been participating in UL's every since I was a young boy. The simple fact that I never used the term "urban legend" is why I thought I was so unfamiliar with this subject area. During my childhood, my family and peers always referred to these legends as "campfire stories". It was not until college, when I saw the previously mentioned movie, that I associated the term with the countless stories I had heard and told to others.
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Storytelling has always been a form of entertainment that people have used for centuries now. Stories are often said to strengthen a community and create harmony. They often reflect the beliefs of the people who tell them. As for any story, the popularity of the story depends on whether those listening approve of the values underlying it. By telling and listening to stories, people confirm their ideas about the world around them. Things that people find scary, upsetting or desirable all found their way into the stories because people want to be assured that other people around them are thinking along the same lines (Myths and Legends). There have been many variations of storytelling. There are stories told through drawing, through actions,