Look at the pictures given below and say what these superstitions foretell and which of them foretell good / bad
luck.
Read the definition of the word “superstition” and answer the following questions:
superstition [su:p ‘st n] 1) irrational belief or practice, either cultural, personal or religious, usually founded on ignorance or fear, and characterized by obsessive reverence for omens, lucky charms, etc.; 2) any irrational belief, esp. with regard to the unknown.
Do you agree that superstitions are irrational?
… are founded on ignorance or fear?
What is the difference between a belief and a superstition?
Are the following examples of cultural or personal superstitions?
A boy has to have a certain lucky pen to write an exam.
A girl who’s getting married refuses to see her future husband on the day of the marriage, until they meet at the church. She also believes that she has to wear ‘ something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.
A seven year-old girl’s tooth falls out, so she puts the tooth under her pillow.
A gambler always puts money on grey horses.
A businessman consult an astrologer before making an important decision.
A footballer always puts his clothes on in a certain order before a match.
On Christmas Eve, a child puts a mince pie and a glass of brandy out for Father Christmas.
A person thinks’ if I get to the end of the road before that bus, I’ll have a good day.
Work in Pairs. Ask your partners:
which superstitions they know;
if they believe in superstition;
which of the superstitions can be explained logically;
if they are cultural, personal or religious.
Vocabulary Development
Do you believe in luck? Put the beginnings and ends together, using expressions from the box. (There are too many expressions).
If you see…….., ….will be fine tomorrow.
If you spill …….., you’ll get … … soon.
If …….. is red this evening, you’ll have … … .
If your first visitor in the New throw … …over your
Year has …….., shoulder to keep bad luck
away.
If ……. itches, you’ll have … … bad
luck.
If you break ……., you’ll have good luck …
black cat, all year, a mirror, an old shoe, dark hair, four potatoes, good luck, seven years’, some money, some salt, some wine, the baby, the sky, the weather, your left hand
Highlight the following words and word combinations and fill the gaps in these sentences with suitable words from the list above.
amulet, augur; birthstone; Blarney stone, divination; evil eye; exorcism; fetish (make a fetish); fortunetelling; Friday; ghost; magic; mental illness; moon light, necromancy; occultism; omen; palmistry, vampire; voodoo; witchcraft; foretell:
Make sure you clean your room before he comes; he … of tidiness.
He offered … my …
This rain … well for the farmers.
… involves communicating with the spirits of the dead.
In the Roman Catholic church, an … is a ceremony that consists of a series of prayers, recited over the possessed person.
In ancient Greece and Rome, prophets known as … … events by interpreting messages from the deities.
… is the practice of trying to learn about the unknown by magical or supernatural means.
According to legend anyone who kisses … receives the gift of expressive, convincing speech.
Another type of divination, called …, involves the prediction of events by reading the lines and marks of the hand.
A tooth or a piece of horn or wood can serve as an … .
To avoid the … … , many people utter such phrases as “God bless you” or wear blue beads or other protective charms.
The Scandinavians considered … their luckiest day, but people today associate … the 13 th with bad luck.
The word … comes from an African word that means god, spirit, or sacred object.
… of a murdered dairymaid is said to walk the farmyard at night.
A good … foretells a desirable event, and a bad … forecasts disaster.
… is the supposed use of unnatural or supernatural power by a person to try to control human actions or natural events.
According to tradition, … brings good luck to person born in its month.
Psychiatrists sometimes refer to … … as mental disorders, emotional illnesses, or psychiatric illnesses.
According to many folk stories, … must have a constant supply of fresh blood obtained by biting the neck of sleeping victims.
… includes astrology, fortunetelling, magic and spiritualism – the belief that spirits of the dead communicate with the living.
European … is anti-christian and involves an association with, the devil.
According to one superstition, sleeping in … could cause insanity.