George Gmelch in his article Magical(maj-i-kuhl) thinking does an excellent job of outlining the many different aspects of rituals/routines and magical thinking. Since baseball has so many different players from a multitude of cultures it is an excellent example of various rituals and habits that can easily be observed and documented. The baseball player that never shaves on a game day or the player that eats chicken before every game is an example of rituals that are so important to the individuals that forgetting or missing them can easily explain a bad game day. It might have started as a routine, but now it’s a ritual and can’t be lost for fear of predetermined failure.
There are taboos(tab-bu) that will also explain a lousy day or game. If the pitcher must step on home plate before going to the field then if he misses that, the sense of doom is apparent and expected. I have friends that have rituals like, never shaving before an exam. A good friend of mine always wore his “lucky sneakers” on the day of a test. I sat next to him once during a big math test, when I asked him before the test where his lucky sneakers were, he then realized he had forgotten them, he was so worried that he got up and left, telling the teacher that he had a terrible headache and rushed out saying that he needed to take it the next day.
Another friend has to listen to talk radio(rey-dee-oh) to sleep peacefully; she believes that by listening to the voices it magically calms her inner spirit into sleeping. For myself, I have to wear my lucky tie during exams and interviews. It all started when I went to take my first exam in college, as I was leaving, my friend told me that he always wore a tie and that it seemed to help. Did I think why not? I knew it was going to be a difficult test and I could use all the “magical” help I could get. While taking the test I kept hearing in the back of my head, don’t worry I’m wearing a magical tie and when I passed the test, the ritual was created. I wore that specific tie for many exams and always did well, but then one day I didn’t do as well, I, of course, blamed the tie. I never wore that tie again, but changed ties and still no luck, in the end, I gave up on ties. It was my behavior and belief in magic that allowed me to wear that tie and to feel that somehow the magic of the tie would guide me through the exam. I’m still looking for another magical tie.
Most people in today’s society have some elements(el-uh-muh-nts) of magical thinking in their lives. For instance, it is rare to find a building with a 13th floor. Somehow the construction companies and building managers have all agreed that number 13 is an unlucky number. This is culturally based, as there is no question about it, so they eliminated that number. It’s evident that the 14th floor is the 13th, but no one talks about it. Talking about superstitions is taboo. Everyone knows that thirteen is an unlucky number. “See what happened to Apollo 13” for example, might be a remark they say. Be careful on Friday the 13theveryone says. These superstitions are born out of an event or events, and over time become a standard of the culture and a taboo of that period.
There are taboos(tab-bu) that will also explain a lousy day or game. If the pitcher must step on home plate before going to the field then if he misses that, the sense of doom is apparent and expected. I have friends that have rituals like, never shaving before an exam. A good friend of mine always wore his “lucky sneakers” on the day of a test. I sat next to him once during a big math test, when I asked him before the test where his lucky sneakers were, he then realized he had forgotten them, he was so worried that he got up and left, telling the teacher that he had a terrible headache and rushed out saying that he needed to take it the next day.
Another friend has to listen to talk radio(rey-dee-oh) to sleep peacefully; she believes that by listening to the voices it magically calms her inner spirit into sleeping. For myself, I have to wear my lucky tie during exams and interviews. It all started when I went to take my first exam in college, as I was leaving, my friend told me that he always wore a tie and that it seemed to help. Did I think why not? I knew it was going to be a difficult test and I could use all the “magical” help I could get. While taking the test I kept hearing in the back of my head, don’t worry I’m wearing a magical tie and when I passed the test, the ritual was created. I wore that specific tie for many exams and always did well, but then one day I didn’t do as well, I, of course, blamed the tie. I never wore that tie again, but changed ties and still no luck, in the end, I gave up on ties. It was my behavior and belief in magic that allowed me to wear that tie and to feel that somehow the magic of the tie would guide me through the exam. I’m still looking for another magical tie.
Most people in today’s society have some elements(el-uh-muh-nts) of magical thinking in their lives. For instance, it is rare to find a building with a 13th floor. Somehow the construction companies and building managers have all agreed that number 13 is an unlucky number. This is culturally based, as there is no question about it, so they eliminated that number. It’s evident that the 14th floor is the 13th, but no one talks about it. Talking about superstitions is taboo. Everyone knows that thirteen is an unlucky number. “See what happened to Apollo 13” for example, might be a remark they say. Be careful on Friday the 13theveryone says. These superstitions are born out of an event or events, and over time become a standard of the culture and a taboo of that period.
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