Blood Brothers Context research: Superstition

Superstition

What does superstition mean?

-Superstition is where people strongly believe in something or a reference to something supernatural.

-Superstition usually is related to bringing good or bad luck.

-People can make up their own superstition( This links in with Blood brothers)

How does superstition link in with Blood Brothers?

-There are a few mentions of superstition in Blood brothers. There was a mention of superstition very early on in the show from Mrs Johnston, who strongly believes in superstition. Mrs Lyons puts new shoes on the table and Mrs Johnston freaks out telling her that she should never do that. 

-Another superstition that was mentioned was one that Mrs Lyons made up to trick Mrs Johnston. She lied to Mrs Johnston who she knows is a strong believer in superstition that if a set of twins find out they wear once a pair, they shall both immediately die, and at then end of the show when they both find out they were brothers they both ended up dying. 

-The devils got your number. The narrator is singing this about Mrs Johnston, as he is now saying that the devil is going to curse her for making such a horrible agreement

There are many little parts that can be classed as a superstition in Blood Brothers

Different types of superstitions:

Putting new shoes on a table:

Shoes are associated with death. When people die they usually are left on a table. It could also mean that you are going to have bad luck, quarrel with someone or lose your job. So when putting new shoes on a table, people would believe that you are choosing your own fate. This explains why Mrs Johnston goes crazy when Mrs Lyons puts new shoes on the table

The Devils number:

"666" is meant to be the beasts number. This number was said to be the devils number in the book of Revelation. Ever since people read about this, they have been terrified of the number. They would never say or mention the number in any way. They would avoid writing it down and if they had seen it anywhere they would think that the beast is coming for them. People were scared that the beast would be aggravated and in some way sum-mend up if it was written down. If anyone would see it they would think that they now have eternal bad luck, if not death is following them.

Black Cat:

This is my least favourite because I adore black cats. People liked to associate black cats with witches, and people hated witches. If a black cat would cross your path they would think that you are now brought upon misfortune. The superstition of a black cat originated back from ancient Greece. It came back from Greek mythology, where Zeus's with Hera once transformed her servant into a black cat as punishment for impending the birth of Hercules 

Broken Mirror:

If you break a mirror it's supposedly meant to bring you 7 years of bad luck! It was the ancient Roman who first suggested this superstition. They also thought that the Gods could absorb your soul from the broken parts of a mirror. 

Walking under a ladder:

If you walk under a ladder its also meant to bring bad luck throughout the day. This is around 5ooo years old! it started in Egypt. When a ladder is leaning on a wall it creates a triangle or a pyramid shape, which is a sacred sign in Egypt. To them triangles represented the trinity of God's, and to pass under them it was to desecrate them.

Open umbrella inside:

Once a woman opened her umbrella inside her house right before it collapsed on her, causing her to pass away. This then became an ongoing superstition that it will happen to you if you do the same. 

Touch wood:

This is a different type of superstition. This is one I accidentally do. It's a muscle memory. By saying "Touch wood", its meant to prevent bad luck! The cross that Christians know is made out of pure wood, so its associated with Christianity