Colchester Overpass, the site of the 1970s urban legend of the "Bunny Man", said to be a man or ghost in a rabbit costume who attacked people in the area
Urban legends (sometimesmodern legend,urban myth, or simplylegend) is a genre offolklore concerning stories about an unusual (usually scary) or humorous event that many people believe to be true but largely are not.[1]
These legends can be entertaining but often concern mysterious peril or troubling events, such as disappearances and strange objects or entities. Urban legends may confirm moral standards, reflect prejudices, or be a way to make sense of societal anxieties.[2]
In the past, urban legends were most often circulated orally, at gatherings and around thecampfire for instance. Now, they can be spread by any media, including newspapers, mobile news apps,e-mail, and most often,social media. Some urban legends have passed through the years/decades with only minor changes, in where the time period takes place. Generic urban legends are often altered to suit regional variations, but the lesson ormoral generally remains the same.
The term "urban legend", as used by folklorists, has appeared in print since at least 1968, when it was used byRichard Dorson.[3]Jan Harold Brunvand, professor of English at theUniversity of Utah, introduced the term to the general public in a series of popular books published beginning in 1981. Brunvand used his collection of legends,The Vanishing Hitchhiker: American Urban Legends & Their Meanings (1981) to make two points: first, that legends and folklore do not occur exclusively in so-called primitive or traditional societies, and second, that one could learn much about urban and modern culture by studying such tales.[4]
Many urban legends are framed as completestories withplot and characters. The compelling appeal of a typical urban legend is its elements of mystery,horror, fear, or humor. Often they serve ascautionary tales.[5] Some urban legends aremorality tales that depict someone acting in a disagreeable manner, only to wind up in trouble, hurt, or dead.[6]
Urban legends will often try to invoke a feeling ofdisgust in the reader which tends to make these stories more memorable and potent. Elements ofshock value can be found in almost every form of urban legend and are partially what makes these tales so impactful.[7] An urban legend may include elements of thesupernatural orparanormal.[8]
As Jan Brunvand points out,[9] antecedent legends including some of the motifs, themes and symbolism of theurtexts can readily be identified. Cases thatmay have been at least partially inspired by real events include "The Death Car" (traced byRichard Dorson toMichigan,United States);[9] "the Solid Cement Cadillac"[10] and the possible origin of "The Hook" in the 1946 series ofLovers' Lanemurders inTexarkana, Texas, United States.[11][12] The urban legend thatCoca-Cola developed the drinkFanta to sell inNazi Germany without public backlash originated as the actual tale of GermanMax Keith, who invented the drink and ran Coca-Cola's operations in Germany duringWorld War II.[13]
The narrator of an urban legend may claim it happened to a friend (or to afriend of a friend), which serves to personalize, authenticate and enhance the power of the narrative[14] while distancing the teller from thetall tale. Many urban legends depict horrific crimes, contaminated foods, or other situations that would potentially affect many people. Anyone believing such stories might feel compelled to warn loved ones. On occasion, news organizations, school officials and even police departments have issued warnings concerning the latest threat.[15] According to the "Lights Out"rumor,street gang members would drive without headlights until a compassionate motorist responded with the traditional flashing of headlights, whereupon a prospective new gang member would have to murder the citizen as a requirement ofinitiation.[16] A fax retelling this legend received at theNassau County, Florida, fire department was forwarded to police, and from there to all city departments. TheMinister of Defence for Canada was taken in by it also; he forwarded an urgent security warning to allOntario Members of Parliament.[16]
Urban legends typically include common elements: the tale is retold on behalf of the original witness or participant; dire warnings are often given for those who might not heed the advice or lesson contained therein (a typical element of many e-mailphishing scams); and the tale is often touted as "something a friend told me", the friend being identified by first name only or not identified at all.[17] Such legends seem to be believable and even provocative, as some readers are led in turn to pass them on, including on social media platforms that instantly reach millions worldwide.[18] Many are essentially extendedjokes, told as if they were true events.[19]
Persistent urban legends do often maintain a degree of plausibility, as in the story aserial killer deliberately hiding in the back seat of a car. Another such example since the 1970s has been the recurring rumor that theProcter & Gamble Company was associated withSatan-worshippers because of details within its 19th-century "57" trademark.[20] The legend interrupted the company's business to the point that it stopped using the trademark.[21]
The earliest term by which these narratives were known, "urban belief tales", highlights what was then thought of as a key property: their tellers regarded the stories as true accounts, and the device of theFOAF (acronym for "Friend of a Friend" invented by English writer and folkloristRodney Dale in 1976) was a spurious but significant effort at authentication.[22] The coinage leads in turn to the terms "FOAFlore" and "FOAFtale". While at least one classic legend, the "Death Car", has been shown to have some basis in fact,[23] folklorists have an interest in debunking those narratives only to the degree that establishing non-factuality warrants the assumption that there must be some other reason why the tales are told, re-told and believed.[24] As in the case ofmyth, the narratives are believed because they construct and reinforce theworldview of the group within which they are told, or "because they provide us with coherent and convincing explanations of complex events".[25]
Social scientists have started to draw on urban legends in order to help explain complex socio-psychological beliefs, such as attitudes to crime, childcare, fast food, SUVs and other "family" choices.[26] The authors make an explicit connection between urban legends and popular folklore, such asGrimm's Fairy Tales, where similar themes and motifs arise. For that reason, it is characteristic of groups within which a given narrative circulates to vehemently reject claims or demonstrations of non-factuality; an example would be the expressions of outrage by police officers who are told that adulteration of Halloween treats by strangers (the subject of periodicmoral panics) occurs extremely rarely, if at all.[24][27]
TheInternet has made it easier both to spread and to debunk urban legends.[28][29] For instance, theUsenet newsgroupalt.folklore.urban and several other websites, most notablysnopes.com, focus on discussing, tracking, and analyzing urban legends. TheUnited States Department of Energy had a now-discontinued service called Hoaxbusters[30] that dealt with computer-distributedhoaxes and legends.[31] The most notable such hoaxes are known ascreepypastas, which are typicallyhorror stories written anonymously. Although most are regarded as obviously false, some, such as theSlender Man, have gained afollowing of people that do believe in them.[32]
The 1998 filmUrban Legend featured students discussing popular urban legends while at the same time falling victim to killings re-enacting them.[34] The 1999 filmThe Blair Witch Project purposefully positioned itself as an urban legend to gain viral hype and succeeded in fooling many that it was based on a real disappearance.[35] The lack of widespread social media and search engines helped it proliferate in the months leading up to its release.[36]
Between 1992 and 1998The Guardian newspaper "Weekend" section published the illustrated "Urban Myths" column by Phil Healey and Rick Glanvill, with content taken from a series of four books:Urban Myths,The Return of Urban Myths,Urban Myths Unplugged,[37] andNow! That's What I Call Urban Myths. The 1994 comics anthology theBig Book of Urban Legends, written by Robert Boyd,Jan Harold Brunvand, andRobert Loren Fleming, featured 200 urban legends, displayed as comics.[citation needed]
As with traditional urban legends, many internetrumors are about crimes or crime waves – either fictional or based on real events that have been largely exaggerated.[41][42][43] Such stories can be problematic, both because they purport to be relevant modern news and because they do not follow the typical patterns of urban legends.[44]
Some legends are medicalfolklore, such as the claim that eatingwatermelonseeds will result in a watermelon growing in thestomach, or that going outdoors just after showering will result in catching a cold.[45] Manyold wives' tales have grown around the identification of ailments, real and imagined, and the recommended remedies, rituals, and home-grown medical treatments to treat them.[citation needed]
Internet urban legends are those spread through the internet, as throughUsenet or email[46] or more recently through othersocial media. They can also be linked toviral online content. Some take the form ofchain letters and spread by e-mail, directing the reader to share them or to meet a terrible fate,[47] and following a recognizable outline of hook, threat, and finally request.[48]
Paranormal urban-legend stories usually involve someone encountering something supernatural, such as acryptid[49]—for instance,Bigfoot orMothman,[50] legendary creatures for which evidence is lacking but which have legions of believers.[51] Research shows that people experiencing sudden or surprising events (such as a Bigfoot sighting) may significantly overestimate the duration of the event.[52]
Companies have been accused of hiding "secret messages" behind theirlogos or packaging,[53] as in the case of the oldProcter & Gamble symbol, supposedly an occult figure that gave panache to the brand. (If the thirteen stars in the symbol were connected a certain way, it would showthree sixes in a row or looked at the 3 curls at the bottom they form the inverted 6s.)[54] Similarly, a video of a Christian woman "exposing"Monster Energy for using theHebrew lettervav ( ו ), forming the letter "M", to disguise the number 666 wentviral on Facebook.[55]
^Oxford English Dictionary, 2d ed. 1989, entry for "urban legend", citing R. M. Dorson in T. P. Coffin,Our Living Traditions, xiv. 166 (1968). See also William B. Edgerton, "The Ghost in Search of Help for a Dying Man",Journal of the Folklore Institute, Vol. 5, No. 1. pp. 31, 38, 41 (1968).
^John Mosier "War Myths"Historically Speaking: The Bulletin of the Historical Society: VI: 4, March/April 2005.
^Croft, Robin (2006). "Folklore, Families and Fear: Exploring the Influence of the Oral Tradition on Consumer Decision-making".Journal of Marketing Management.22 (9 & 10):1053–76.doi:10.1362/026725706778935574.S2CID144646252.
^Watstein, Sarah; Jovanovic, John (2003). "Bioterrorism and Biological Warfare".Statistical Handbook on Infectious Diseases. An Oryx book. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 297.ISBN9781573563758. Retrieved26 January 2020.A number of Internet sites are available regarding urban legends and hoaxes, such as [...] the Compute Incident Advisory Committee and Department of Energy's HoaxBusters site athttp://hoaxbusters.ciac.org.{{cite book}}:External link in|quote= (help)
^Hieronimus, Robert (2008).The United Symbolism of America : Deciphering Hidden Meanings in America's Most Familiar Art, Architecture, and Logos. Franklin Lakes, NJ: New Page Books. p. 267.ISBN9781601630018.
Enders, Jody (2002).Death by Drama and Other Medieval Urban Legends. University of Chicago Press.ISBN978-0-226-20788-9.
Bennett, Gillian; Smith, Paul (2007).Urban legends : a collection of international tall tales and terrors. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press.ISBN978-0-313-33952-3.OCLC76864037.
