6. The Devil Walks the Earth
The Wrong Idea: The Devil, shakes off Hell for a little vacation on Earth, freely wandering its planes making deals with anyone he so chooses.
As Portrayed In: Angel Heart, The Devils Advocate
Why It’s Wrong: No wonder Lucifer has a grudge against us, no one can get a handle on this guy. So one factor here is correct, that according to legend Demons can rise to earth and make deals with humans, the Demons promises to give the human whatever they desire, the human gets ten years living the dream until their soul is claimed and they spend eternity in Hell. These however are Demon’s, not the Devil himself, Christian mythology tells us the Devil was ‘Brought down to Sheol’ (Isaiah 14:15) and imprisoned their, and that should the day come when Satan once again rises, it will be the end of days and he shall do battle with the Arch Angel Michael for the souls of humanity.
7. Witches Are Hideous Crones
The Wrong Idea: Witches are hideous old women that feed on children.
As Portrayed In: The Witches
Why It’s Wrong: So it’s understandable why many people may perceive Dark Witches as hideous, it is possible that this myth is one perpetrated by the Christian church and many witch hunters during the Salem trials, often the hunters would tell locals that warts and other deformities were clues of an evil witch. Other theories comes from the Shtriga a being who’s origins are found in Eastern Europe, though more akin to the Vampire, the Shtriga would feed off of the lives of small children, much like the witch in the Grimm Brothers tale “Hansel and Gretel”. In fact according to folklore witches were more often beautiful women who would lure unsuspecting men and children to their demise.
8. Vampires Are Romantic
The Wrong Idea: Vampires are beautiful, and poetic romancers.
As Portrayed In: Dracula, The Twilight Saga, Interview with the Vampire
Why It’s Wrong: So putting aside the commonly accepted opinion that Twilight is awful (it really is), this preconception finds its origins in none other than Bram Stokers novel “Dracula” based on the life of medieval ruler of Wallachia Vlad Dracula (A.K.A. Vlad The Impaler), which blended the rumours surrounding Vlads life with local mythology on the supernatural being we commonly know as the vampire. Quite incredibly there are legends of vampiric creatures found all around the globe; however no matter how different they seem to be, none conform to the stereotypical love sick, hermit, puppy routine we all know. For instance in India the BrahmarākŞhasa is a head encircled by intestines with a skull used for drink blood.
9. Summoning Evil, Easy As 1, 2, 3
The Wrong Idea: Demons and other evil entities can be summoned with a simple spell, uttered without meaning or context.
As Portrayed In: The Evil Dead
Why It’s Wrong: In any and all cultures that perform summoning rituals one thing is crystal clear, content is king! You must know the meaning of the words you are speaking, know exactly who it is you wish to summon and most importantly, ignite the spell by using your own bodies energy; or as my Acting teacher might put it, ‘Give it some bloody feeling love’. In many films we view unwitting teens calling up the darkest powers hell has to offer without even realizing what they are doing. And if saying a few random syllables in the right order is enough then surely there are singers all over the world warming up their voices with a few poorly chosen enunciations and thus finding themselves plagued by all sorts of invisible nasties.
10. Ghosts Can Follow You
The Wrong Idea: No matter where you go a ghost, with whom you have had no previous dealings with, will follow you.
As Portrayed In: The Sixth Sense, The Poltergeist Series
Why It’s Wrong: It is a perpetuated notion that one bad experience in a haunted house or some such place can cause a ghost to latch onto you, and as many psychics, and demonologists will tell you, this just isn’t so. In ancient Norse, Greek, and Celtic mythology the dead were to be cremated so that their soul might no longer be tide to the earthly bonds that held them, and they might be free to roam the afterlife as they so choose. This carries through to modern day studies, whereby a haunting may occur either in places that still contain the remains of a corpse, or in places of great tragedy i.e. someone was murdered in that place and now has formed a psychic link with said location. Forming such a bond takes a long time, and energy, far too much for a ghost to just wander off and haunt any old bugger with a heart condition.
Author Bio: Johnathon is an actor, writer and director from the UK, he has been writing since the age of 14 producing a number of different , poetry pieces and short stories. Johnathon currently writes his own blog which you can keep up with and find links to on his Twitter account @johnathonneal.