Black Cats Being Harmed on Halloween
By: Penny G.S
(WARNING, DARK THEMES, AND A LITTLE VIOLENCE)
As some may know and some may not, Black Cats are considered bad luck to some people. The Black Cat is almost like the symbol for Halloween and All Hallows Eve, people believe that if a black cat crosses your path then you will be cursed with bad luck. So, how does this tie in with Black Cats being harmed on Halloween?
Even though this article is about black cats being harmed on Halloween, it’s likely no one of modern times would do any of that! So it’s not a huge deal to worry about but if you still want to keep your black cat safe all you do is just keep them inside.
Although people of modern times are not likely at all to do this, people back in the 1800s and earlier really believed black acts were bad luck and would harm, kill, and even participate in some dark rituals with them. People in earlier times believed in the “Dark Arts” and “Witchcraft” being associated with Black Cats as some thought Black Cats were a “Witches Assistant”. Many people are against the "Black Cats have Bad Luck" Maggie Cooper and Wren Ferguson being one of them! "even though they harmed or killed Black Cats a really long time ago, it is still a very big no no!" Maggie Cooper states as well as Wren, "Poor Cats I don’t know how you could do that to such a cute thing!"
Two People being 'Afraid' of Black Cats
A document on Black Cats helping eradicate the rats spreading the bubonic plague.
On St. Hallow's Eve dating 2000 years back people sacrificed Black Cats for the “Lord of Dead” in a druid circle, in addition to that Witches were also hung and burnt at the stake along with Black Cats because it was widely believed that Black Cats were unlucky or brought death to the ill.
The superstition of black cats containing “Bad Luck” Actually started in Medieval Europe when many believed witches used black cats to carry out evil deeds. It is mostly thought that Germanic people started the idea of black cats being associated with the devil, they also believed that if a Black Cat crossed your path you wouldn’t only have bad luck but death would be just around the corner. Because of what people believed back then Black Cats would be killed off in order to prevent deaths and bad luck, yet by doing that the bubonic plague spread even more since Black Cats weren’t there to help eradicate the rats and mice spreading the Plague.
These Superstitions about Black Cats traveled to America when Europeans colonized America and that is why these superstitions still remain today.
An Edger Allan Poe book about black cats next to a movie (Kiki's Delivery Service) with a Black Cat in it.
Black Cats are no danger to us at all, so you can still believe they have bad luck but you don’t just go hurting or killing Black Cats because they have “Bad Luck”. And if you are worried about your cat you can always keep them inside on Halloween, but if you live in a pretty safe neighborhood people harming your cat is very unlikely.
Contributor Bio
Penny is a 12 year-old 7th grader, that really likes the movie Wall-E, it is her life, her soul, the reason why she cries during every disney movie.