The need to be haunted
Posted by: Hayley Stevens on: August 12, 2007
I only investigated the Paranormal as part of a group for two years, but in that very short time I came across something that I think could be described as some sort of psychological phenomena all in itself.
The need to be haunted is something I witnessed on many investigations, in some cases the owner of a location would exaggerate stories to such an extent that the simplest question would confuse them, there were also the cases where the owner of a location would talk of keeping the ghost, as though it were a pet, and then there was the worst case scenario, the location that advertised itself as the most haunted place in the county of Wiltshire only to have the landlord caught faking activity during an investigation.
What, one wonders, could make these people be so desperate to be haunted?
It could be that they are so fascinated by the paranormal that they misdiagnose any sound or slight happening as paranormal when indeed it simply needs to be looked at logically. It could also be a case of the person in question having lost somebody tragically in their life and they are desperate to believe that their loved one is still with them, Then there is my favourite theory – The curse of the Paranormal Pound.
With television shows such as Most Haunted, Haunted Homes, Derek Acorahs ghost towns and the like on our screens most week nights, it is easy to see why people may get excited at the prospect of being haunted.
We all know The Red Lion at Avebury who were on Most Haunted, We know The Black Swan in Devizes who were on Most Haunted, look at how those locations make a profit of supposedly being Englands most haunted location…
If you were the owner of public location that had ghost stories attached to it, and you heard that supposed haunted hot spots can make the owner a fortune on investigation charges, would you not instantly see the £ signs in front of your eyes?
An easy way to cash in, and a good way to draw in custom – “Come and eat in Wiltshires most Haunted restaurant” – Doesn’t take a genius does it.
My worry about this phenomena of the need to be haunted does worry me though, because not only is it morally wrong, it also takes Paranormal Investigation teams to locations that they need not be investigating, it wastes the teams time and resources, especially when there may a location that they could investigate to yield some really important results.
2 Responses to "The need to be haunted"
August 13, 2007 at 3:30 pm
I don’t believe that all supposed hauntings are born out of the need to be haunted, but most of them are.
August 13, 2007 at 12:47 am
I thought this post was extremely interesting, and I think I might have an answer for you.
I think a lot of people need something like this to make their own lives interesting. Many people want to be viewed as “interesting” by others, and it’s also a way to get attention from others. Makes good party conversation, too!
I have known ONE person in my life, from Eastern Europe who claims to have grown up in a house that was haunted. She is a very level-headed woman, and doesn’t talk to many people about her experience. She said that when she was little, over a period of a number of years, the ghost, an old man would come into her room. She always felt cold as he walked by. He always seemed to be warning her. She never heard him, and wasn’t afraid of him. He always seemed to be warning her to stay away from the basement. Years later, it turned out that when they sold the house, there was something quite wrong in the basement, like some kind of poisonous chemical or something very unhealthy down there. But it’s been more than ten years since I heard this story from her, so I’m afraid I don’t remember the details any better than that.
Margot in Marrakesh
margotmystic.wordpress.com