They say that masturbation causes blindness. I don't know about you fellahs but I can see perfectly. How do ridiculous superstitions such as this one begin? Why do people believe in something that can be scientifically proven wrong? They may want a simple explanation for any irregular or coincidal event. For example, a woman plants a tree in her yard and the weather just happens to be warm for the rest of the month. She reasons that planting trees causes warm weather. That is a simple, obvious conclusion. A weatherman will give a long, confusing explanation such as "Various meteorological factors caused displacement of the cold front". The woman on the other hand, will believe her own explanation because it is simple and easily understood. Once one person believes this conclusion, others will believe too it too. Perhaps the woman will be gossiping with some friends, and she mentions her tree superstition. They tell others and soon the whole town believes that trees cause warm weather. This simple example shows the flaws of superstition, for it isn't based on any hard fact or evidence, but rather something in which only one individual must believe in. People will believe anything.
             Superstition reached its epitome during the middle ages and continued on throughout such events as the Salem witch trials. The play 'The Crucible' clearly depicts this, and it illustrates how people react to mass hysteria, created by a person or group desiring fame. The following is a short extract from the play, showing how this mass hysteria was spawned, and how it helped to preserve such practices as witchcraft.
             As you can see, they didn't allow much room for reasonable thought. The educated people believed and so why shouldn't the regular townsfolk believe? It shows how superstition, however ridiculous, was manipulated into society. Though we may look back on it now and laug
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