Cultural Literacy – List 4 [Halloween-themed]

1. Cultural Literacy – List 4[Halloween-themed] Week of October 4, 2010

2. 1. “Double, double toil and trouble;Fire burn and cauldron bubble.” Saying that began with the Shakespeare play Macbeth (written in 1606 in England); some ways this saying has evolved into culture are: 1993 movie starring Mary-Kate and Ashley Olson titled Double, Double, Toil and Trouble Sung by the Hogwarts choir in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban movie in the song “Something Wicked this Way Comes”

3. 2. Drive a nail into one’s coffin Idiom meaning to do something that causes serious and permanent harm Example: I told my uncle that every time he lights a cigarette, he’s driving another nail into his coffin.

4. 3. Washington Irving A famous American author (April 3, 1783 – November 28, 1859) of the early 19th century, best known for his short stories “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” and “Rip Van Winkle” He was America’s first genuine internationally best-selling author.

6. 4. Headless Horseman Fictional character from the Washington Irving short story “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” In Santa Claus, Indiana’s amusement park Holiday World, there is a roller coaster named The Legend in its Halloween-themed section with the Headless Horseman on its logo. The Headless Horseman has worked his way into many cultural references.

7. 5. Edgar Allan Poe Famous American author, poet, and literary critic (January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) best known for his tales of mystery and horror He is considered one of the first practitioners of the short story, known as the inventor of the detective-fiction genre, and credited with emerging science fiction writing. Some of his famous poems include “The Raven” and “Annabel Lee,” and some of his famous stories include “The Tell-Tale Heart,” “The Fall of the House of Usher,” and “The Black Cat”

9. 6. “The Raven” A poem by Edgar Allan Poe in which a mourning man is visited by a raven that tells him he will see her “nevermore.” The poem begins with these famous lines: Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary, Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore, While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping, As of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.

10. 7. Salem Witch Trials Trials held in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 that led to the execution of twenty people for allegedly practicing witchcraft. The trials are noted for the hysterical atmosphere in which they were conducted; many townspeople were widely suspected of witchcraft on flimsy evidence. When people are quick to accuse one another of serious misdeeds on inadequate evidence, the situation is often compared to the Salem Witch Trials.

11. 8. Jack the Ripper A criminal in London in 1888 responsible for several ghastly murders by slashing. His identity is unknown. He was especially active in killing people in poor areas of London, and he even removed internal organs from some of the people he killed. To date more than 100 non-fiction works deal exclusively with the Jack the Ripper murders, making it one of the most written-about true-crime subjects. Jack the Ripper is also featured in novels, short stories, poems, comic books, games, songs, plays, operas, television programs, and films. In 2006, Jack the Ripper was selected by BBC History Magazine and its readers as the worst Briton in history

12. 9. Stephen King American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction, and fantasy fiction whose books have sold more than 500 million copies He is known for the novels Carrie, It, The Shining, The Stand, and Misery, and many of his books have been made into movies. To date, he has written 49 novels, 5 non-fiction books, and 9 short story collections.

14. 10. Grim Reaper A figure commonly used to represent death. The Grim Reaper is a skeleton or solemn-looking man clothed in a black cloak with a hood carrying a scythe who cuts off peoples’ lives as though he were harvesting grain. In some cases, the Grim Reaper simply serves as a figure to guide someone from one world to another. In English, death is often personified as a male, but in some languages death is personified as a female.

16. 11. The Scream Famous painting by Norwegian artist Edvard Munch that shows a tormented figure against a blood-red sky (1893). This painting has been the object of several high-profile art thefts. It is one of the most widely recognized modern paintings in the world and has made its way into culture in a variety of ways.

18. 12. Frankenstein A novel by Mary Shelly; the title character, Dr. Victor Frankenstein, makes a manlike monster from parts of cadavers (dead bodies) and brings it to life by the power of an electrical charge. Frankenstein’s monster is larger than most men and fantastically strong. Frequently the subject of horror films, the monster is usually pictured with an oversized square brow, metal bolts in his neck and forehead, and greenish skin. People often mistakenly refer to the monster, rather than to his creator, as “Frankenstein.”