What scares you?

Merrill Kaplan, Associate Professor of English and Director of Scandinavian Studies, takes time out of the spooky season to discuss the cultural and historical significance of Halloween, comparing its traditions to those of other holidays. She describes to host David Staley the evolution of folklore studies, which emphasizes the importance of understanding current cultural meanings and individual agency. They look at her term “paganesque,” debunk common misinterpretations, and highlight the appearance of folklore in modern contexts, including social media. Prof Kaplan sees social media platforms like Twitter as having transformed folklore, becoming ways to share stories, jokes, rumors, and other forms of folklore.

So, a ghost, a skeleton and a chicken walk into a bar…