Investigating the Origins of the Common Haunting Story

[JamesEightBitStar]

On television, I like to watch the so-called "documentaries" about haunted houses. Now, I know all of these stories are more fake than the special effects in a Japanese Giant Monster movie, but somehow I find them more interesting than horror movies and books, sometimes even a little creepy. I'm not sure what it is about these low-budget, one-hour "documentaries" that puts them ahead of big-budget theatrical releases but... well....

Anyway, I noticed that these stories tend to follow commons patterns, and I wanted to investigate the origins of these patterns--what was the first book or story still extant which used these? And furthermore, what part of society inspires some of these aspects?

The common story goes like this:

Family moves into house. Typically the family includes a mom and dad, a big kid (usually a sister in her mid-teens) and a little kid of either gender. Usually the teen has an experience on the first night, but passes it off as anxiety over moving. In some versions of the story, the father isn't there most of the time for some reason or other (job-related usually).

Nothing happens for anywhere from a few weeks to a month, then suddenly another event occurs. The teen complains, but no one believes her.

Then the little kid has an experience. The teen feels justified, but the parents are still skeptical.

Finally, one of the parents (usually the mother) has an experience and is totally convinced. Around this time they feel there is a need to do something. Usually, the dad (who as I said earlier, has been gone for some reason) comes back around now, hears the story, and is the last remaining skeptic--and everyone gets miffed at him for it. Eventually he becomes convinced just under the pressure of his family's testimony, if he doesn't have an experience himself.

Eventually they read a newspaper or hear a radio broadcast that mentions a renowned parapsychologist who just happens to be nearby, and call him up. He tries all sorts of stuff but ultimately comes to the conclusion that the presence in the house is either demonic/Satanic or otherwise simply has to be gotten rid of.

This parapsycho attempts an exorcism, which at first seems to work--all is calm. But then suddenly the ghost is back, with a vengeance. So the family calls in the same parapsychologist, who also comes back with a vengeance--and with the strength of God on his side. He decides the entire family must hold a prayer/exorcism ceremony, longer and more involved than the last one.

This time, the ghost stays gone... but by this time, the family has had enough, and decides to move to a new home anyway.

Again I reiterate my earlier question: What's the earliest story you know of that has featured this general formula? And what "meanings" do you see in it (if any)?

[grodog]

JamesEightBitStar----

I recommend the following reading list for you

• H. P. Lovecraft's "Supernatural Horror in Literature" which is an excellent survey of horror literature, including ghost stories; it's published today in various stand-alone editions, as well as included in HPL's Dagon and Other Macabre Tales, from Arkham House
• S. T. Joshi's The Wierd Tale (ISBN 0-292-79050-0 pb or -3 h/c), which focuses more on the stories of HPL, CAS, Algernon Blackwood, Ambrose Bierce, and various other comtemporaries of Lovecraft; it's more oriented toward weird fiction than ghost stories, but may have some good sources for you in its bibliography

I hope that helps.

[Le Noir Faineant]

AFAIK, Oscar Wilde's The Canterville Ghost, and some novels from Ann Radcliffe have very similar theme; Poe as well, though I forgot the details...

[Le Noir Faineant]

*Rereading the post again.*

This book might help you: *Encyclopedia of Gothic Literature*, by Mary Ellen Snodgrass.