The term “supernaturalism” first appears in philosophical and theological conversations in 1799 and in its most fundamental sense, supernaturalism embodies the belief in a supernatural power (e.g., god, goddess, great being, etc.) that maintains the order of existence. Predominantly used in discussions about Western monotheistic religions, supernaturalism holds that there is an ultimate force or power outside of the natural world. There are two central beliefs within this body of thought. First, supernaturalism expresses the idea that a supernatural power (i.e., god/goddess) polices both humans and nature, which in turn makes both humans and nature subordinate to him/her/it. Second, it holds that humans are ranked higher than the rest of nature (plants, resources, animals, etc.), which is a central feature of many traditional creation myths. Within the realm of folklore, supernaturalism manifests itself in those myths that seem to deliver “just deserts” to wrongdoers. Typically, legends with supernatural themes depict vicious and immoral perpetrators receiving just punishments for their actions.
What some might consider America’s most famous legend originated as a short story. Washington Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” was one of a collection of short stories the author published in the early nineteenth century. While the story of Ichabod Crane being chased through the forest by a headless horseman is merely a story, Irving’s inspiration for the character came from an old German folktale, “Der wilde Jäger,” or “The Wild Huntsman.” In this legend, a headless hunter, described by many as ghoulish in appearance, chased victims through forests at impossible speeds. Victims of the Wild Huntsman were often corrupt or immoral people. The Wild Huntsman is not the only headless horseman of myth. The headless horseback apparition is a staple of many different mythologies but one element seems standard across the board: the headless hunter always serves to punish victims who have acted in wicked ways. This is where the element of supernaturalism enters the narrative. The idea that there is some force outside of the natural world implies another plane of existence. This plane is where humans locate ghosts, apparitions, demons, and other nonhuman beings; subsequently, this is also where beings like a god/goddess exist as well as whichever opposing being any religion gives (i.e., the Devil, Satan, Outer Darkness, etc.). Supernaturalism, in this context, maintains that there is order in the universe because there is some supernatural being above it all who is responsible for managing (that is, rewarding and punishing) good and corrupt morality in human beings.
The headless horseman’s task is to punish individuals who disregard moral responsibility and engage in corrupt acts or acts of hubris (excessive pride). Supernaturalism dictates that human beings must act in accordance with “God’s will,” and that humans must not only engage in self-fulfillment. Furthermore, they should not always trust their instincts because those are of an animal nature. The key is rising above our “animal self” and recognizing the supernatural force that exists outside of the world. According to folklorists, this inclusion of supernaturalism often serves to unite Americans under one code of conduct that is firmly situated in Christian Protestantism. Furthermore, supernaturalism in folklore aided the development of a new American mythos, which posited that the supernatural could intervene in everyday, ordinary circumstances. That is, one did not need to be an important or exceptional individual to commune with supernatural beings. The proper term for this phenomenon is “existential selfhood,” or the belief that every person has the ability to think outside of him- or herself to see the greater forces in nature and the universe.
It is important to remember that legends and folktales are often interpreted as stories with horror implications that are believable to the audience; these stories often incorporate modern, adapted folklore or references to contemporary popular urban legends. Historically, American culture was formed through the combination of a variety of different motivations and impulses. One of these was the desire for freedom from religious oppression. Thus, America’s population consisted largely of Christians who had a firm belief in supernaturalism. The Creator God in heaven would pass judgment on individuals according to their codes of morality, virtue, and belief. This belief also maintained that there was a Satan figure, Lucifer, who existed to oppose all that God created and watched over, including human beings. Therefore, humans were participants in a cosmic struggle who needed to live virtuous lives in the name of God and reject Lucifer’s temptations toward wickedness and corruption. Should humans fall prey to Lucifer’s charms, they faced ridicule from their society and, ultimately, an eternity in hell. This explains why many of the victims in urban legends are individuals of ill repute and/or facing punishment for their crimes or choices.
However, some scholars claim that the appearance of supernatural themes in folklore is less entrenched in religion. Instead of adhering to a Christian worldview of heaven and hell, God and Satan, supernaturalism explains the existence and staying power of folktales over decades and even centuries. In this alternate view, supernaturalism provides a non-naturalistic explanation for the unexplainable. This includes sightings of legendary figures across generations and geographic regions. Whereas a headless horseman could never exist in the natural world because humans cannot live without a head, supernaturalism allows for the existence of a headless horseman because it is a being who lives outside the natural world and therefore outside of natural laws. Because the horror elements of a legend must be believable to an audience, there needs to be an explanation for those beings that defy belief. Additionally, these elements must have some element of horror for most humans, religious or otherwise. This horror at the supernatural lends itself to the possible existence of legends like the headless horseman and makes them believable, if only briefly. This is enough to keep certain legends alive in American society and the human mind.
Supernaturalism also allows for the abundance of myths and tall tales that incorporate any use of the supernatural. Ghost stories, hauntings, curses, witches, and magic are all represented within the corpus of contemporary urban legends. If all elements of folklore needed to be explained using only natural laws, there would be very little to keep the horror, fear, and awe alive in the human mind. However, the potential for encountering these legends increases when the supernatural comes into play. American folktales, like “The Cursing of Colonel Buck,” hinge on the belief that there is some force enacting curses on immoral people. Colonel Buck is a gentleman with a desire for young ladies whom he discards after getting what he wants. After impregnating a young girl who then wants him to support her illegitimate child, he has her burned for being a witch. While being burned, the young girl utters the curse that his misdeeds will never be forgotten and that, upon Colonel Buck’s death, his tombstone will be marked by a woman’s foot (often thought to signify the burned girl’s foot, which, as the legend claims, fell off her burning body). In this particular case, the woman issues a curse to the heavens to make the man pay for his immoral behavior. Then, whether it be the work of a supernatural being or the spirit of the wronged girl, the curse manifests on the tombstone on which ever after appears the outline of a woman’s foot. In trying to honor the memory of Colonel Buck, townspeople had the defaced tombstone smashed into pieces and remade. Upon placing the remade tombstone, the image of a woman’s leg reappeared and has not left. Since natural explanations cannot account for the persistence of such an image, supernaturalism manifests in this tale by explaining the irremovable mark and then attributing it to the curse made by the dying girl. Curses, because they originate from spells and magic, are supernatural and cannot be explained through logic or reasoning.
Supernaturalism undergirds many myths and legends, since it offers a means of explaining the unexplainable. This encourages folklore to flourish in both the broader society and in the individual mind because it allows for the existence of things outside nature and human comprehension. Humans, who crave knowledge and understanding, fear the unknown and cannot forget that which is frightening or potentially harmful to one’s body or soul. With legends like the Headless Horseman and the Curse of Colonel Buck, logical explanations are few and far between. However, supernaturalism sets aside the typical rules that apply to the natural world, rendering them irrelevant in the face of timeless, persistent human fears.
Ashley Szanter
See also Cursing of Colonel Buck; Folklore and Folktales; Headless Horseman; Urban Legends/Urban Belief Tales
Further Reading
Berger, Peter. 1971. A Rumour of Angels: Modern Society and the Rediscovery of the Supernatural. Harmondsworth, UK: Penguin.
Brunvand, Jan Harold. 2002. Encyclopedia of Urban Legends. New York: W. W. Norton.
Seligmann, Kurt. 1971. Magic, Supernaturalism and Religion. New York: Pantheon Books.
Walker, Barbara. 1995. Out of the Ordinary: Folklore and the Supernatural. Logan: Utah State University Press.
Whittier, John Greenleaf. 1969. The Supernaturalism of New England. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press.