Since ancient times, ghost stories—tales of spirits who return from the dead to haunt the places they left behind—have figured prominently in the folklore of many cultures around the world.
A rich subset of these tales involve historical figures ranging from queens and politicians to writers and gangsters, many of whom died early, violent or mysterious deaths.
The concept of a ghost, also known as a specter, is based on the ancient idea that a person’s spirit exists separately from his or her body, and may continue to exist after that person dies. Because of this idea, many societies began to use funeral rituals as a way of ensuring that the dead person’s spirit would not return to “haunt” the living.
Places that are haunted are usually believed to be associated with some occurrence or emotion in the ghost’s past; they are often a former home or the place where he or she died.
Aside from actual ghostly apparitions, traditional signs of haunting range from strange noises, lights, odors or breezes to the displacement of objects, bells that ring spontaneously or musical instruments that seem to play on their own. (Continue reading from The History Channel)
Why do people believe in ghosts? (The Atlantic)
13 Famous and (Mostly) Literary Ghosts (Arapahoe Libraries)
Top 10 Unconventional Ghosts in Literature (The Guardian)
Literary Ghosts Ranked from Least Scary to Scariest (SparkNotes)
The Ten Scariest Haunted House Books Ever Written (Barnes&Noble)
An Ancient Ghost Story: Philinnon and Machates (Ancient.eu)
The Birth of the Modern Ghost Story (Crime Reads)
Why Do People Tell Ghost Stories on Christmas? (Smithsonian)
The Secret Meaning of Ghost Stories (BBC)
