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Practices that could be considered superstitious cures would
include the following:
A woman in labor should hold salt between her hands.
Put sugar on the window to make the baby come. 34
Appalachian folklore, which often deals with mystical,
magical, and supernatural themes, is an integral part of the
Appalachian folk magic tradition. The folklore of the region can,
for the most part, be traced back to Ireland, Scotland, and northern
England. However, many German and Native American stories
have also survived in Appalachia. Richard Chase (1971, 1976),
Ruth Ann Musick (1965, 1970, 1977) and Patrick Gainer (1975)
were among the first scholars to gather and record these folk tales.
In Green Hills of Magic: West Virginia Folktales from Europe
(1970), Musick divided these folktales into three broad categories:
1) animal tales; 2) ordinary folk tales; and 3) jokes and anecdotes.
She further subdivided the category of ordinary folk tales into tales
of magic; religious tales; romantic tales; and tales of the stupid
ogre. Gainer, on the other hand, in Witches, Ghosts, and Signs
(1975) divided the folklore into ghostlore and witchcraft.
Byers (1999) distinguishes the following seven general
categories of Appalachian folklore: 1) Fairy Tale; 2) Legend;
3) Fable; 4) Myth; 5) Tall Tale; 6) Supernatural Tale; and 7)
Preternatural Tale. Fairy tales typically deal with “little people”
of the supernatural world, such as fairies, elves, spirits, pixies,
gnomes, dwarfs, brownies, and leprechauns who usually help the
human hero in the tale by using an act of magic that resolves a
problem or conflict. Legends are simply stories that distinguish
a person, place or event. Fables are short tales that usually
involve animal characters and have either an implicit or explicit
moral message. Myths explain the origin, characteristics,
and processes of natural phenomena, such as the origin of the
world, humans, or death. Tall tales are exaggerated accounts
about situations or events and often involve humor and satire.
Supernatural tales involve situations or beings beyond the normal
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