ACT - English Exam 1
[ 1 ] Since primitive times, societies have created, and told1 legends. Even before the development of written language, cultures would orally pass down these popular stories.
[ 2 ] These stories served the dual purpose of entertaining audiences and of transmitting values and beliefs from generation to generation. Indeed3 today we have many more permanent ways of handing down our beliefs to future generations, we continue to create and tell legends. In our technological society, a new form of folk tale has emerged: the4 urban legend.
[ 2 ] Urban legends are stories[2] we all have heard; they are supposed to have really happened, but are never verifiable however5. It seems that the people involved can never be found. Researchers of the urban legend call the elusive participant in such supposed "real-life" events a FOAF --- a Friend of a Friend.
[ 3 ] Urban legends have some characteristic features. They are often humorous in nature with a surprise ending and a conclusion6. One such legend is the tale of the hunter who was returning home from an unsuccessful hunting trip. On his way home, he accidentally hit and killed a deer on a deserted highway. Even though he knew it was illegal, he decided to keep the deer, and he loads it7 in the back of his station wagon. As the hunter continued driving, the deer, he was8 only temporarily knocked unconscious by the car, wooke up and begain thrashing around. The hunter panicked, stopped the car, ran to the ditch, and watched the enraged deer destroy his car.
[4 ] One legend involves alligators iin the sewer systems of major metropolitan areas. According to the story, before alligators were a protected species, people9 vacationing in Florida purchased baby alligators to take home as souvenirs. Between 1930 and 1940, nearly a million alligators in Florida were killed for the value of their skin, used to make expensive leather products such as boots and wallets10. After the novelty of having a pet alligator wore off, many people flushed their baby souvenirs down toilets. Legend has it that the baby alligators found a perfect growing and breeding environment in city sewer systems, where they thrive to this day on the ample supply of rates.
[ 5 ] In addition to urban legends that are told from friend to friend, a growing number of urban legends are passed along through the Internet and e-mail. One of the more popular stories are about11 a woman who was unwittingly charged $100 for a cookie recipe she requested at an upscale restaurant. To get her money's worth, this woman supposed12 copied the recipe for the delicious cookies and forwarded it via e-mail to everyone she knew.
[ 6 ] Although today's technology enhances our ability to tell and retell urban legends, the Internet can also server as a monitor of urban legends. Dedicated to commonly told urban legends, research is done by many websites13. According to those websites, most legends, including ones told here have no basis in reality.
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