Final Essay!

Shawna Boswell
Ms. Terrell
Honors English 11
May 12, 2010

“Do Ghosts Really Exist?”

A controversial topic I have always been curious about is the debate over whether ghosts really do exist. I have family members and friends with stories that back up their opinion on why they do believe, but I also have an equal amount of others who think the idea of ghosts is ridiculous. Because I was too scared I would freak myself out, I never pursued any further research to try and make an official decision for myself. Usually I would just tell people that I was not sure if I believed or not, however, if I ever attended a supposedly “haunted” place, I was terrified. In my research project, I decided it would be more beneficial to visit Bass Cemetery for interaction instead of an interview. This way, if it really was haunted, I would have a chance of experiencing an actual ghost. Visiting Bass was by far the most interesting part of my entire project. It was scary, and we did not actually see any ghosts, however we did capture some orbs in the pictures we took. We also heard a scream in the woods. That definitely resulted in a full-out sprint to our car and speedy exit out of the cemetery. Technically, I did not learn anything while I was there, but I did learn something very interesting throughout this project. Throughout my life, I have always assumed that a ghost and an apparition were one and the same. It was not until I read a chapter called “Ghosts and Apparitions” from The Mystery Library: Haunted Houses, that I understood the difference. A ghost is simply a depiction of a person who has passed away or an object that no longer exists and can appear repeatedly for years. Usually, ghosts are unaware of others watching them, as well. In contrast, an apparition is figure of a person, place, or thing that appears solid but is not actually present. Apparitions are almost always aware of their surroundings and can appear anywhere, while a ghost would usually only appear in a specific place. This definitely caught my attention considering I never knew there was a distinction between the two. It did not, however, make a huge impact on my final opinion.

My ultimate conclusion, after researching whether ghosts do exist or not, is still somewhat hazy. I do think that if I had to make a decision, I would say that ghosts are real. Before I even started this project I tended to be more of a believer in ghosts than I gave myself credit for. I never realized how scared I actually got, and there is no reason why I would be scared unless I believed that ghosts existed just a little. Throughout this project, I found much more information, including scientific data, pictures, stories, and proof on how and why ghosts do exist instead of why they do not. However, I think more than anything, I learned more details about ghosts. I learned the different aspects, types, and varieties of them, as well as the different views people have toward them. While some see them in more of a spiritual realm, others see them more supernaturally. It is a lot more complex than I ever thought it would be. Throughout all the details, though, everything still lead to some sort of explanation as to how or why ghosts do exist, and in the end, it persuaded me to think so, too.

Overall, I do not think there is anything I would have done differently during this project relating to my research. I found very informative chapters and websites, interesting pictures, and a fantastic novel that provided me with a scientific outlook on my topic. I was also able to watch a couple of scary movies and visit a haunted place which was a thrill in itself. Although, I do regret waiting until the night before almost every due date to post my blog. Karli Estock would spend the night, and we stayed up, on average, until about two in the morning so we could each post our blogs because we were too scared to do them that late by ourselves. I also wish I would have taken a more positive outlook on my topic so I would not have been so scared from the beginning of my project. However, I have no regrets. I enjoyed learning about my topic and this project, altogether.