"Belief in the spirit world is a key part of many faiths and religions. A 2023 survey of 26 countries revealed that about half the respondents believed in the existence of angels, demons, fairies and ghosts. In the United States, a 2020 poll found that about half of Americans believe ghosts and demons are real. While the subject of demons and ghosts can inspire dread, the concepts themselves can be confusing: Is there a difference between the two?"
"Literary representations of ghosts and demons often reflect the anxieties of communities experiencing social, religious or political upheaval. As a scholar of early modern English literature, my research focuses on how everyday people in 16th- and 17th-century Europe used storytelling to navigate major social changes. This era, often called the Renaissance, was punctuated by the establishment of mass media through printing, the global spread of colonization and the emergence of modern science and medicine."
About half of people in many countries report belief in angels, demons, fairies and ghosts, and roughly half of Americans report believing in ghosts and demons. The concepts of ghosts and demons can be confusing because communities have understood the supernatural through differing religious and spiritual traditions. Literary portrayals of ghosts and demons frequently mirror communal anxieties during social, religious or political upheaval. Early modern European storytelling reveals how everyday people used supernatural narratives to navigate major changes. The Renaissance featured mass printing, global colonization and the rise of modern science and medicine, all influencing supernatural belief and representation.
Read at The Conversation
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