Haunted house

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The Winchester Mystery House is allegedly haunted
For other uses, see Haunted house (disambiguation).
For a simulated haunted house, see Haunted attraction.

A haunted house is defined as building that is a center for supernatural occurrences or paranormal phenomena.[1] A haunted house may contain ghosts, poltergeists, or even demons.[citation needed] Sometimes these presences reportedly continue to "haunt" the physical world after a tragic event occurred on the property — such as a murder, accidental death, or suicide — sometime in the recent or even ancient past.[citation needed]

Haunting in fiction

Legends about haunted houses have long appeared in literature. Haunting is used as a plot device in gothic or horror fiction or, more lately, paranormal-based fiction. Roman-era authors Plautus, Pliny the Younger, and Lucian wrote stories about haunted houses, and more modern authors from Henry James to Stephen King have featured them in their writings. Haunted castles and mansions were common in gothic literature.[citation needed]

The actual structure of a fictional haunted house can be anything from a decaying European feudal castle to a newly occupied suburban ranch-style house of fairly recent construction, though many authors and movie directors prefer that the architecture be from the 19th century or earlier.[citation needed]

A popular dark ride at Disney theme parks, The Haunted Mansion, references much of the popular iconography of haunted houses.[citation needed]

Haunted houses and carbon monoxide

Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning include listlessness, depression, dementia, emotional disturbances, and hallucinations. Many of the phenomena generally associated with haunted houses, including strange visions and sounds, feelings of dread, illness, and the sudden, apparently inexplicable death of all the occupants, can be attributed to carbon monoxide poisoning.

In one famous case, carbon monoxide poisoning was clearly identified as the cause of an alleged haunting. Dr. William Wilmer, an ophthalmologist, described the experiences of one of his patients in a 1921 article published in the American Journal of Ophthalmology. "Mr. and Mrs. H." moved into a new home, but soon began to complain of headaches and listlessness. They began to hear bells and footsteps during the night, soon accompanied by strange physical sensations and mysterious figures. When they began to investigate, they found the previous residents had experienced similar symptoms. Upon examination, their furnace was found to be severely damaged, resulting in incomplete combustion and forcing most of the fumes into the house rather than up the chimney.[2] After the stove was fixed, the family fully recovered and did not experience any further paranormal events.

A report published in 2005 described a 23-year old female victim of carbon monoxide poisoning, found delirious and hyperventilating, who saw a ghost while in the shower. A new gas water heater had just been installed in her home, apparently improperly, which flooded the house with carbon monoxide when the victim closed all the exterior windows and doors and took a shower.[3]

Carbon monoxide is the leading cause of accidental poisoning deaths in North America.[4] Thus carbon monoxide poisoning should be promptly investigated as a possible cause for "hauntings."[5]

Haunted Houses and the Law

In Stambovsky v. Ackley, the Supreme Court of New York ruled that a seller does not need to disclose the fact that a house is haunted unless there is a fiduciary relationship or in cases of fraud or misrepresentation.[6]

Haunted houses in literature

Films featuring haunted houses, mansions or castles

Video Games featuring haunted houses, mansions or castles

See also

References

  1. ^ http://parapsych.org/glossary_e_k.html#h Parapsychological Association website, Glossary of Key Words Frequently Used in Parapsychology, Retrieved February 10, 2007
  2. ^ "A true tale of a truly haunted house," by Albert Denay. www.ghostvillage.com. Includes text of 1921 Journal of Ophthalmology article. [1]
  3. ^ Jiann-Ruey Ong, Sheng-Wen Hou, Hsien-Tsung Shu, Huei-Tsair Chen, and Chee-Fah Chong. Diagnostic pitfall: carbon monoxide poisoning mimicking hyperventilation syndrome. The American Journal of Emergency Medicine Volume 23, Issue 7 , November 2005, Pages 903-904
  4. ^ "Carbon Monoxide." Canada Safety Council. [2]
  5. ^ "A true tale of a truly haunted house," by Albert Denay. www.ghostvillage.com. Includes text of 1921 Journal of Ophthalmology article. [3]
  6. ^ Knauf, Allan. "After New York's Property Condition Disclosure Act". Retrieved 2007-02-15.

External links

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