環(huán)球英語 Friday the 13th

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Welcome to Spotlight, I’m Liz Waid.

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And I’m Joshua Leo. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

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Friday the 13th. Are you frightened when I say these words? If the words “Friday the 13th” frighten you, you are like millions of other people. They share the same fear. They believe that Friday the 13th is an extremely unlucky and even dangerous day! But is Friday the 13th an unlucky day? Is something bad more likely to happen to a person on Friday the 13th? Today’s Spotlight is on Friday the 13th.

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Many years ago, humans needed a way to organize time. They made a system of days, weeks, months and years. In Western cultures there are 12 months in a year. And there are about 30 days in each month. Each week has seven days. About two times every year, the 13th day of the month will be a Friday. Some people say that each Friday the 13th is very unlucky. They fear this day.

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Fear of Friday the 13th is mostly a Western tradition. It is even a part of popular culture. For example, there are some horror films called Friday the 13th. They are very violent and frightening. Many people watch them because they enjoy being frightened. In some of these movies, the violence begins on the day Friday the 13th.

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Where does this fear come from? Experts believe that the fear of Friday the 13th comes from two separate fears that come together. They are the fear of the number 13, and the fear of the day Friday. Many people believe each separate thing is already unlucky. But when you combine them, they are even more unlucky!

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There are many stories about where the fear of Friday the 13th came from. Donald Dossey is a folklore historian. He studies ancient stories from many different cultures. Dossey tells National Geographic Magazine about the beginning of the fear of the number 13. He says the first writing about the fear of the number 13 comes from an ancient Norse story. Adam Navis tells this story:

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“The great hero Balder was having a special party. There were 12 people at the party. Then, Loki came to the party. He had not been invited. When he came, there were 13 people. Loki liked to play tricks. He told another person to shoot an arrow at Balder. Balder died and the whole Earth got dark. The whole Earth mourned. It was a bad, unlucky day.”

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In some traditions people refuse to serve a meal to exactly 13 people. They believe it is very bad luck. In France, there used to be people called “fourteeners.” People having a dinner party did not want to have 13 guests. So they would invite one more person to be at the table - a fourteener.

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Some people also believe the number 13 is bad because of a story from the Christian Bible. 13 was the number of people at Jesus’ last meal before he died. His follower, Judas, was the 13th person to arrive at the meal. Judas was the one who betrayed Jesus.

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These things made people mistrust the number 13. Many high-rise apartment buildings and hotels do not even have a 13th floor. Most of these buildings go from floor 12 to floor 14. Or they use a different letter or number for the 13th floor. Many airports also do not have a 13th gate. Hospitals and hotels often have no room number 13.

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But this fear of the number 13 is only one half of the fear of Friday the 13th. The other half of fearing Friday the 13th is a fear of the day Friday. The fear of Friday also comes from stories in history. Jesus was killed on a Friday. In the Christian Bible, and in other religious books, there is a story of a great flood that destroyed the earth. Some people say the flood rains started on Friday. Long ago, some people refused to start new projects on a Friday because of these stories.

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Sailors were especially worried about Fridays. They would often refuse to set sail on a Friday. Rena Dam tells an old story about sailors and Friday the 13th.

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“The British Navy wanted to stop sailors’ fear of Friday. They wanted to show them there was nothing to be worried about. So, they planned a new trip. They chose the sailors on a Friday. They launched the ship on a Friday. They named the ship the H.M.S. Friday. They even chose a man named James Friday to lead the trip as the Captain. Then, one Friday morning, the ship set sail for its first trip. It was never seen or heard from again.”

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No one knows if this story is true or not. But it may have made people even more afraid to do important things on a Friday.

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Even today, fear of Friday the 13th is common in Western cultures. Some research shows that more people go to the hospital on Friday the 13th. Some people refuse to even go to work. Some people try not to plan an important event like a wedding for Friday the 13th.

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Donald Dossey estimates that businesses lose about $800,000,000 each Friday the 13th. People will not fly on an airplane on Friday the 13th. They do not do all the business they would normally do. Many of these people may not even know the stories about the history of Friday the 13th. They have a superstitious fear of the day. That is, they fear it for no good reason.

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Superstitious fears are common in many cultures around the world. But they can be very unhealthy. They may stop people from living normal lives because they are so afraid. But people do not need to be afraid! Richard Wiseman is a psychologist from the University of Hertfordshire. He has some wise words for people who fear Friday the 13th:

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“People need to remember that they can create much of their own good and bad luck. And they should concentrate on being lucky by, for example, looking at the positive events in their lives. They can remember all the good things that have happened. And most of all, they can be prepared to take control of their future.”

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It is true that bad things can happen on Friday the 13th. But bad things can happen every day. And so can good things! Christians believe that the world is ordered by a loving God, not by luck. They know that they do not have to be afraid - not even on Friday the 13th.

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The writer of this program was Sara De Koster. The producer was Liz Waid. The voices you heard were from the United States. All quotes were adapted for this program and voiced by Spotlight. You can listen to this program again, and read it, on the internet at www.radioenglish.net. This program is called "Friday the 13th".

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You can also leave your comments on our website. Or you can email us at radio @ radioenglish . net. We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program. Goodbye.