6 Famous Curses and Their Origins六個著名詛咒及起源

貝姬·利特爾 鄧安兒

Throughout history， people have promoted stories of curses for a variety of reasons. To sports fans， curses can help explain their favorite teams loss. When a cause of death is misunderstood， curses can provide an explanation. For an imperial nation， curses can betray anxiety about being punished for colonizing and taking artifacts. And sometimes， curses come about because someone just wanted to make up a story.

Here are some prominent curses in history.

1. King Tuts curse （and other ‘mummys curses）

In February 1923， a British archaeological team opened the tomb of Tutankhamun， or “King Tut，” an Egyptian pharaoh during the 14th century B.C. Two months later， when the teams sponsor died from a bacterial infection， British newspapers claimed without evi-dence that hed died because of “King Tuts curse.” Whenever subsequent members of the team died， the media dredged up1 the alleged curse again.

King Tuts curse and other famous “mummys curses” were invented by Europeans and Americans while their countries removed priceless artifacts from Egypt. After the Titanic sank in 1912， some newspapers even promoted a conspiracy theory that the ship had sunk because of a “mummys curse.”

Though its not clear how many people actually took these “curses” seriously， these stories became extremely popular subjects for horror movies like The Mummy （1932） and its many iterations2， as well as comedies like Mummys Boys （1936） and Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy （1955）.

2. The curse of the Polish Kings tomb

In 1973， a group of archaeologists opened the tomb of the 15th-century Polish king Casimir IV Jagiellon in Kraków， Poland. As with the opening of King Tuts tomb 50 years before， European media hyped up3 the event， and the researchers involved allegedly joked that they were risking a curse on the tomb by opening it.

When some of the team members began to die shortly after， some media outlets4 speculated it was due to a curse. Later， experts discovered traces of deadly fungi inside the tomb that can cause lung illnesses when breathed in. This was the cause of their deaths.

3. The Hope Diamond curse

In the 1660s， the French gem dealer Jean-Baptiste Tavernier purchased a large diamond of unknown origin during a trip to India. Yet by the 20th century， a myth had sprung up5 in the United States and Europe that Tavernier had stolen the diamond from the statue of a Hindu goddess. The newspapers and jewelers who spread this story claimed the diamond was cursed and brought bad luck to those who owned it.

By 1839， the diamond supposedly ended up with Henry Philip Hope， a Dutch collector based in London and the source of the stones modern name6—the Hope Diamond. Sometime after this， European and American newspapers began claiming that the Hope Diamond carried a curse.

The French jeweler Pierre Cartier reportedly used these stories to enhance the diamonds value when he sold it to American heiress Evelyn Walsh McLean in the early 1910s. After she died， it went to a U.S. jewelry company， which exhibited it before donating it in 1958 to the Smithsonian Institution， where it remains today.

4. The curse of Tippecanoe （or Tecumsehs curse）

In the mid-20th century， U.S. media began to note a pattern in presidential deaths. Starting with William Henry Harrison and ending with John F. Kennedy， every 20 years the country elected a president who would die in office.

Harrison， the first president to die in office， was elected in 1840. The other presidents who died in office include Abraham Lincoln， elected 1860 （and 1864）; James A. Garfield， elected 1880; William McKinley， elected 1900; Warren G. Harding， elected 1920; Franklin D. Roosevelt， elected 1940 （as well as 1932， 1936 and 1944）; and JFK， elected 1960. The only president between Harrison and JFK to fall outside of this pattern is Zachary Taylor， who was elected in 1848 and died in 1850.

In the 1930s， Ripleys Believe It or Not7 claimed the “pattern” was due to a curse Shawnee8 Chief Tecumseh placed on Harrison and future presidents after Harrisons troops defeated Tecumsehs at the Battle of Tippecanoe in 1811. （Tecumseh died two years later in another battle against Harrisons troops.） This story likely originated with non-Native Americans and bears a similarity to other “curses” in U.S. books and movies about disturbing Native burial grounds.

5. The curse of Macbeth

There are lots of superstitions in the world of theatre. Its bad luck to wish actors good luck， hence the reason people instead tell them to “break a leg.” And its also bad luck to say the word “Macbeth” in the theatre except during a performance of the Shakespeare play. Supposedly， this is because tragedy has historically befallen productions9 of the play. In reality， these stories are a mix of fabrication and selective evidence-picking.

The legend about the play seems to have started with Max Beerbohm， a British cartoonist and critic born in the 1870s， nearly three centuries after Macbeths first performance. Beerbohm—possibly annoyed that Macbeth was such a popular play—made up a story that the first actor cast to play Lady Macbeth10 died right before the plays opening night.

Since then， this story has become part of a myth that the play is cursed and has brought bad luck to those involved with it. Though there have been real accidents during runs of Macbeth over its more than 400-year history， these accidents gain more attention than accidents during other plays because of the supposed “curse.”

6. The billy goat curse on the Chicago Cubs

As with theatre， there are also a lot of superstitions in the world of sports. One of the most famous is the supposed “billy goat curse” on the Chicago Cubs11.

In 1945， a tavern owner named William “Billy Goat” Sianis was reportedly prevented from bringing his pet goat， Murphy， into Chicagos Wrigley Field to see the Cubs play the Detroit Tigers in the World Series. Supposedly， Sianis put a curse on the Cubs， saying they wouldnt win this or any other World Series12 ever again.

Before this， the Cubs had only won the World Series twice before， in 1907 and 1908. When they lost the World Series in 1945， the curse gained credence. In 2016， when the Cubs won the World Series for the first time in over a century， U.S. media promoted the idea that the curse was broken.

The billy goat curse is similar to the curse of the Bambino， which supposedly began when the Boston Red Sox traded Babe Ruth13 in 1919 and ended when the team won the World Series in 2004. Theres also rapper Lil Bs curse on Kevin Durant， which Lil B issued in a 2011 tweet and lifted in 2017 in another tweet. When the Golden State Warriors won the NBA finals that year with Durant earning MVP， sports media jokingly （or not？） proclaimed that Lil B had helped by lifting the curse.? ? ? ? ? ? ? ■

縱觀歷史，人們之所以傳揚詛咒故事，原因不盡相同。對體育迷來說，他們最喜愛的隊伍失利了，詛咒可以解釋一二。要是死因受到曲解，詛咒倒是個說法。帝國主義殖民海外，掠奪他國文物，詛咒會暴露他們害怕受到懲罰的焦慮。而有時候，詛咒的出現(xiàn)僅僅是因為有人想編個故事。

以下是歷史上一些著名詛咒。

1. 圖坦卡蒙詛咒（以及其他“木乃伊詛咒”）

1923年2月，一支英國考古隊掘開了圖坦卡蒙的陵墓。圖坦卡蒙，亦稱“圖特王”，是公元前14世紀(jì)的一位埃及法老。陵墓開啟兩個月后，考古隊贊助人就因細(xì)菌感染死亡。一些英國報紙毫無證據(jù)地宣稱，他死于“圖坦卡蒙詛咒”。之后，這支考古隊但凡有成員離世，媒體就會翻出這一所謂詛咒。

圖特王詛咒以及其他有名的“木乃伊詛咒”，是由歐洲人和美國人炮制的。當(dāng)時，他們的國家從埃及搬走了不少無價的文物珍寶。1912年，泰坦尼克號沉沒后，一些報紙甚至推出了陰謀論，聲稱船難發(fā)生是“木乃伊詛咒”所致。

雖然并不清楚有多少人真把這些“詛咒”當(dāng)回事兒，但這些詛咒故事成了極受歡迎的恐怖片題材，如《木乃伊》（1932年）和后來多部翻拍作品;同時還有喜劇題材，如《木乃伊總動員》（1936年）和《兩傻捉尸記》（1955年）。

2. 波蘭國王陵墓的詛咒

1973年，在波蘭克拉科夫市，一群考古學(xué)家打開了15世紀(jì)波蘭國王卡齊米日四世雅蓋隆的陵墓。同50年前圖特王的陵墓發(fā)掘時一樣，歐洲媒體將這件事情炒作了一番。據(jù)稱，參與掘開陵墓的研究人員也打趣說，他們打開陵墓可是冒著被詛咒的危險。

不久之后，考古團隊的一些成員死亡，一些媒體懷疑是詛咒之故。后來，專家在陵墓中發(fā)現(xiàn)了微量致命真菌，人一旦吸入會感染肺病。這才是考古隊員的死因所在。

3. 希望鉆石的詛咒

1660年代，法國珠寶商讓-巴蒂斯特·塔韋尼耶在印度旅行時買下了一顆來歷不明的大鉆石。然而，到了20世紀(jì)，美國和歐洲突然出現(xiàn)了一個傳聞：這顆鉆石是塔韋尼耶從一尊印度教女神的神像上盜走的。散播這一說法的報紙和珠寶商聲稱，這顆鉆石被下了詛咒，會給它的主人帶來厄運。

1839年，該鉆石據(jù)說落到了亨利·菲利普·霍普手中。鉆石現(xiàn)在的名字——“希望鉆石”，便源自這位住在倫敦的荷蘭收藏家。此后，歐洲和美國的報紙開始宣稱，“希望鉆石”帶有詛咒。

據(jù)報道，1910年代早期，法國珠寶商皮埃爾·卡蒂埃利用這些故事抬高鉆石身價，將該鉆石出售給美國一位女繼承人伊夫琳·沃爾什·麥克萊恩。麥克萊恩死后，鉆石流轉(zhuǎn)到了一家美國珠寶公司，這家公司把它作為展品展出，1958年將其贈與史密森學(xué)會?！跋Ｍ@石”一直安放于此，直到如今。

4. 蒂珀卡努詛咒（又稱特庫姆塞詛咒）

20世紀(jì)中期，美國媒體開始注意到其多位總統(tǒng)的死亡遵循著一種模式。這一模式從威廉·亨利·哈里森開始，至約翰·F.肯尼迪結(jié)束，每隔20年，就有一位總統(tǒng)在任期內(nèi)死去。

哈里森是第一位在任期去世的總統(tǒng)，他于1840年當(dāng)選。其他在任期間離世的總統(tǒng)包括阿伯拉罕·林肯（1860年當(dāng)選，1864年連任）、詹姆斯·A.加菲爾德（1880年當(dāng)選）、威廉·麥金利（1900年當(dāng)選）、沃倫·G.哈定（1920年當(dāng)選）、富蘭克林·D.羅斯福（1932年當(dāng)選，1936年、1940年及1944年連任）、約翰·F.肯尼迪（1960年當(dāng)選）。從哈里森到肯尼迪，扎卡里·泰勒是唯一不符合這一模式的總統(tǒng)，他于1848年當(dāng)選，1850年逝世。

1930年代，《里普利先生的信不信由你》一書聲稱，這個“死亡模式”是詛咒所致。1811年，蒂珀卡努之戰(zhàn)中，哈里森率領(lǐng)軍隊打敗肖尼人首領(lǐng)特庫姆塞的部隊，特庫姆塞便對哈里森和未來的美國總統(tǒng)下了詛咒。（兩年后，特庫姆塞在另一場對陣哈里森軍隊的戰(zhàn)斗中死去）。這個詛咒故事可能源于非美洲原住民，與美國書籍和電影中描述的其他“詛咒”頗為相似，那些書籍和電影講述了令人驚懼的原住民墓地的故事。

5. 麥克白詛咒

戲劇界有許多迷信說法。對演員說good luck（祝你好運）不吉利，因此人們反而會說break a leg（字面意為：祝你摔斷腿）。除了莎劇表演以外，在劇院里說“麥克白”這個詞也不吉利。據(jù)說，歷史上制作《麥克白》這部戲劇時多有不幸發(fā)生，所以才有了這一迷信。而事實上，這些說法都是有選擇地?fù)诫s佐證編造而來。

有關(guān)《麥克白》的傳說似乎始于馬克斯·比爾博姆。他是一位英國漫畫家兼評論員，生于1870年代，出生時距離《麥克白》首次上演已近300年。許是因為不滿《麥克白》太受歡迎，比爾博姆就騙人說，最開始被選中飾演麥克白夫人的男演員，就是在該劇首演之夜前死掉的。

自那以后，這番鬼話便成了《麥克白》荒誕傳聞的一部分;該傳聞聲稱這部戲劇受到了詛咒，給參與此劇制作的人帶來了厄運。《麥克白》已有400多年的演出歷史，這期間的確發(fā)生過一些事故，但由于這一所謂“詛咒”，這些事故比其他戲劇的意外事件更受關(guān)注。

6. 芝加哥小熊隊的公山羊詛咒

跟戲劇界一樣，體育界也有著許多迷信，其中最為人所熟知的是傳聞中芝加哥小熊隊的“公山羊詛咒”。

據(jù)傳聞，1945年，酒館老板威廉·西亞尼斯，外號“公山羊”，在進(jìn)入芝加哥瑞格利球場去觀看小熊隊在世界大賽中與底特律老虎隊的對戰(zhàn)時，被禁止攜帶他的寵物山羊墨菲入場。據(jù)說，西亞尼斯詛咒小熊隊輸?shù)舯緦帽荣?，還詛咒該隊從此再也不能拿下世界大賽的冠軍。

在此之前，小熊隊僅在1907年和1908年取得過世界大賽的冠軍。小熊隊在1945年的世界大賽中鎩羽而歸，這個詛咒的可信度隨之增加。2016年，小熊隊在一百多年后再次贏得世界大賽冠軍，美國媒體便加大宣傳，稱詛咒被破。

公山羊詛咒跟圣嬰詛咒類似。據(jù)傳，圣嬰詛咒始于1919年波士頓紅襪隊將貝比·魯斯交易至其他隊伍之時，直至2004年紅襪隊取得世界大賽冠軍，該詛咒才成為過去式。另外，說唱歌手Lil B也曾詛咒凱文·杜蘭特。2011年Lil B在推特上發(fā)布這一詛咒，2017年他寫下另一條推文解除了詛咒。同年，金州勇士隊奪得美國職業(yè)籃球聯(lián)賽總冠軍，同時杜蘭特榮膺美國職業(yè)籃球聯(lián)賽最有價值球員獎，體育媒體開玩笑地（或者沒有？）說Lil B解除了詛咒，所以這次勝利也有他的一份功勞。 ? ? □

（譯者為“《英語世界》杯”翻譯大賽獲獎?wù)撸?/p>