Essay On Wendigo Legend

An urban legend is a story passed from person to person that some people may believe is true. They range from plausible to completely ridiculous. These stories often teach a moral lesson, in the case of the above picture, that of a wendigo, the lesson is don’t resort to cannibalism. These stories also tend to play on emotions, in the case of the wendigo the targeted emotion is fear; in the case of the nude surprise party the main emotion was embarrassment. Urban legends exist as a way for people to give advice in such a way as to be mutually entertaining. Many urban legends are also rather well known; chances are if someone were to tell an urban legend to a group of people at least one of those people has heard some variation of said legend. The legend of the Wendigo fits my definition nicely as it teaches a moral lesson, plays on emotions, is rather well know thanks to several media outlets, and this legend is generally passed down in such a way as to convince the next generation to avoid taboo practices. …show more content…
Consuming human flesh results in normal everyday people becoming monsters with uncontrollable hunger. Once someone becomes a Wendigo there is no turning back, this highlights the fact that once a deed has been performed it cannot be undone. Having the moral of the story be this clear made this picture my first choice when considering one that captured my definition of urban legends. I considered several pictures but continuously found myself returning to this one, I always felt rather strong emotions when I heard this legend, it fascinated me and ultimately ensured my interest in the subject of urban