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| The Hook |
The “Hook Man” story, is an urban legend that started as a belief in the United States around 1950’s and spread worldwide. The urban legend spread from United States to England, Scotland, and to other countries around the world. This urban legend is just a cautionary tale or horror story for entertainment other than a believable story that actually happened in reality. The Hook by David Emery, states that the moral message of the “Hook Man” is to convince young teens to believe the quote: “Sex is naughty. Bad boys and girls will be punished!” Warning teenage couples to not let their hormones lead them to a deserted area, where they realize they have made a mistake in the end.
The original tale starts off with a teenage boy, who takes his date to Lovers’ Lane to make-out. Lovers’ Lane was considered a dark and deserted area, which was a perfect spot to make-out with no interrupts. He turned on the radio to play some music to set the mood, while making out with the girl. All of a sudden, the radio announcer said that a mentally ill patient escaped from the mental institution, and is known as a convicted murder with a hook instead of a right hand. The girl is frightened, and wants to leave immediately because the institution he escaped from was close to Lovers’ Lane. The girl started to hear creepy noises outside of the car, however the boy figured she was just running wild with her imagination. The boy kept insisting for them to stay, but the girl wanted to leave right away. In anger, the boy sped off taking the girl home. When they arrived at the girl’s house, the boy went to open her door, and froze in a state of shock. A bloody hook was hanging on the door handle on the girl’s side of the door. One version of the tale, states that the car would not start, so the boy left the girl in car to find help. The girl kept hearing noises on top of the car. After a long time of waiting, she notices that her boyfriend has not returned yet. The next morning, a state police trooper rescues her and told her not to look back, however she looks back anyway. She looked back to see her boyfriend’s body dangling upside down from a tree over the car.
The legend of “The Hook” has spread worldwide, but the interpretation of the legend is often inconsistent. The tale is known to always include a hook and an automobile. As published in Encyclopedia of Urban Legends, this urban legend is believed to warn young teenage couples not to park in unknown areas, dangers of a mental ill or disabled person, and an example of why parents’ are concerned about their children going out by themselves.
Works Citied:
"The Boyfriend's Death". Encyclopedia of Urban Legends. JanHaroldBrunvand. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, 2012. Credo Reference. Web. 11 Oct 2015.
"The Hook". Encyclopedia of Urban Legends. JanHaroldBrunvand. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, 2012. Credo Reference. Web. 12 Oct 2015.
Emery, David. “The Hook” Urbanlegends. about.com. N.d. Web. 12 Oct. 2015.
Emery, David. “The Hookman’s Hook” Photograph. Pinterest. Web. 21 Oct. 2015
Wilson, William. “Hook Man (Urban Legend)” Byu.edu. Brigham Young University. 15 Jan. 2014. Web. 21 Oct. 2015.
Links for further research:
Cruel, Kevin. “The Hook Man” YouTube. YouTube. 6 Jan. 2014. Web. 19 Oct. 2015https://youtu.be/L2oZN5jzXkY
This link above talks about the original story of the hook man in Pennsylvania.
Idealsoft Blog.it. “Campfire Legends - The Hookman (free full game)” YouTube. YouTube.
6 May. 2012. Web. 21 Oct. 2015https://youtu.be/eWg6pP69Hms
This link above is a video of the video game based off the Hook Man.
S.E. Schlosser. “The Hook” Americanfolklore.net. 13 Dec. 2014. Web. 21 Oct. 2015http://americanfolklore.net/folklore/2009/10/the_hook.html
This link above gives a descriptive story of the Hook Man.
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