Mythological
Cat Stories Introduction
By Cristina Mejia
Have you ever
thought about that oh-so famous myth as a black cat walks past you?
Whether the myths are about good cats or bad cats, evil or nice, every
culture has their own myths about cats. Some believe cats bring good or
bad luck, while others believe vampires were disguised as cats at
Halloween.
There are many different types of cat myths. A common belief is about a
cat sucking out the breath of a newborn because it was jealous. Another
well-known story in America is about what it means if a black cat that
crosses your path. If a cat crosses from the left, it is to bring bad
luck and if it crosses from the right, it is to bring good luck. In
some countries, a white cat can mean bad luck or misfortune. These are
just a few stories I've found! Most of these stories have been told for
entertainment.
The story of the cat sucking the baby's breath may have just been a way
for parents to get out of buying a child a pet. This has even been seen
in some movies. Have you ever seen Stephen King’s Cat’s Eye? It had the
story of a cat stealing a little girl’s breath when in turned out that
it was really a little troll and not the cat.
As for my story telling technique, I will write this as a frametale. I
like the idea of a Grandpa cat telling the story to his young
Grand-kittens, explaining that he is running out of lives because of
the horrible stories and rumors people have been telling about cats.
My topic fits in with the course because it has a lot to do with tales
that have been passed down through generations and they are stories
that could or could not be true, much like some of the myths we read
about today. I have chosen this topic because I have always been a “cat
person” and I think they are wonderful creatures. I have always heard
these famous stories about cats, but where did they come from?
As the grand-kittens arrive for the weekly summer vacation, they
are more excited than ever to see their Grandpa Willie. Every summer,
Grandpa Willie tells his famous tales of why he is slowly losing his
nine lives. Even though he retells these stories every year, the four
little grand-kittens can’t get enough…. Grandpa Willie will start
telling his stories with the famous Bad
Luck Cats.
