Slender Man and supernatural belief in the digital age
Jeffrey Tolbert, assistant professor of American studies and folklore in Penn State Harrisburg’s School of Humanities, is a folklorist examining vernacular belief and the manifestations of folklore within popular culture. He is interested in how folklore interacts with media, such as video games and the horror genre of entertainment.
“When we look at science in the West as the only true form of knowledge, we tend to be dismissive of other kinds of knowledge that science can’t address,” Tolbert said.
Tolbert looks at spirituality and supernatural belief as other ways of “knowing,” specifying that “supernatural doesn’t mean ‘bad’ or ‘untrue;’ it just refers to these kinds of experiences that aren’t able to be quantified in a way that satisfies Western science.”
IMAGE: Penn State Harrisburg
Maria Enriquez, director of the play and assistant teaching professor of theater at the college, said that she faced difficulty over the summer in selecting a play for the fall production, as the pandemic made it more difficult to secure production rights to certain titles. She decided on “Machinal” in early August, having previously directed a production of the play.
“I was very familiar with this play,” she said. “As a director, you have to know the play forwards and backwards, do all of the necessary research, and understand the cultural context.” Enriquez already had this work under her belt, so this decision made the process easier to navigate during a pandemic.