Poltergeists (German, literal "loud ghost") are paranormal phenomena that cause physical disturbances, including moving/levitating objects, as well as creating loud noises. Poltergeists may also cause items to go missing and reappear in unlikely places. There are various other explanations for apparent poltergeist activity, ranging from other paranormal phenomena to natural phenomena, as well as cases of fraud.
Poltergeists can be tied to people, as well as locations.
Experiences[]
The comment section on this post from Living Library Blog contains many people's accounts of their experiences with poltergeist activity.
The Enfield Poltergeist[]
This instance appears to be a mix of hoaxes and genuine paranormal activity.
In August of 1977, Janet Hodgson, an eleven-year-old girl, began witnessing strange activity in her house. The bed shook. Her and her sister saw furniture move around inexplicably. When the mother began to hear knocking around (outside and inside) the house, she called the police. The officer who arrived claimed to witness a chair floating and moving on its own. In a series of later incidents, marbles and Lego pieces began moving around on their own. Similar phenomena continued to occur over the coming months, appearing to end in 1979.
Some instances of phenomena were faked. This included Janet bending spoons and being thrown about, apparently to make sure that the incidents continued to gain attention.[1]
Explanations[]
This is a list of other things that portray the same symptoms of poltergeist activity.
- Psychic phenomena, including telekinesis. Some people have pointed to these instances being manifestations of teenage stress.
- Natural phenomena, including carbon monoxide poisoning, underwater currents, and/or electrical phenomena.