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10/16/2009 10:41 AM

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By Amy Vogrig

This article has been read 222 times.

The word arachnophobia is derived from Greek – “arachne” means spider and “phobia” means fear. Arachne was the name of a beauteous Greek maiden, and the Greek myth tells the story of how the natural occurrence of spiders evolved into our world.

According to the myth, Arachne studied under the goddess Athena, having learned to weave, just as spiders do. The myth’s ending is a devastating one in that Arachne hanged herself because she lost a weaving competition to her previous mentor. To fix the wrongdoings of her competitor and apprentice, Athena gave Arachne a magical liquid that turned her into a spider, ergo keeping her weaving skills.

Researchers believe that the fear of spiders came about during the Middle Ages in Europe because illness associated with spiders was commonly found in classic literature. Spiders were believed to have carried the Black Plague and other life-threatening diseases.

The truth is that arachnids did not play any role in carrying diseases. While the anti-spider phenomenon was taking place in Europe, other non-European cultures considered spiders as good luck charms. People in the world have viewed spiders in many different ways because of their cultural environment.

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“The little creepy, crawliness of spiders is just so freaky, with all of their legs and the hairiness,” said Brittany Butera of Canonsburg. “It creeps me out just thinking about it. I am afraid that they are just going to sneak up on me and start crawling all over.” Butera has the tendency to freak out and have a “hero” destroy them for her in her time of need.

The most common treatment for a phobia of spiders is aversion to the situation. It is the easiest and most simple way of taking one’s mind off the issue.

Spiders, although a favorite decoration for Halloween, are very helpful for the environment. It is helpful to classify what kind of spider one comes across; however, many are nonthreatening and can help to capture other insects and pests found in one’s home.

For information on commonly encountered spiders in Pennsylvania, visit Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences Entomology online at their Web site http://ento.psu.edu/extension/factsheets/commonly-encountered-pennsylvania-spiders.

Aubrea Winfield contributed to this story.


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