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Halley Ramsey
Ms. Corbett
AP Literature
Fall 2011
The Misconceptions of Snakes
Throughout history, snakes have been mistaken as sinister creatures. From the Biblical
period to present day, the myths that cause people to be frightened by them still exist.
Particularly in children, fear is normal because of the different influences they come in contact
with, but through teaching a child to cope with their anxiety they may pass that familiarity on to
younger generations. A false understanding of the difference between fact and fiction dates as far
back to what religion has portrayed the species to be up to the current fanciful misunderstandings
of a snake‟s appearance, behavior, and the mistaken belief that all snakes are deadly.
Almost all fear and anxiety over snakes is rooted within religious text. In the opening
pages, the hatred of snakes was just as predominate as it is today. Due to religion being a major
factor in influencing people‟s lives, when scripture references snakes as evil and deceiving,
society assumes the worst in the species. Humans are too close-minded to separate fact from
fiction. In Genesis 3:14, “Then the Lord God said to the serpent, „because you have done this,
you are cursed more than all animals, domestic and wild. You will crawl on your belly, graveling
in the dust as long as you live.‟” In the passage, the Lord punishes the animal for his sin against
man, but the public [does] not see it as enough (Grisgonelle). Mankind continues to act

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contemptuous towards the species that they are slowly going to kill off due to their accusatory
attitudes.
Adults develop fear in children before the child is even exposed to what the parent or
family member is afraid of. Different actions and words used by society to describe snakes tend
to terrify their audiences. As a human matures, the objects and situations that frighten them
change but many struggle to confront ophidiophobia, the fear of snakes. Dr. Robin F. Goodman,
a clinical psychologist suggests that to alleviate an adolescent‟s phobia, “Don't push or force
[him or her], but use encouragement and praise for coping and approaching a feared situation”
(Goodman). Never put an individual in a position where they feel pressured to get near, touch, or
hold a snake. Doing so will only cause greater dismay.
Movies and books are another source that is highly responsible for misguiding people‟s
beliefs because generally they do not provide an accurate depiction of how members of the
species realistically behave and appear. Even educational children‟s books can be misleading.
Snakes Long Longer Longest informs kids “Some snakes are deadly…In no time, this nasty
snake could bite you, inject poison, and kill you. Yikes” (Pallotta and Wallach 17). The strong
negative language that is used in books that children can find in their school libraries promote
undeserved rejection. Movies such as Anacondas, Harry Potter, or even the Disney classic The
Jungle Book create pessimistic images for their viewers to contemplate. A childhood favorite The
Jungle Book generates images in kid‟s minds that Kaa, the reptile villain “nearly had the chance
to eat Mowgli before Baghreea ruined [his] meal” (Reitherman). To a naive child, a snake
attempting to make a meal out of the protagonist would not produce pleasant thoughts. Not only
did Kaa try to eat the little boy he also used hypnosis to pull him in to his clutches. Additionally,

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unrealistic cartoons fool adolescents in to believing this imaginary ridiculousness. Teenagers
enjoy the Harry Potter series, but on the topic of snakes specifically, the Chamber of Secrets
holds the “monster” that is referred to as the Basilisk, “a giant serpent, also known as the King of
Serpents” (Columbus). The basilisk has eyes with the power to instantly kill anything that looks
directly into them. If the victim is fortunate and happens to look indirectly at the serpent, they
will simply become petrified. During the teenage years identifying an improbable situation is no
longer difficult, but teens never fail to try and persuade younger generations to believe the
impractical. Adults also enjoy the thrill of watching an exaggerated thriller such as Anaconda,
which has them questioning the possibilities of the computer-generated snake realistically
existing. Tales of an impossibly large size and man-eating qualities are interesting, but not
common. The character Paul from the movie Anaconda describes an attack by saying, “They
strike, wrap around you. Hold you tighter than your true love. And you get the privilege, of
hearing your bones break before the power of embrace causes your veins to explode”
(Llosa). Paul‟s description is purposely disturbing in order to set a terroristic tone for the movie.
Frightening media encourages the formulation of ridiculous fabrications.
The human psyche is strongly prejudiced. Individuals evaluate appearance because it is
effortless and simple nature. “To the general public a snake is simply viewed as a
dangerous "slimy" cold-blooded abomination capable of inflicting serious bodily harm to its
unsuspecting human victim” ("Snake Facts"). People who are ignorant towards snakes presume
that their skin is cold and slimy. When in fact the skin of a snake is actually dry, scaly, and
sometimes smooth. Snakes scales are made of keratin, the same component as your finger nails
and hair, neither of which are slimy (Shackelford). Society often exaggerates things they dislike.
Snakes being one of the most despised animals, they are an easy target for misinformation. The

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size of the snake tends to get overdramatized in conversation, often due to fear. Fear creates
myths occasionally from factual observations, but more often than not misunderstanding and
imagination is to blame (Dorcas).
The mind can form misconceptions about creatures that are unfamiliar. An immense
number of people deem snakes as aggressive. They also consider the species insidious, with the
senseless idea that snakes “will…chase you until they have done their God-given duty to kill
you” (Steed). Due to the fact snakes are cold blooded, the speed required to chase a person
would be close to impossible to reach. Nearly all serpents are only capable of moving at around
six miles per hour, proving this illusion unreasonable (Dorcas). Humans are significantly larger
than snakes. An unfamiliar approaching object is just as intimidating to a snake as it would be for
a human being. The freighting reaction snakes exhibit is their self defense mechanism, they flee
to protect themselves. If a getaway is not available, snakes may try and approach the intruder in
hopes to urge them away. When a snake is threatened or provoked it will use its only form of
defense, its mouth, to care for its self. The best strategy for preventing an accident from
occurring is to disregard the animal. If the snake is not frightened it will do no harm. Snakes are
very independent creatures, and they are most comfortable in solitude. Injurious events are
apprehended by not disrupting their satisfaction.
Unfortunately, snakes are rejected because of the large variety of negative symbolic and
emotional misconceptions people attribute to them. No other species is the topic of as many
myths and misunderstandings as the snake. Known as an insidious enemy, people of all ages
dread the mere thought of an encounter with a snake. Reptiles do not deserve the lack of respect
that humans bestow upon them. Through education and understanding children will learn the
truth between fact and fiction, so that in the future they can pass the appreciation of the

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evolutionary wonders on to another generation. By doing so it is possible to eliminate the
misconceptions of a snake‟s appearance, behavior, and the mistaken belief that all snakes are
deadly. It is only then that individuals might realize that the foolish misjudgments of the complex
creature they once thought to be true are in fact preposterous.

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Works Cited
Columbus, Chris, dir. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. “By J. K. Rowling”. Warner
Bros., 2002. Film.
Dorcas, M. “Amphibian and Reptile Myths.” Amphibians and Reptiles of North Carolina.
Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Class at Davidson College , Spring 1999. Web. 14
Nov. 2011. <http://www.herpsofnc.org/herpcons.html>.
Goodman, Robin F. “Fears.” NYU Child Study Center. N.p., 2011. Web. 15 Nov. 2011.
<http://www.education.com/reference/article/Ref_Fears/?page=2>.
Grisgonelle, Troy. Weblog post. Life in the goldfish bowl. WordPress.com, 27 Feb. 2007. Web.
14 Nov. 2011. <http://troygrisgonelle.wordpress.com/2007/02/27/misconception-3-the-
serpent-in-the-garden-of-eden-was-a-snake-genesis-314-2/>.
Life Application Study Bible. Wheaton, Illinois: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 2004. Print.
New Living Translation.
Llosa, Luis, dir. Anaconda. Columbia Pictures Corporation, 1997. Film.
Pallotta, Jerry, and Van Wallach. Snakes Long Longer Longest . Illus. Shennen Bersani. New
York: Scholastic Inc. , 2006. Print.
Reitherman, Wolfgang, dir. The Jungle Book. Walt Disney Productions , 1967. Film.
Shackelford, Todd K., Robert Kurzban, and Geoffrey A. Landis. “Fact or Fiction.” Center for
Science and Reason. NASA Glenn Research Center, 2009. Web. 14 Nov. 2011.
<http://centerforscienceandreason.weebly.com/cleveland-herpetology-initiative.html>.

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“Snake Facts.” Perrys Bridge Reptile Park. N.p., 2009. Web. 14 Nov. 2011.
<http://www.snakes-uncovered.com/Snake_Facts.html>.
Weblog post. Common Misconceptions and Myths About Reptiles. Vash Steed , 28 Sept.
2008. Web. 14 Nov. 2011. <http://scienceray.com/biology/human-biology/common-
misconceptions-and-myths-about-reptiles/>.