January 25th · Cultural Insight
Surva Festival
The mask of the Kukeri. In Bulgaria, thousands of people dress in terrifying goat-skin masks and copper bells to scare winter away. This lesson explores the power of folk horror aesthetics and how ancient agrarian communities used fear to cope with the unpredictability of nature.
SPEAKING LESSONB1 / B2Discussion · Vocabulary · Activities
Speaking Discussion
- Why do we find scary costumes so entertaining during a festival?
- Can a shared story (like scaring away winter) keep a community together for 500 years?
- Is the winter in your life something you can scare away, or something you must endure?
- Should these rituals be kept exactly as they were in the 1700s, or should they be modernised?
- What is the most terrifying tradition you have ever seen?
Activity 1: The Mask Designer
The Task: You are building a kukeri mask. List 3 organic materials you would use and explain why each one would terrify a winter demon in 3 sentences.
Activity 2: Rapid Fire Debate
Is fear a better motivator than hope?