I know I always say that it doesn’t really matter if a curse is real so long as the curse manifests (because curses are stories and stories are histories, whether or not the histories are real) but it doesn’t get much more on the nose than an allegedly cursed painting of polar bears destroying the remains of an ill-fated expedition
look at this thing
Man Proposes, God Disposes. 1864. Oil on canvas.
It’s a grisly scene of an arctic expedition being ravaged by polar bears. There’s blood. there’s human bones. There’s ice and shredded tatters. There’s an implicit commentary on imperialism. And yet the curse has absolutely jack all to do with any of that
The actual curse is that the painting is housed in the royal holloway, university of london, and anyone who takes a test in front of it is destined to Fail that test unless the painting is covered. Is there actually a curse? doesn’t matter. no one wants to sit in front of the painting. What if they fail? What if they’re eaten by a polar bear? Untenable. can’t risk it. they cover the painting.
to top it all off, the longer the curse goes, the more curses manifest. stories crop up about why it’s cursed. fictitious students are created only to be killed by polar bears. urban legends start up, spark, die, reignite. it’s exam season. the polar bears are covered up. students explain why this must be done to other students who then pass it on others, who then make up new curses.
it doesn’t matter if the curse is real or not so long as the students are still cursed