Brianna Falls
Professor Kuykendall
Intro into Communication 140 - Section 3
10/09/2017
Title: The Evolution of Halloween
General purpose: To inform
Specific purpose: By the end of this speech, the audience shall understand the original purpose and transitions that Halloween has gone through over the course of history.
Thesis statement: Today I will share with you the origins, cultural effects and transformation of Halloween throughout history.
Introduction:
Do you view Halloween as just another tradition made to reward kids? Rather do you enjoy the time of celebration yourself?
You may have based some of these opinions on what Halloween represents however, this can be manipulated due to religious groups or friendly opinions.
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While New England was against Halloween due to the ruling of Protestants, It found acceptance in Maryland and various other colonies that formed American Halloween traditions.
Samhain had begun to change names to Hallow's’ Eve which later brought about the name Halloween within newer colonies, in which strayed more from the Protestant rule. Some of the earliest demonstrations of Halloween included “play parties”. “Play parties” consisted of harvest celebrations that started the telling of ghost stories. This overall began influencing Irish and English colonies to take on the alternative tradition of wearing costumes and making scary stories come to life.
Transition: Halloween has transitioned through the course of history to the family-friendly outing we celebrate today.
Some common Halloween traditions are seen today as, revolving around the idea of “trick or treating”, in doing so we celebrate Halloween in amusement rather than using it for a specific purpose. Americans looked to Irish and English traditions when it came to the practices that went on during trick or treating.
During the second 19th century, individuals migrated to America with little to call their own.
Trick or treating began as these immigrants begged for food or money on Halloween, using it as an excuse for their neighbors help. Another belief that came about during this time, involved superstitions of
Halloween: the holiday where as kids we couldn’t wait to go door to door to achieve the golden goal of a full bag of candy. Halloween soon turns into a question mark for teens; in an instant, there is a change of when it is ‘appropriate’ to go trick-or-treating and when you should just move on. Are you the one who thinks Trick-or-treating is lame or the one who still walks around your neighborhood every year -- no matter how many dirty looks you may get. What teenagers decide to do on Halloween varies: going to a party, passing out candy, staying home are a few popular options. Throughout my highschool experience I have been able to witness and experience all different types of halloteens, each with their own traits.
First is the history of Halloween all according to a 2017 article from LiveScience by Benjamin Radford. Around 2,000 years ago in the United Kingdom Ireland, and the northern part of France the people called the Celts started this holiday. They called it Samhain back then instead of Halloween. November 1st marked their new year which resulted in them celebrating on October 31st. The New Year brought wintertime which to them meant death. On the night before winter which was October 31st, they believe that the spirits of the Dead came back. They wore costumes, put on bonfires, burned crops and sacrificed animals. When the Romans
Thesis Statement: How Halloween has evolved from what it once was to what is now.
Halloween is an appreciation of the afterlife and the survival after death. Literal meaning is the night before All Hallows' Day (aka All Saints' Day). Day of the Dead is the remembrance and celebration of friends and family who are dead.
Transition: Halloween was not recognized as a holiday in the US until the late 19th century
The catholic, mexican holiday, Day of the Dead and the very westernized holiday Halloween may seem very alike with their traditions and themes, but in retrospect, they are very different and have very different origins. Halloween and Day of the Dead happen at the same time, end of October and beginning of November. The background of these two holidays are very spiritual and they have an interesting story of how the Halloween and day of the dead was created. In this essay, I will be talking about the how Halloween and Day of the Dead are celebrated , the origins of Day of the Dead and Halloween, and decorations and celebrations of Day of the Dead and Halloween. Both Day of the Dead and Halloween deal with spooky traditions but they are very different than the stereotypical thought that they are just weird, scary holidays but after reading some background to these two holidays, many people realize there is a lot more to Halloween and Day of the Dead.
Celebrated on October 31st, the festival of Halloween (also known as Samhain) includes dressing in costume, trick or treating, and decorating. Tracing back in history Halloween is considered to be one of America’s oldest holidays, and is still celebrated today. Halloween is believed to come from Celtic rituals. Celtics believed the cosmological myth of Saman (Lord of the Dead). Saman would call on the souls of the people that passed away that year to take them to the afterlife or underworld; the Celtic underworld identifies with the Christian Hell. In order for the spirits to believe they were on their own, the living would wear costumes and mask their identities, along with fairies, witches and demons. This functions as a cosmological myth because it provides a creation story and framework in which this universe occupies and includes many other realms of existence. Another tradition that followed was to give food to the Saman, to persuade him to be more tolerant while he judged the dead ancestors of the living, which he would chose to take to the underworld. In this essay I will further investigate what the origins of Halloween consist of and how it offers reasoning for trick-or-treating. Also I will examine how trick-or-treating, which is still continued today, is connected to ancient Celtic festivals.
The catholic holiday, Day of the Dead and the holiday Halloween may seem very alike with their traditions and themes, but, they are very different and have very different origins. Halloween and Day of the Dead happen at the same time, end of October and beginning of November. The background of these two holidays are very spiritual and they have an interesting story of how the Halloween and day of the dead was created. In this essay, I will be talking about the how Halloween and Day of the Dead are celebrated , the origins of Day of the Dead and Halloween, and decorations and celebrations of Day of the Dead and Halloween. Both Day of the Dead and Halloween deal with spooky traditions but they are very different than the stereotypical thought that they are just weird, scary holidays but after reading some background to these two holidays, many people realize there is a lot more to Halloween and Day of the Dead.
These traditions were connected with the lower class at the time and so they were also connected with crime, rowdy behavior and other stereotypes the upper class believed about the poor. Of course people who were part of the upper class did not like this and by the 1870s they had turned Halloween into a holiday to make children into “good American citizens.” Halloween was now targeted towards children and because of that families were encouraged to celebrate it at home where food, games and other entertainment would have adult supervision. By doing this children were expected to understand the values society holds, while also learning about their proper gender roles. At this point we are able to start to see how Halloween became so heavily influenced by gender roles/stereotypes and how that led to the over-sexualized holiday it is now. Trick or treating and wearing Halloween costumes became popular in America around the 1920s and by the 1950s children’s costumes were extremely reflective of their sex. (Bannatyne.) Girls were dressed as princesses and angels while boys were army men, hobos and so on. However, as cute and adorable as this is or may have been, this creates a very thick line between genders. When that line is present it is alluding to children that
C. Thesis Statement: Going from what the meaning of Halloween is in America today and looking back at it’s roots, it has evolved dramatically. And just recently we have been seeing a comeback from one of those roots, but do we know it’s real cultural significance?
There’s smiles on everyone’s faces, cheers fill the air, and excitement is bursting from its seams. There are continuous ways and examples of how a celebration can change someone’s emotions, which can vary greatly. The anticipation and joy that celebrations bring are what make them renown and familiar with everyone throughout the entire world. Christmas and Halloween are just simple examples that bring the well-known reactions everyone looks forward to. Christmas is the so called, “best time of the year,” and Halloween is known to be, “spookified fun and unique.” Christmas and Halloween are similar and different in many ways including: their history, their traditions, and their meanings throughout cultures.
In recent years, this holiday has been gaining more and more attention in the US. However, the growth in popularity hasn’t necessarily led to a growth in understanding of the holiday. Some people still associate it with the incredibly commercialized Halloween, but it is much more meaningful than that for those that celebrate it.
Halloween, a holiday many of us know and love. A day when we celebrate together with our friends, family, neighbors and community. We go from door to door collecting candy, sweets and much more, racing on who can approach the most houses or who can collect the most candy in the group. It is all fun and games when trick or treating, and it has evolved into so much more than from the past. As years pass by, we celebrate this holiday annually, but of everything we’ve taken in from being children through our teen and adult years, do we truly know the background of Halloween Day?
Borrowing from Irish and English traditions, Americans began to dress up in costumes and go house to house asking for food or money. Over time this tradition turned in to today modern “trick or treating”. In the late 1800s, America turned Halloween into a holiday more about community and neighborly get-togethers than about ghosts, and witchcraft. As the centuries changed Halloween parties for both children and adults became the most common way to celebrate the day. Parties focused on games, foods of the season and festive costumes. Parents were encouraged by newspapers and community leaders to take anything “frightening” or “grotesque” out of Halloween celebrations. Because of these efforts, Halloween lost most of its superstitious and religious overtones by the beginning of the twentieth century (Kammen).
Furthermore, there are many traditional rituals and superstitions associated with Halloween. Since the ancient Celts thought the nonliving roamed the earth, they created costumes out of animal pelts to ward off evil spirits. Fortunetelling and the utilization of large bonfires for sacrifices and purification were also early customs. After the Christianization of the holiday to commemorate saints and martyrs, the same festivities, bonfires, and guising remained, but October 31st was renamed All-Hallows Eve. This inevitably turned into Halloween. Similar to European traditions, America’s Halloween has also evolved throughout the years. Halloween’s recognition was originally restricted in colonial America due to its non-Christian beliefs and practices, and it was practiced at a more local level. According to an online source, “The first celebrations included ‘play parties,’ public events held to celebrate the harvest, where neighbors would share stories of the dead and tell each other’s fortunes, dance, and sing” (“History of Halloween”). Festivities were akin to European traditions, but also included ghost stories and pranking. Beginning in the twentieth century, Halloween