Personal Narrative: The Myth Of Santa Claus

However in the over-exaggerated movie it included the reason behind the Grinch's hatred of Christmas; saying it was because the kids used to tease him when he was little, until the day he

We all know what Christmas is. At least I hope so. You may not celebrate it, but you know what it is. Some have Hanukkah and others have Kwanzaa. Hanukkah is for the Jews who celebrate the victory of the Maccabees over the larger Syrian army. While with Kwanzaa, people light a kinara and give gifts to each other. This takes place over seven days. Isn't that nice? Seven days of celebration! Christmas however… Is a single day. With Christmas, the children believe in a big, old, jolly man in a red suit called “Santa Clause”. On Christmas night he comes down your chimney, leaves presents and take the milk and cookies. For one thing, that's breaking and entering and for a second thing, he leaves unknown gifts?! You don't know whats in there! It

We all believe in the tooth fairy, the boogeyman, and Santa Claus when we’re little. Well, for me it was a family of ghosts with the skin color of blue and blood dripping down their mouths and if they get me, they eat me. The children ghosts eat more than the adults; therefore, they are the scarier. Another of my worst childhood experiences was with Dokkaebi, or goblins. My mother carved melons into claws and feet and boiled them saying they were goblins. I was scarred for life at the age of four. The “Death of Santa Claus” by Charles Webb is a poem about a not so Jolly Santa and his not so merry band suffering because of a nonbeliever and a boy in Texas is talking to his mom about how “stupid kids at school say Santa’s a big fake.” In this

For the last three years, I have helped organize and assist in coordinating my town’s Breakfast with Santa program. Each year the program is hosted at a local daycare. The program provides each child with a wrapped gift and a Christmas related book. They are also given the opportunity to take pictures with Santa and make crafts. For many of the children, the only gifts that they receive for Christmas are those donated by volunteers. As a

Father Christmas, also known as Santa Clause, is there to help the children. He is aware of the battle that the children are going to encounter and wants them to be prepared. Instead of giving the children gifts, Father Christmas gives them tools for battle. This is very similar to the bible story of the Holy Spirit giving spiritual gifts to all believers, “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed…” (1 Corinthians 12).

This leads into the most important difference between the book and the movie. In the movie it depicts that going to the North Pole to see Santa was all a dream, while in the book it made it all seem real. When children go see this movie, they might think that since the boy is having a dream that Santa must not be real. A lot of research has been done about kids believing in Santa. Gail Vines wrote about “the Santa delusion” from psychologist’s perspectives. According to Gail Vines (2007), children are able to

This same scenario can be played for all ages as the side of repercussion of white lies, deliberate encouragement that can fall flat. However, white lies of the tooth fairy and such are encouraged to maintain the innocence of childhood that we can fondly look back on when in need of comfort is one of the kinder conclusions of the white lie. Keep in mind that individuals can take the lie even further by creating a

No matter how old I get, I still can’t sleep on Christmas Eve. As a child, my brother and I would be ushered off to bed early, just to lie there with heavy eyes. We would try so hard to catch a glimpse of Santa Claus. Growing up we are all imprinted with the idea of a portly man in a red suit coming down our chimney to deposit gifts under our tree; that is, if you made the nice list. This ideology is a hundred and fifty year old tradition that encourages a child to believe in a fabricated being in exchange for a reward. As much as our parents try to shelter us from the truth, it is inevitable that we will discover that our beloved Santa is nothing more than a fable. As a child our naivety is attributed to our innocence, but as adults, there is a myriad of information out there for the taking.

So you don’t believe in Santa Claus. It’s understandable. We find ourselves in an age of pure skepticism. We question everything. Science has taken hold of our lives, providing answers for all questions and dismissing anything that cannot be explained as either myth or fiction. So it’s quite understandable why you don’t believe, with no physical proof of his existence. It’s indeed understandable to lose sight of Father Christmas with the transformation of this holiday into one that, as of late, is used commercially as a lucrative crutch solely to make profit. It’s understandable to abandon Santa Claus after hearing countless people deny his very physical or even spiritual existence. After all, one tends to

Also, adults threatening children throughout the year saying that, “Santa is always watching.” Is it just be an easy way for them to have children be on their best behavior at all times? Additionally, another theory that I have heard is that Santa Claus is a way for Satan to take Christ out of Christmas. People say that he tries to make giving and receiving gifts more important than the birth of Christ, but I don’t feed into this assumption. I feel as though parents and large corporations are the ones behind the

Belief in Santa Claus is good for developing children’s creativity. According to Mertens, the author says that “As children’s brains develop, so do their reasoning skills and imaginations.” Children think of Santa Claus’s figure, how he comes to their house, and when he leaves gifts. They also think about that logically. For example, if there is no chimney, a child could imagine that Santa Claus enters his or her house from a window. These processes can help children have visions of what they think. “Children exhibit a form of magical thinking by about 18 months, when they begin to create

Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, and Chris Kringle are names associated with the most well-known figure among all children as Santa Claus. Currently, Santa lives in the North Pole with his wife Mrs. Claus, reindeer, and his elves who create toys to give to all of the nice children. For many, the act of making and delivering presents to all the little boys and girls of the world may appear magical to children and adults but there is evidence proving that it is all smoke and mirrors. In fact, devising a trip, delivering the presents, and the eating of cookies can be explained by science and physics.

Most people tell lies directed at children. Some lie as a way to shield innocents from situations that are potentially dangerous or hard to understand. In The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time Christopher’s

And of course, no discussion of Christmas would be complete without talking about of one of the holiday’s most famous representations: Santa Claus.

But I think that parents concerned with harming their relationship with their kid may discover the revelation of the ruse opens their children’s eyes and helps them see their parents in not a bad but different light. The discovery of the Santa Myth leads to important steps towards maturity like realizing your parents are people, just like you, and aren’t infallible. Having your parents share the truth about Santa and also share their personal discoveries of the myth can actually bring parents and children closer through the realization that they’ve both gone through the same experience. It also brings a new appreciation for parents’ efforts.