Halloween Itself

I learned some things about Halloween, so I want to tell you about them. Halloween is celebrated here in the U.S.A with a variety of activities on October 30. It is traditionally observed by children who dress up in costumes and go door to door saying "Trick or Treat" so that the residents will give them candy. The original idea is this:Ancient Celtics believed that the evil spirit and the witch appeared on October 30, the day before of All Saints' Day (Hallowmas). The Celtics made Halloween to repulse the evil spirit and the witch. And the culture has spread to the West. The custom of Halloween was brought to the U.S.A in the 1840Åfs by Irish immigrants. The purpose of wearing the costume which is symbol of scary things, is to drive away the evil spirits, who see the appearance and are surprised.

I interviewed some Americans and learned many things from it. First, Americans usually buy a few bags or candy treats such as small chocolate bars etc. and pass these out on the designated "trick or treat" night in their town. Unfortunately, the woman I talked to also eats quite a few of these herself. Second, many college students will decorate their dorm rooms like a Haunted Houses with pumpkins, lights and many symbols of scary things. Traditionally chidlren of high school age and below go to those places to be scared or be brave, depending on your perspective. Many houses and dorms will have costume parties also. Finally, about two years ago, there was violence in Carbondale Halloween. Students got into trouble over the Halloween weekend on the "strip" or on north 51 that goes by KAYA and the other bars and restaurants. There were incidents of fights and an attempt to block the street for outdoor party, for example, overturned cars and broken windows etc. These incidents were made by heavy drinking crowds.

Hiroto