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The perception of people toward halloween
Why is halloween celebrated essay
The perception of people toward halloween
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What is the true purpose as to why we celebrate Halloween in the western world? Why does Halloween have such a huge impact on our society altogether? These are some questions that came to my mind when thinking about the true purpose that the holiday of Halloween serves for our culture in the United States. Often times, when the thirty-first of October rolls around, children and parents become excited knowing that it is the one time of the year where they can dress up in costumes and go house to house receiving candy or other treats at the doors of neighbors, friends, or even strangers! You will also see homeowners decorating their houses, sometimes with intentions to compete as to who has the most festive home in the neighborhood. Despite …show more content…
When Halloween comes around, social norms are virtually non-existent throughout the days leading up to and day of Halloween. “Halloween constitutes a time of transition when orthodox social constraints are lifted, a moment of status ambiguity and indeterminacy when ritual subjects can act out their individual or collective fantasies, hopes, or anxieties.”(Rogers, 463) Rogers position explains how essentially, society’s social barriers are lifted so people are able to act upon their own desires and not feel judged or scolded. This can be represented through costumes of which people choose to wear or simply through the actions people take on the holiday. For example, a person who may not consume alcohol regularly could be more prone to drinking on Halloween knowing that it is a activity is apparent among an adult population. Similarly, Rogers discusses how youthful revelry is also apparent on the holiday. This quote also reflects the ideas portrayed on the most recent events of Halloween at Central Michigan this most recent year, that will be discussed …show more content…
On the night of Halloween, many student walked the streets, hopping from house party to house party, decked out in costumes from funny to scary, from sexy to reserved. Of all the places I visited while out on Halloween, mostly the neighborhood’s just North of campus, it appeared to me that alcohol played a major factor for a vast majority of students out celebrating. Revelry was also apparent being that a vast majority of friends had participated in drinking activities, some of which who weren’t even of age. Many people walked the streets carrying bottles of liquor in their pockets and some even hauling around large packs of beer to consume throughout the night. Mischievous behavior was apparent within the student population. Police were in full force, however, it seemed as though they held more concern for assisting individuals when needed rather than handing out citations. “Halloween was well established throughout Michigan with high school parties, university street parades, and enough pranks to keep the police on full alert.” (Rogers, 468) Large crowds of people migrated from home to home as people were typically welcoming of others. Although in most cases, Halloween is intended to let loose and have fun, reckless behavior became evident in some cases as well. Another
Late autumn has arrived and with it comes the dark magic of Halloween--and, of course, the
Residents of the town of Longmeadow are very aware that “Longmeadow teens are outperforming teens nationwide” in their consumption of alcohol. Committees have been formed within the community to eliminate the under-aged drinking problem. Many students interviewed at Longmeadow high school say that once they have adapted to a “party lifestyle”, or a lifestyle when one drinks every weekend or more, a breathalyzer is not going to end that habit. A school dance could be a fun place to meet with friends to socialize, hang out and dace, but many people feel that they cannot enjoy themselves as much with out drinking. One LHS student says “ I’d have more fun at a house party drinking that I would at an alcohol-free school function.” This idea may not be morally or legally correct, but it keeps many students from attending school dances. This is where the problem with the breathalyzer begins. Kids who want to drink will go to unsupervised environments rather than to a place where there are adults who could handle a serious situation should one ever occur. It is not legal for kids to drink because they are not capable of dealing with serious situations. The problem of stopping kids from drinking in Longmeadow is much too large for anyone to deal with, but drunken kids should have a safe place to go where they can be watched over.
Different cultures have different holiday traditions. At this time of year different cultures are preparing to celebrate Halloween or the Día de los Muertos.These two holidays occur around the same time of year. October 31st is Halloween and the Day of the Dead begins on November 1st and ends on November 2nd. Halloween is an American tradition and the Day of the Dead is celebrated in Mexico, and other Latin American countries. Both holidays share some similarities but also have some differences.Some common themes between the two holidays are food and religion. For example, Pumpkin is associated with both holidays. And Christianity is the religion associated with both holidays. The symbols for these holidays share some similarities , for example skulls. While Halloween also is associated with ghosts and witches. A big
When I learned that I would have to do my ethnographic report on what I did during Halloween, I was worried because I live in Turnpike and the most excitement that happens in turnpike is the sound of the garbage truck when it comes to pick up the Wednesday trash. Fortunately something did happen to me and I realized I would not have to write a boring paper of how I woke up and just stayed in my room the whole day. Well the day started off with me waking up and walking to the bathroom to take a shower, as soon as the turned the water on I realized I had left my shower and rather than turning off my shower I stayed in because the warmth of the hot water was too seductive for me to get out and get my towel. In the shower I had my usual thoughts about life, death, and comebacks to old arguments. Afterword I got out of my shower and reached for my toothbrush, which was located in a cupboard behind the toilet, but I grabbed at it too quickly and it fell in the toilet. I stood over my toilet for about five minutes just staring at my toothbrush in the toilet not believing what just happened, after that I started blaming myself for being too impatient. When I was done feeling sorry for myself I went into my room in search of another toothbrush but unluckily I couldn’t find one, so I had to go walk to the local store at around 7:30 in search of a toothbrush. While searching for a replacement toothbrush I realized that not that many people were in the store, I had always thought that stores were busiest in the morning and evening but apparently that’s not true. Once I got my new toothbrush I finished brushing, got dressed and went to catch the 11 to the Transit Center.
My second weekend here at James Madison University, I was at a party with my friends off campus. Hundreds of kids flocked to the sidewalks near the apartment complexes. All of the upper classmen had given us one vital safety provision, which was to not step onto the street with a cup or beer in hand. I quickly noticed why they had told us this because the streets were swarming with police officers and two feet away on the sidewalks were hundreds of kids drinking right in front of them. During the party, I decided to take a stroll outside for some fresh air and there I saw something that I couldn’t believe. A freshman, perfectly fine, and by this I mean he was not drunk at all, began walking home on the street without a cup or beverage in hand. As soon as his toes touched the pavement two police officers on bikes jumped on him and began interrogating this poor young man. They began questioning him as they looked for any suspicious movements or actions made by the student. After about ten minutes of secret service-like interrogation, they whipped out a breathalyzer test. Clearly, the student failed because he was quickly taken away in hand cuffs in front of hundreds of James Madison students.
Although high-risk drinkers are a minority in all ethnic groups, their behavior is far from a harmless “rite of passage.” In fact, drinking has pervasive consequences that compel our attention. The most serious consequence of high-risk college drinking is death. The U.S. Department of Education has evidence that at least 84 college students have died since 1996 because of alcohol poisoning or related injury—and they believe the actual total is higher because of incomplete reporting. When alcohol-related traffic crashes and off-campus injuries are taken into consideration, it is estimated that over 1,400 college students die each year from alcohol-related unintentional injuries. Additionally, over 500,000 full-time students sustain nonfatal unintentional injuries, and 600,000 are hit or assaulted by another student who has been drinking. Administrators are well aware of the burden alcohol presents to the campus environment. In addition, the 1997, 1999, and 2001 Harvard surveys found that the majority of students living in dorms and Greek residences, who do not drink excessively, still experience day-to-day problems as a result of other students’ misuse of alcohol. The prevalence of these “secondhand effects” varies across ...
With the end of October and the beginning of November, two historically celebrated holidays come to pass. Each holiday has been celebrated for centuries, and each one continues to have a large impact on society. Interestingly, they developed in two separate civilizations from different hemispheres and occur around the same time. The two distinct holidays of Halloween and Day of the Dead both share similar origins and a focus on spiritual aspects and yet have still remained unique celebrations that continue to largely impact culture.
During Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday), the festival is the last opportunity to feast before the Christian’s season begins (Sexton and Oster 205). Mardi Gras is bright, colorful, and lively. It is a celebration of life, filled with costumes, dancing, and laughter. Yet, in the midst of this celebration of life, M...
We knocked on the door of the off-campus apartment, as it opened we were confronted with the heavy stench of alcohol. A young girl was passed out on the living room floor, a pile of empty beer cans filled the kitchen sink, and the deafening music rattled the window panes. A group of girls managed to stumble past us. They waved goodbye to the host, who was handing drinks to me and my sister. It was not my first time drinking. In fact, everyone there was quite experienced – after all, it’s college. Half of the guests were completely drunk, and I had no problem with it. That is, until later that night when my sister locked herself in a room with a guy she had met only a week before. This prompted me to seriously consider the effects of alcohol. Would my sister have been able to see the danger of the situation had she been sober? Would the absence of alcohol have prevented the events of that night from occurring? These questions, along with the vivid memory of that night, fueled my examination of the complex social problem of underage drinking.
As teenagers reach maturity and start developing their social activities to the point where weekend-and often weeknight-parties becomes the regular occurrence, they are often looking for a means to escape soberness. They would to love put their hair down and drink alcohol as they socialize and or dance with their friends, a leisure that they have seen older siblings, parents, friends, television and ultimately society do over and over again. As they graduate from high school and move on with their lives-whether that be to college, a job or travelling-they will be exposed more and more to alcohol and inebriation. Yet if they were to take part in this recreation, they would in fact be committing a crime punishable by a court case and further action. Yet this legal aspect has very little practical effect, because the large majority of the 18 and over age group still drinks. In fact, a recent survey conducted stated that almost half (48%) of all college drinking has been attributed to those who are underage. Furthermore, underage drinking accounts for between 11-20% of all alcohol con...
Imagine having the worst potential Halloween nightmares come to life for a night. Everything from the “Boogeyman” to innocent random people being killed by chainsaws and other disturbing ways. The film Halloween does all that and then some. The movie begins with an innocent looking six year old boy named Michael Myers dresses up in a clown costume and stabs his older sister Judith to death. After that incident Michael ends up going to jail with a plan of being put away for a long time. Then on October 30, 1978 about fifteen years after Michael was sent to jail he escapes. Michael escaping proves to be a major event as most would guess. However, the underlying note in all of this is that the following day is Halloween. Unfortunately,
In recent studies by U.S News and World Report, college campuses are turning off the tap. In other words banning alcohol entirely. One of the reasons for the banning of alcohol on campus is due to the outstanding reports of alcohol related incidents that have taken the lives of students. September of 97’, Scott Krueger, and eighteen-year-old freshman at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, died from alcohol poisoning while at a Phi Gamma Delta initiation event.(Reisberg, 1) The lack of action taken by MIT caused the students’ parents to sue them for their irresponsibility.(Reisberg, 2) Another accident that occurred due to alcohol was to a twenty-year-old Louisiana State University student named Benjamin Wynne. Wynne had apparen...
When teenagers leave the safety of home and enter college life, they can feel very out of place. In order for them to feel that they belong when joining a fraternity or sorority, they can be pressured into binge drinking and other types of behavior that they wouldn't normally do. By doing what the fraternity brothers or sorority sisters ask them to do, they think that they are proving themselves to be worthy of a place in the organization. This can be very dangerous for many reasons. "Results from a recent Harvard School of Public Health College Alcohol Study provide the first national picture in almost fifty years of just how widespread and harmful heavy episodic or "binge" drinking has become, not only for those students who abuse alcohol, but also for others in their immediate environment" (Wechsler, 178). Binge drinkers put themselves at high r...
Over 49% of the college students within America do not consume alcohol on a regular basis (Lankford, 2007). However, a significant percentage of these students lack the control to abuse alcohol when they start consuming it. The annual Health College Alcohol Study indicates that the social interaction within a majority of the societal settings has significantly been affected by the increased amount of alcoholic consumption. This has seen the rise of fights and disorderly communities, especially within those areas where colleges are set up. ...
There isn’t one without the other; and the pairing appears to be a very common, yet popular combination. Social events, particularly parties here at the University of Mississippi begins early throughout the week. From observation, Thursday’s begins the weekend; and with weekends there are parties. The “weekend” is usually a long one that lasts until Sunday, and freshman students take great joy in participating in every gathering from start till finish. It should be mandatory that a notice is given to the University 's Police Department weeks prior to the party. This method can raise awareness while also giving the Police Dept. ample time to prepare for and avoid underage drinking. It would then become their responsibility to provide sufficient security who strictly enforces the underage drinking and minor in possession laws. To ensure that the job is smooth and successful everyone that is the age 21 and older should be given wristbands to notify the bartender that they are of the legal age to consume alcohol. The wristbands should also be color coded for the level of intoxication the individual is in. As a way of monitoring the wristband and safety of the party members, they should come equipped with a maximum of three tabs. This particular quantity because three is the number in which binge drinking begins to develop in women, and should adjust to the men 's consumption rate of five