October 31 – Beggars' Night and the Halloween “Plague”!

nPostednon October 31, 2013

n
n

nLikena swarm of zombies, Halloween-type holiday traditions have beennspreading all over the world. People I talk to on Facebook who livenin New Zealand and Australia have been complaining about thencontagion… saying that candy manufacturers have deliberatelynconvinced kids in those nations that they, too, should do what kidsnin American movies and TV shows do: go door to door begging forncandy!

n
n

nWell,nof course they should! It is so much fun!

n
n

nInhave also read about Halloween coming to other countries such asnFrance, China, and Indonesia. I’m glad to see that most people seemnto welcome the holiday, although there are troubling hints thatnadvertising and commercial interests are major forces behind thenspread of Halloween. n

n
n

nInthought I would look at a few variations:

n
n

nBeggars’n Nightn – in some places in the central and eastern regions of the U.S.,n the night for trick-or-treat (emphasis on the treat) is calledn Beggars’ Night. And many towns publicize that Beggars’ Night will ben some other date—often October 30, but sometimes earlier orn later—other than Halloween, October 31. I think that reallyn enterprising trick-or-treaters could go out three or four nights,n getting way more candy—that is, if they can find rides to variousn nearby towns!

n

n
n

nBooksn for Treatsn – some communities urge people to give out “gently read”n children’s books as treats. It seemed to me that would be an awfullyn expensive treat to give out. And I could see some difficulties…n Like, do you have to give out age-appropriate books? Still, I loven the idea: “Feed kids’ minds, not their cavities.”

n

n

n

n

n

n
So In did some research. First, lots of communities do Books for Treatsn events during which costumed kids can choose their own books fromn donated books spread out all over tables. Well, that’s splendid! –n who doesn’t like another event during which kids can wear theirn costumes?

n

nSecond, the author whonstarted the activity, Rebecca Morgan, bought her gently used books atnlibrary sales for about a quarter apiece. She sorted the books intonfour boxes from youngest to oldest, and then she allowed thentrick-or-treaters to choose their own books.

n
n

nInn Japan and China,n Halloween is not really about candy and trick-or-treating; instead,n it is about elaborate costumes, costume contests, and of coursen costume parties.

n

n
n

nInn the Philippines and Singapore,n old traditions are being replaced by more Americanized versions ofn the holiday. People in the Philippines celebrate All Saints Dayn today, and many people visit their loved ones’ graves before then costumes and trick-or-treating begins. In Singapore, the Hungryn Ghost Festival still occurs, but Halloween events are becoming moren and more popular. The Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights, then Spooktacular, and the Museum of Horrors sound like they could ben anywhere—but the three I mention here are all happening inn Singapore.

n

n
n

nSaci’sn Day in Braziln is an attempt to fight back against “cultural imposition” fromn the United States. Apparently Halloween has become popular,n especially with young people. But some people are really mad aboutn that and have suggested fighting holiday with holiday, proposingn that October 31 become a celebration of a character from Braziliann folklore, Saci. This prankster has holes in the palms of his hands,n wears a red cap, smokes a pipe, and can disappear and reappearn through magic.

n

n
n

nManyn people in Latin American celebrate Halloween with costumes, trick-or-treating, and then familiar symbols of witches, skeletons, spider webs, pumpkins, andn so forth. There is a push to get rid of the “evil” and “horror”n aspects of the holiday and to rename it “Children’s Day,” but son far at least these moves have not caught on all that well…

n

n
n

nPeoplen in Europen are celebrating Halloween more and more, since the 1990s. Their newn traditions are re-imports from the U.S., since originally many ofn the traditions grew from older European customs such as turnipn lanterns rather than jack-o-lanterns, and “souling” rather thann trick-or-treating. n

n

n
n

nKalann Goanvn in Brittanyn (southern France) – Women honor the dead by pouring milk on then tombstones, and kids play “gruesome” jokes on each other and onn cemetery visitors. A common joke is to light a candle placed insiden a skull, and to place the “skull-o-lantern” in a darkened cornern of the cemetery.

n

n
n

nMischiefn Night in England and North American – In the olden days, Mischief Night was all about pranks. It wasn soap rubbed on windows and eggs and rotten vegetables thrown atn houses and vehicles. It’s toilet paper all over the trees andn bushes, pumpkins smashed, fireworks set off, and doorbells rung andn then quickly abandoned. Of course, some of these “harmless pranks”n are actually dangerous to people and property, so law-enforcementn generally cracks down on the perpetrators! And volunteers now roamn the streets of some U.S. towns with “Angels’ Night” shirts,n patrolling in order to keep Halloween safe and happy.

n