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Hallowe'en ruminations
Nov. 1st, 2007 12:53 pmYes, I know Halloween was yesterday. Today is that twilight day where it's no longer Halloween and not yet my birthday. When I eat way too much leftover Halloween candy and feel slightly ill all day.
So, I thought I'd talk about my theory of Halloween and trick-or-treating as a social contract.
Believe me (or just ask any of my family members/friends) when I say that Halloween is a serious business for me. Ever since I was small, there was a sense of ceremony and tradition and excitement surrounding Halloween. Part of it is that I come from a very theater-friendly family, so I look forward to the theatrical elements - dressing up in character, becoming who I choose to be for one night.
And then there's the social contract aspect. I feel that the way it's set up, if you take the time and effort to dress up in costume, you are rewarded with candy. If you don't dress up, or at least make an effort, nobody is obligated to give you anything. Technically, the non-dressed-up trick-or-treater should be given a "trick" instead of a "treat", but then they'd probably sue and that just leads down a path with no happy endings.
Even after saying this, when I reached a certain age I realized that no matter how elaborate the costume, if I continued to trick-or-treat I would be robbing some of the time and candy given to the younger children. So I hung up my pillowcase for good.
But every year, I dress up. Every year, for one day, I become someone or something new. This year (points to icon) I dressed as Abby from NCIS (pictures to come). Next year? Who knows? But it won't be something I've been before.
So, I thought I'd talk about my theory of Halloween and trick-or-treating as a social contract.
Believe me (or just ask any of my family members/friends) when I say that Halloween is a serious business for me. Ever since I was small, there was a sense of ceremony and tradition and excitement surrounding Halloween. Part of it is that I come from a very theater-friendly family, so I look forward to the theatrical elements - dressing up in character, becoming who I choose to be for one night.
And then there's the social contract aspect. I feel that the way it's set up, if you take the time and effort to dress up in costume, you are rewarded with candy. If you don't dress up, or at least make an effort, nobody is obligated to give you anything. Technically, the non-dressed-up trick-or-treater should be given a "trick" instead of a "treat", but then they'd probably sue and that just leads down a path with no happy endings.
Even after saying this, when I reached a certain age I realized that no matter how elaborate the costume, if I continued to trick-or-treat I would be robbing some of the time and candy given to the younger children. So I hung up my pillowcase for good.
But every year, I dress up. Every year, for one day, I become someone or something new. This year (points to icon) I dressed as Abby from NCIS (pictures to come). Next year? Who knows? But it won't be something I've been before.
