Folk Culture Holiday Analysis

One deeper understanding of what our culture shows us as the good and meaningful life can be seen through the various mixed messages of our holiday seasons. One holiday that is highly celebrated throughout our culture is Halloween. Halloween demonstrates several different mixed messages that can be seen in our culture. The way we celebrate Halloween is mostly through young children. Children spend the entire night going around trick or treating to several different homes to try and gather as much candy as possible. There are so many contridicted messages throughout this halloween holiday. Several parents always tell their children not to talk to strangers, but on Halloween "its ok for the children to go to a strangers home and take candy from them." Also at the young age older adults always tell children to be themselves, but on Halloween people dressed their children up as other famous figures, monsters, killers, singers, dancers, etc. Halloween can also be seen as a cusomers holiday because we are encouraged to buy decerations, candy, costums and several other things. I also noticed that this particular holiday doesnt express the message that family is important, and that you should spend time with your family like most other holidays.