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Loading... Halloween: From Pagan Ritual to Party Night (2002)by Nicholas Rogers
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. Interesting historical review, but when covering recent history spends too much time on politics and not enough on how Halloween became an adult party night for straight people. (There is good coverage on how it became a gay party night, though.) ( ) Rogers covers a wide range of ideas related to the dark holiday, particularly given the book's length. It also helps that he writes well, so you breeze easily through even some of the more fact-and-figure intensive sections. Interesting, informative, and a great October read. The book addresses the origins of Halloween, its history in Britain and North America, its similarities to Mexico's "Day of the Dead," urban legends and popular reactions to the holiday, its representation in Hollywood, current celebration trends, and some guesses about the holiday's future. no reviews | add a review
"Drawing on an array of sources, from classical history to Hollywood films, Rogers traces Halloween as it emerged from the Celtic festival of Samhain (summer's end), picked up elements of the Christian Hallowtide (All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day), arrived in North America as an Irish and Scottish festival, and evolved into an unofficial but large-scale holiday by the early 20th century. He examines the 1970s and '80s phenomena of Halloween sadism (razor blades in apples) and inner-city violence (arson in Detroit), as well as the immense influence of the horror film genre on the reinvention of Halloween as a terror-fest. Throughout his vivid account, Rogers shows how Halloween remains, at its core, a night of inversion, when social norms are turned upside down and a temporary freedom of expression reigns supreme. He examines how this very license has prompted censure by the religious Right, occasional outrage from law enforcement officials, and appropriation by Left-leaning political groups."--Jacket No library descriptions found.
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)394.2646Social sciences Customs, Etiquette, Folklore General Customs Special Occasions Holidays Holidays of September, October, November HalloweenLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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