Saving the Communal Nature of Halloween: A Mini-Essay

     In her examination of Bonfire Night, which occurs on the fifth of November in Newfoundland, Catherine Schwoeffermann explains how this annual festival, which is eagerly anticipated, is a significant communal affair: the preparation process unites family and community members with a single goal; the event gives adults a break from the toils of the workweek and children a respite from schoolwork; and the social nature of the occasion draws the public together, rekindling old friendships, forging newer connections, and encouraging the interactions of all townsfolk from every age range and socioeconomic status.[1] It is this collectivity, Schwoeffermann contends, which makes Bonfire Night and other public celebrations – Halloween among them – a vital element in the strengthening of communal networks and the promotion of intergenerational and interracial bonds. Indeed, scholars such as Lesley Pratt Bannatyne and Michael Taft attest to the cohesiveness and continuity encompassing these civic events, arguing that, unlike the family-centered festivities which constitute the majority of our holidays, Halloween holds a distinct public component, with members of communities throughout the nations that celebrate some variation of the holiday decorating their homes and businesses and welcoming costume-clad strangers with treats and toys.[2] As Mickie Mueller highlights, though, the social nature of Halloween has experienced a disheartening decline over the past several decades. By the 1980s, rumors of tampered candy and the myth of the Halloween sadist, fed by the Chicago Tylenol murders of 1982, eroded the community-wide trust of Halloween and stoked parental fears that prompted the deterioration of trick-or-treating and the prohibition of Halloween itself in several towns.[3] In an effort to save Halloween, individuals like Leonard Ashley propose communities ban together to create public havens which can alleviate safety concerns as well as reestablish and reinforce the communal connections associated with the event. The reading of Halloween-themed stories and poems at libraries, the display of child-created Halloween artwork in stores and other public venues, Halloween festivals at high schools and colleges, and the performance of Halloween plays and skits at local theaters can all, Ashley stresses, incorporate the creative works of the township and “build community spirit and goodwill at Halloween.”[4] 

Works Referenced

Ashley, Leonard. Halloween: Everything Important about the Most Popular Secular Holiday. Bloomington, IN: Xlibris, 2012.

Bannatyne, Lesley. Halloween: An American Holiday, and American History. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing Company, Inc., 1990.

Mueller, Mickie. Llewellyn’s Little Book of Halloween. Woodbury, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 2018.

Schwoeffermann, Catherine. “Bonfire Night in Brigus, Newfoundland.” Halloween and Other Festrivals of Death and Life. Ed. Jack Santino. Knoxville, TN: University of Tennessee Press, 1994. 62-81.

Taft, Michael. “Adult Halloween Celebrations on the Canadian Prairie.” Halloween and Other Festivals of Death and Life. Ed. Jack Santino. Knoxville, TN: University of Tennessee Press, 1994. 152-169.
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[1] Schwoeffermann, 63-64.
[2] Taft, 164; Bannatyne, 124.
[3] Mueller, 32-34.
[4] Ashley, 358-359.