Halloween Rehash

Sorry for my mistake. I had thought that was why it was called "Trick or Treat". One web site I looked at said:

The cry of "trick or treat" means "give us candy or we'll do something naughty" - in fact the threat is rarely if ever carried out. ​

Another says that the phrase is:

The ultimatum given by children who call on houses to solicit gifts at Hallowe'en. ​

If it doesn't mean those things, what are the children actually meaning when they knock on people's doors and say, "Trick or Treat!!"?

 

It means: Give me some candy or I will leave a burning sack on your front porch.

 

So that's who left that on my porch last year... :laugh:

David, that phrase at one point in time may have meant what you found online, but like many things (God bless you, wearing black to funerals, etc.) that may have originated with a different meaning, it is only a phrase uttered by the little one to mean "can I have some candy".

 

Ha!:laugh:

Do you dress up as Martin Luther and carry a copy of the 95 Theses?

 

We aren't having a celebration. We are hosting a Festival. This includes games, treats, contests, fun house, great food, animal trick shows, clowns, etc...Pretty much the whole town participates. Most arrive early, and only stay for about 45 minutes- 1 hr. prior to leaving to trick or treat.

People decorate their homes and garages into haunted houses and take a herd of people through at a time at no charge. This is probably the most fun. Many of the churches also do a haunted house, which is open all evenings during Halloween week. One church hosted a really FRIGHTENING haunted house. People wrote Letters to the Editor afterwards complaining about it. I WON'T go to that one again. I almost beat up a teenager over it, I was so mad

 

I've never heard of this

 

A thread about churches doing haunted houses (maybe with a poll attached) might be interesting.

 

Usage determines meaning. In our country, I would argue that the widespread use of the day of Halloween is to dress up like a goofball and collect as much sugar you can.

In other countries....say in Brazil, it is a literal day for witches. I see less harm participating in the US, when it is a candy collecting day, than in Brazil, when it is light your candles and talk to dead people.

Usage determines meaning. It is no longer used in the way it was originally meant. Most people have no idea of how it even began.

 

I don't blame you. Ishtar was so bad, I walked out of the theater like 5 minutes into the movie. What a stinkburger.

 

NO! As I child, I meant it. And when we went to Grandpa's house, I had to step on his oxygen hose a few times until he understood that he was required to give me a Hershey bar....not one of those tiny little sample sizes. NO! Only the regular sized one would allow him to breathe again. Halloween is very serious business here in the USA, David Lamb.

 

So kwanzaa is out of the question, then? :laugh:

 

I can give you a detailed account of how it started in the states, and what the different (and bizarre!) traditions actually symbolize, if you like. Where did the idea of costumes, pumpkins, even bonfires come from? None of it was to make Christians feel welcome here, that's for sure!

love,

Sopranette

 

Do you know where the phrase "God bless you" came from?

Do you know why we wear black to funerals?

 

I do like history lessons...however my point is that the vast majority, if anyone, still USES those things with the same MEANING. Why carve a pumpkin? Because it's something crafty, creative, and messy! Stop the average American family and ask why they do these things, then look back at how those things began. Most people won't know, or care, because they have different reasons.

 

I can't tell if the last two posters are being facetious or not. Doesn't matter, really. There are more important topics to debate anyway!

love,

Sopranette

 

:thumbs:

I'm just saying that usage determines meaning. So it doesn't matter as much how it came about...since it most likely is not used the same ways.

I was being a little sarcastic with my history lesson remark...I understand the basic history. Feel free to fill me in, I never claim to know it all. :thumbs:

 

Yes. Whether print, video, statue, et.