An excuse for Japanese girls to parade around Shibuya in their underwear or dressed as sexy nurses, school girls, sexy witches or sexy police officers.
The transition from the season of light and warmth to the season of cold and darkness. Throughout history, societies in temperate parts of the world have held important festivals around this time of year marking the end of harvest season and just before hunkering down for winter.
Halloween is wildly popular in Japan (and S. Korea also, evidently) because it's a perfect fit, even though it took Westerners to introduce it.
Funny when people ask about the "meaning" of Halloween, as though there is one. It's simply a bacchanal - something practiced by many societies to allow people to let off steam. Christmas used to fulfill that function until it was transformed around Dickens's time. Generally, the more rigid and rule-bound a society is, the more they need that release valve.
In societies where almost anything goes, like the West, it's just an excuse to push the boundaries.
For me, it is just a party for people, especially youths, showing their costumes to friends or other pedestrians enjoy at the center of suburbs. I seldom see kids walking around streets and visit house, saying "trick or treat!"
I'm teaching English to children. When I ask them to tell the meaning of "treat", most of them said "I do not know of it".
Turnip lanterns, dookin for apples, and eating treacle coated scones dangling from string with your hands behind your back. Also standing in the freezing cold outside a neighbour's door, dressed as a pirate, singing and hoping they'll give you a coin rather than a handful of nuts.
It's an excuse to have a party and parties can be a lot of fun.
I've had some great times in my life, but most of them weren't "it's Christmas!" or "It's New Year!" type festivities that always carry expectations and bring out hangers-on. My great times were more like great gigs, a great nights in a club, or big nights with my mates. Maybe I just don't like the general public.
25 Comments
Login to comment
Mr Kipling
An excuse for Japanese girls to parade around Shibuya in their underwear or dressed as sexy nurses, school girls, sexy witches or sexy police officers.
What's not to like?
JeffLee
The transition from the season of light and warmth to the season of cold and darkness. Throughout history, societies in temperate parts of the world have held important festivals around this time of year marking the end of harvest season and just before hunkering down for winter.
Halloween is wildly popular in Japan (and S. Korea also, evidently) because it's a perfect fit, even though it took Westerners to introduce it.
commanteer
Funny when people ask about the "meaning" of Halloween, as though there is one. It's simply a bacchanal - something practiced by many societies to allow people to let off steam. Christmas used to fulfill that function until it was transformed around Dickens's time. Generally, the more rigid and rule-bound a society is, the more they need that release valve.
In societies where almost anything goes, like the West, it's just an excuse to push the boundaries.
Eastmann
there is nothing to "celebrate" and there is no meaning at all.
wallace
Very popular in the UK when I was a kid. Duck apples.
ZALD
For me, it is just a party for people, especially youths, showing their costumes to friends or other pedestrians enjoy at the center of suburbs. I seldom see kids walking around streets and visit house, saying "trick or treat!"
I'm teaching English to children. When I ask them to tell the meaning of "treat", most of them said "I do not know of it".
Luddite
Nothing.
thepersoniamnow
Means lots of work making events for hundreds of peeps, buying lots of stuff, decorating endlessly.
But its all for fun, so its alright.
I have a big party for nearly 100 people tomorrow.
blue in green
Autumnal fun and mischief.
albaleo
Turnip lanterns, dookin for apples, and eating treacle coated scones dangling from string with your hands behind your back. Also standing in the freezing cold outside a neighbour's door, dressed as a pirate, singing and hoping they'll give you a coin rather than a handful of nuts.
rcch
“ What does Halloween mean to you? “
Trick-or-treating and vandalism; that’s what I did when I was a kid and I’m still keeping those memories with me (!)
but now that I live in Tokyo, Japan … :
Mr KiplingToday 07:54 am JST “ An excuse for Japanese girls to parade around Shibuya in their underwear or dressed as sexy nurses, school girls, sexy witches or sexy police officers. “
lucabrasi
No Halloween in England in my day.
Anybody else remember “Mischief Night”?
wallace
Hallowe’en parties on London Underground Circle Line which goes around and around.
Yuuju
means nothing to me, but not so meaningless or harmless as some may think.
wish it would never exist, wish people understood a true bad meaning behind it and stopped liking it so much, even if its 'just for fun'.
Garthgoyle
Another excuse to go party and drink.
Peter14
Absolutely nothing.
Algernon LaCroix
Nothing
Eastman
just some kind of commercial event,like Easter or Christmas-not related to any religion just "event"?
Aly Rustom
In Japan, we have a home costume party and just last night the kids and I carved Jack O Lanterns and we are going to put them out tonight
kohakuebisu
It's an excuse to have a party and parties can be a lot of fun.
I've had some great times in my life, but most of them weren't "it's Christmas!" or "It's New Year!" type festivities that always carry expectations and bring out hangers-on. My great times were more like great gigs, a great nights in a club, or big nights with my mates. Maybe I just don't like the general public.
Harry_Gatto
Yes, very well indeed, night before Bonfire Night and the day after my birthday.
lucabrasi
@Harry
Two days after mine.
Cheers!
Harry_Gatto
@lucabrasi
Have a good one, omedetou!
Pukey2
Jamie Lee Curtis.