2014年10月26日
Halloween in America Vs. Halloween in Japan
Wow, long time no see! I had some medical problems so I wasn't able to blog or work for about a month, but I'm back now and feeling much better.
I was having dinner with a friend the other night and the topic of Halloween came up. In Japan, Halloween seems very kawaii or adorable, while in America, Halloween is definitely scarier.
In Japan, it definitely seems like a more kid-friendly holiday, and it is in America too - up to a point. Many children in America go trick-or-treating, walking from hosue to house in a neighborhood and asking for candy while in costume. This is great fun, but when a child turns 13 or 14, it's no longer acceptable. So for a few years maybe Halloween goes away for these kids, or they dress up for tame parties.
Once past drinking age (21 in most states) Halloween changes a lot. It becomes much more adult, with a focus on the exihleration of fear. Halloween parties at this age can be extremely wild - in Isla Vista, where I used ot live in California, the Halloween party (there is only one, and it is enormous) is closer to what the Japanese would recognize as a Matsuri. Young people dress up and flock to the community to drink and act crazy. This has gotten so out of hand in recent years that the local college and the police have started fencing off the entire community and asking out of towners to "stay home".
It can get pretty crazy, so when people start getting a little older, they start deciding to stay home and hand out candy to the kids who come trick or treating. They decorate their houses and might dress up in costume, but partying usually ends after about age 25. Thus the circle is closed, and the people who were once trick or treaters and then partiers become the adults staying home and handing out candy. :)
I was having dinner with a friend the other night and the topic of Halloween came up. In Japan, Halloween seems very kawaii or adorable, while in America, Halloween is definitely scarier.
In Japan, it definitely seems like a more kid-friendly holiday, and it is in America too - up to a point. Many children in America go trick-or-treating, walking from hosue to house in a neighborhood and asking for candy while in costume. This is great fun, but when a child turns 13 or 14, it's no longer acceptable. So for a few years maybe Halloween goes away for these kids, or they dress up for tame parties.
Once past drinking age (21 in most states) Halloween changes a lot. It becomes much more adult, with a focus on the exihleration of fear. Halloween parties at this age can be extremely wild - in Isla Vista, where I used ot live in California, the Halloween party (there is only one, and it is enormous) is closer to what the Japanese would recognize as a Matsuri. Young people dress up and flock to the community to drink and act crazy. This has gotten so out of hand in recent years that the local college and the police have started fencing off the entire community and asking out of towners to "stay home".
It can get pretty crazy, so when people start getting a little older, they start deciding to stay home and hand out candy to the kids who come trick or treating. They decorate their houses and might dress up in costume, but partying usually ends after about age 25. Thus the circle is closed, and the people who were once trick or treaters and then partiers become the adults staying home and handing out candy. :)
Posted by teachers at 09:00│Comments(0)
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