The history of Halloween dates back to a Celtic festival of Samhain. It was believed that the night before Nov. 1, All Hallows Eve, was a time of ghostly spirituality where witches and fairies loomed and were sacrificed for gods, representing people who formerly lived.
Fast forward a couple thousand years and Halloween turns into pumpkins, gobs of candy, risqué costumes and gore. Or something else comes to mind: that really scary movie that replays on AMC every night of October and makes you never look at a hockey mask the same way again.
Regardless, this age-old tradition has turned into something celebrated every year on Oct. 31.
“Hell yeah, I dress up for Halloween,” freshman Josh Bohm says. “It’s fun.”
Aside from that, it’s fun to swap identities for an evening and have it be socially acceptable.
“I think it is fun to play pretend and be someone else for a night,” freshman Clare Hennigan says. “I dress up every year.”
A trend since childhood, dressing up in a costume that is either hand-made or picked up from the local costume store has become second nature. Of course, as one reaches his or her pre-teen years, the phase of pillowcases as candy holders and shaving cream as weapons overpowers the urge to dress up.
“I haven’t dressed up in years,” freshman Jeff Johnson says. “I see Halloween as a holiday made up by the candy companies.”
On the other hand, for the many holiday-loving, candy-eating trendsetting costume contest-winning fans of Halloween, dressing up is the way to go.
“I generally dress up because it’s any excuse — for some reason — to wear ridiculous, maybe even offensive stuff,” senior Drake Douglas says. “It’s also a way to show off some creativity.”
Creativity is key when it comes to winning that all-important title of having the best costume at that Halloween party or dance.
In the end, whether it’s buying or making a costume, dressing like a hero or a villain, coordinating a group costume or choosing to not dress up at all, the fate of Halloween rests in the hands of the Halloween’s fans or foes.
“It’s kind of the spirit of Halloween,” Bohm says. “You’re supposed to dress up and be someone you’re not, and get tons of candy in the process.”