Halloween has evolved from a festival celebrated by the Celts to remember the deceased. Due to the context of the festival, imagery for Halloween is heavily influenced by death, magic, evil and the occult.
Many associate evil with stories of Dracula, Frankenstein and ficticious monsters. Costumes worn by children on Halloween include:
- Grim repear
- Ghosts
- Ghouls
- Demons
- Witches
- Goblins
- Vampires
- Mummies
- Skeletons
Today, imagery has been influenced heavily by Halloween films – most notably Frankenstein, the Halloween movies by John Carpenter and Nightmare of Elm Street from Wes Craven.
Halloween symbols at home
Many people in the UK, Europe and USA will have Jack o’ Lanterns out on their doorsteps or in their windows. Jack o’ Lanterns are hollowed out pumpkins (or squash), usually with a candle in the middle to illuminate the carvings made on the pumpkins.