America basks in the endless opportunity and glory of a capitalist economy. Competition fuels innovation and inspires Americans to be the best they can be. While high levels of motivation have opened the gates for tremendous economic growth, it has also put American culture at risk due to corporations subjecting traditions such as Christmas to the market on an unprecedented scale. In recent years, the market for Christmas has exploded with sales, commercials, movies, decorations, and more overtaking everyone’s minds from late October into the new year. While this could be a positive factor in an effort to unite American cultures, it has ultimately created disparity between secular and religious celebrators. Known to some as “War on Christmas” this controversy has stemmed from conservative Christians …show more content…
The kickoff holiday, Halloween, traces back 2,000 years ago to a pagan festival celebrating the end of the harvest, as well as preparation for winter. The festival, Samhain, that eventually transformed into today’s Halloween celebration on October 31 was also a time to commune with the dead (Radford n.pg.). These early origins of connecting with the deceased still carry over into modern day, with popular symbols such as ghosts, zombies, and mummies running rampant throughout the month of October. Before costumed children scuttled around Trick-or-Treating, medieval English children called “‘soulers’ would go around begging rich folk for ‘soul cakes’ on Halloween. Instead of threatening to play tricks, however, they'd pray for people’s souls in return for the cake (Cain n.pg.). This tradition gained popularity in America after World War II, with a capitalist twist: children dressed in costumes asking for candy or pranking their neighbors if no treats were given. Halloween is now a fun holiday celebrated by most Americans with spooky costumes, decorations, and lots of