jpexg@mit-hermes.ARPA (John Purbrick) (02/08/85)
| I wonder to | what extent the popularity of Guy Fawkes Day in England rises from its | assimilation with the old All Hallows Eve and/or Samhain. I'm quite certain that there is a link, and that there is an involvement with pagan ritual, involving the construction of a human figure, which is then burned, maybe along with a few real humans. Perhaps it's done in fall to remind the gods to bring the sun back again. For those unlucky enough not to have grown up with Guy Fawkes Day, what happens is that a week or so in advance, kids make dummies out of old clothes; these are then displayed on sidewalks with the incantation "Penny for the Guy?" although more than a penny is expected nowadays. On the night of Nov 5, the dummy is burned, and the kids spend the pennies on fireworks (not so common any more, for safety reasons; large public displays are more likely). The guy is supposed to represent Guido Fawkes, the man who almost blew up James I and Parliament in 1605, but note its similarity to a jack o'lantern--and especially to a "harvest dolly" which kids make in some districts in America at Halloween. By contrast, Halloween is scarcely noticed in England. So what seems to happen is 1) An autumn festival 2) Involving flimsy human effigies 3) Which are in some way associated with fire 4) While children receive treats (as a symbol of renewal?) Does anyone really *know* anything about the pre-Christian origins of Halloween-Guy Fawkes? Might Samhain have anything to do with it?