Halloween Speech Essay

Submitted By emilyfinnerty
Words: 440
Pages: 2

Emily Finnerty
CAS 100A
Professor Hart
25 September 2014
Halloween
Subject: Halloween

General purpose: To inform

Specific purpose: To inform my audience about the history of Halloween, how
Halloween has evolved to what it is today and the symbolisms of Halloween.

Central idea: To educate my audience on the history of Halloween and why it is celebrated every year on October 31st.

Introduction: Hello everyone, today I would like to talk to you about Halloween. Stemming from a very old, Celtic holiday of, Samhain, Halloween, over the years, has become less about the ritual of the spirits passing through worlds, and more about the costumes and candy. Throughout the centuries, the holiday has changed from a melancholy, pagan ceremony to a day of happiness, costumes and trick-or-treating. The history of Halloween, how it has evolved and its symbolisms are important to know because it originally was, and still is, the marks the end of the harvesting season and was thought that this shift of seasons, was a passageway to the world of the dead.
Body:
I. History of Halloween
a.) Samhain
b.) Christian Missionaries
c.) All Saints Day
d.) All Souls Day

II. How Halloween Has Evolved
a.) Costumes
b.) Trick-Or-Treating

III. Symbols of Halloween
a.) Black Cats
b.) Bats and Owls
c.) Jack-O-Lanterns and Carving Pumpkins

Conclusion: In conclusion, Halloween has become an adult holiday, slowly making its way towards the likes of Mardi Gras. Men, women and children in all different kinds of costumes are taking to the streets and parading past carved, candlelit pumpkins, whether its asking for candy, or where the party is at. Their masked behaviors imitate the frightening forces of the soul and of the other world that becomes our world, on this night of inverted roles. In doing so, they are