Halloween in Shenzhen Amusement Park Happy Valley
What plastic zombies can tell us about a traveling culture.
Ever since Shenzhen was given the title of a Special Economic Zone, it has flourished into a high-tech metropolis, housing the magnificent 12 million migrated people from various areas around the country and around the globe. Along with the influx of people came their respective cultures, and within the bundle of cultures came Halloween.
Often disregarded as a mere figment of pop culture, Halloween is believed to have originated from the ancient Celtic festival called Samhain. Held on October 31st, It is the celebration of the year’s harvest and also a preparation for the upcoming harsh winter. Celtics believed that on that day, the boundaries between the realm of the living and the realm of the dead became blurred, allowing the spirits to freely roam the earth. It is also said that intimidating and grotesque masks and costumes were worn to mimic the spirits, or to appease them. Their presence also allegedly enabled Druids (Celtic priests) to divine into the future.
The holiday then spread to parts of Europe, evolving into numerous variations as it took in elements of each culture. A similar process took place in America; after the migration rush to America, a distinctly American Halloween tradition began to emerge due to the intermingling of numerous different cultures. The main cerebration became “play parties,” where people celebrated the harvest, shared stories of the deceased, attempted to tell each others’ future, danced and sang.
After the second influx of immigrants from Ireland, Halloween, formerly only popular in parts of America, was popularized. It was now devoid of religious overtone, and dressing up in costumes and “trick-or-treating” became a popular custom of the holiday. By the 1920s and the 1930s, only the social and community centered aspect of Halloween remained, the celebration mostly consisting of parades, town-wide parties, and social games remotely resembling the initial themes of Samhain.
This entertainment-based Halloween entered Shenzhen when it was going through rapid capitalistic economic development. Shenzhen was made the first Special Economic Zone of China in 1980. Numerous investment opportunities opened up, enticing foreign companies and investors. Along with the capital, came the people and their culture, which conveniently included Halloween. As the foreigners indulged in their own Halloween celebrations, the locals absorbed this trend to incorporate it into their lives.
Nowadays, although well-known, Halloween in Shenzhen is mostly celebrated in the entertainment industry. Especially in amusement parks such as Happy Valley and Disneyland in nearby Hong Kong, parks are renovated with festive elements such as haunted houses to celebrate the holiday during a month long Halloween special. People dressed up as grotesque figures such as killer clowns, zombies, and shapeless monsters also roam the park, searching for that first chance to scare someone out of their wits.
Evolution of culture and the necessary alteration that entail are entirely natural, but some things that are lost are worth retaining. Halloween is no exception. Traditionally, in addition to being a reminiscing moment for the past year, Halloween has a been an opportunity for people to divine into the future and get a sense of what awaits them. During the Celtic times, it was the Druids who specialized in the act of doing so. During the early American times, it was the common people, especially the young women, who took the chance to try to foresee their future spouses through methods like nut-burning, throwing of apple peels over their shoulders, and peering over their shoulders in front of a mirror with a candle in their hands. But what is left of Halloween? All but superficial elements made for entertainment and mere display remain. Such superficiality does not suit Shenzhen; Shenzhen is a blooming city, full of potential. Perhaps, if we bring back the lost element of wishing for a better future during Halloween, it will be a better fit for this magnificent city we live in.
“Halloween History.” HalloweenHistoryorg. HalloweenHistory.org, n.d. Web. 13 Nov. 2016.
History.com Staff. “History of Halloween.” History.com. A&E Television Networks, 2009. Web. 13 Nov. 2016.
Shenzhen Municipal E-government Resources Center. “ShenZhen Government Online.” ShenZhen Government Online. Shenzhen Municipal E-government Resources Center, n.d. Web. 13 Nov. 2016.
