Dark Side Of American Holidays English Language Essay

Vacation is a clip of joy, clip to acquire household and the loved 1s together to bask your clip and have fun. Peoples in every civilization and state celebrate vacations. The word vacation means holy twenty-four hours, even though most of the American vacations are non spiritual. As the American civilization is rich with the facets and characteristics of many diverse civilizations, we can follow the beginnings of those vacations to different cultural parts. Coevals after coevals those vacations rewrite and change their characteristics, properties, signifiers of jubilation ; they adopt a alone American spirit. When we mention Christmas or Thanksgiving or any other popular vacation in The United States, most of the Americans associate them with felicity and merriment, but non everyone. Most of us barely of all time think about how difficult some people ‘s lives get owing to the vacations, owing to all the undermentioned events and owing to us. Sometimes the grounds are strictly psychological, fiscal or something else, unrelated to others, but fact is fact, some people feel suffering when most of the universe celebrates and enjoys their happy yearss. It ‘s the vacation season which fills some with expectancy and exhilaration and others with apprehension. Therapists report an addition in substance maltreatment, domestic force, seasonal affectional upset, and stress related to the vacations ( Post ) .

December is likely the most of import portion of the twelvemonth in the United States, because Christmas and New Year ‘s Eve are most widely celebrated vacations. Preparation starts a month before and many people even start purchasing Christmas nowadayss in November. Consequently, this is the most dying period for many. As the shopping season starts, the tenseness goes up, crowd goes brainsick, childs become raging, surrounding objectionable, shouting their eyes out in the promenades until they bring their parents to the border, where there is no other option but to purchase the latest theoretical account of the dearly-won plaything merely to close them up. This craze reaches its extremum, when the promenade announces a large gross revenues twenty-four hours. There is no opportunity you can purchase a nice point on that twenty-four hours. Desperate Americans will reconnoiter the country to acquire the season ‘s best monetary values yearss before to acquire them every bit shortly as the promenade is opened. There are mile long waiting lines hours before the gap hr. And when it is unfastened, shopping onslaught Begins. What ‘s worse, everyone all of a sudden decides, you are Oprah or Ellen, urgently hungering to listen to their life-time narratives, ideas and secrets. And there you are standing, “ invariably torn between killing yourself and killing everyone around youaˆ¦ ” ( Green, Levithan ) . Sometimes I earnestly think that ‘s where most of the terrorists and psychos acquire their violent thoughts. That ‘s why Grinch makes sense to me every clip I watch the film. He might be average, but he does hold a point when he says: “ That ‘s what it ‘s all about right? That ‘s what it ‘s ever been about! Gifts, gifts, gifts, gifts, gifts, gifts! The greed ne’er ends! ‘I want golf nines! ‘ ‘I want diamonds! ‘ ‘I want a pony so I can sit it twice, acquire bored, and send it off to do gum! ‘ I do n’t wan na do moving ridges here, but this whole Christmas season is Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! ” ( IMDb )

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Brace yourselves, objectionable Christmas films and vocals are coming. No uncertainty, everybody loved “ A Fantastic Life ” and “ A Christmas Carol ” when they watched them, but Lashkar-e-Taiba ‘s face it, how many times can you watch them over and over once more? You must be lucky to happen something else on Television and if you do, I bet it will be some atrocious show conveying self-destructive ideas to your head. Hollywood has already sorted out what the “ perfect ” vacation should be like, with a figure of movies lined up for you. Year after twelvemonth you get this ill feeling that nil has changed. You are stuck in the same subdued universe as it was a twelvemonth earlier, or two old ages before, or three. You can non get away this feeling of stagnancy.

Extended household – the most painful subject for many Americans. You ‘re traveling to hold to see people you would merely every bit shortly seek to avoid. For some, it is existent merriment to run into their cousins, aunts, uncles ; to hold dinner and portion their secrets, memories, but for some it is merely another concern, full of awkward state of affairss, revived old statements and bogus conversations. Many people would instead decease entirely in a hole than to be dragged to a tabular array corner, with a manus on your cervix, listening to the deadening informer for three hours. Peoples have different outlooks. Most of the homemakers want everything to be perfect. How many invitees are coming? What should I cook? Is anyone unexpected coming? Can we afford it? This is the uncomplete list of the inquiries teasing people ‘s heads and doing insomniac darks.

Buying nowadayss for everyone – that drives even the most stable cat loony. Everybody terrors seeking to purchase a valuable gift, to think what others like, non to advert fiscal jobs. When person you hardly know sends you a gift, you are forced to travel out and direct them back a proper nowadays. In Sheldon Cooper ‘s words, they do n’t give you a present, they give you an duty. When the household budget goes lower than planned – so follows a series of nervous dislocations, dirts, struggles, unpleasant household play right in the shopping promenades. Then comes the ground forces of broken Black Marias – girlfriends with low-cost gifts from their fellows, married womans with non so “ warm ” attitudes from their hubbies, people with no attending from their loved 1s and countless other jobs, ensuing in depression, anxiousness and craze. Suicide rate is the highest during Christmastime. The lone 1s gaining from this craze are the large companies, commercializing every individual facet of this vacation. Consumerism reigns during the Christmastime. As Damien Rice says: “ We ‘ll name it Christmas when the adverts Begin ” . Even I feel there is no Christmastime until I see my favourite Coca-Cola Christmas commercial. But still, like Grinch, I think Christmas “ does n’t come from a shop ” ( IMDb ) .

Cars become about useless. There are changeless traffic jams in the streets. If you are lucky plenty and got a caribou or two and a sleigh, you may see traveling out, otherwise you had better walk, unless you enjoy being stuck in a jam for hours. You wo n’t be bored on public conveyance anyhow. Everybody notices your combustion desire to speak and portion your ideas, retrieve? If you are a spot careless and go forth your auto in a distant country, you must be lucky to happen it once more. New Year ‘s Eve is the top auto larceny twenty-four hours in the United States ( Rabiner ) .

Decorating a house can stop in a catastrophe. Many people have no thought how unsafe it can be to adorn your flat. Almost “ 80,000 revellers need hospital intervention over the gay season ” ( Mirror News ) . Most of the hurts are falls, cuts and Burnss. It ‘s the clip of exhilaration and accidents are extremely likely to happen – kitchen accidents with hot H2O or crisp knife, kids cutting themselves while opening nowadayss, or by chance interrupting Christmas Tree toys, electric dazes with Christmas visible radiations ( about 10000 Americans are hurt every twelvemonth while adorning their house ) ( Mirror News ) . Many people have serious wellness jobs because of nutrient toxic condition or imbibing excessively much intoxicant. But nutrient creates more serious jobs, than merely poisoning. It all starts when everything is over. Peoples look in the mirror and excess kgs are excessively obvious. There is no point in declarations before Christmas. No affair how many times you repeat to yourself that you can non eat excessively much, it is ineffectual. There are confects and Sweets everyplace, tasty repasts and fortes that no human being can defy. When you realize what happened, it is excessively late, you have consumed more than your usual 3-day ration. Then starts I-am-so-fat depression, an obligatory diet for a twosome of months, taking 1000000s of people, particularly female 1s, to frenzy, emphasis and sleepless darks. Dateline NBC/Prevention Magazine reported that to the full 41 % of the US citizens it surveyed rated the Christmas vacation season as nerve-racking ( Post ) .

February 14 – the most romantic twenty-four hours of the twelvemonth, or likely non. For some it is the twenty-four hours of shattering dreams, experiencing entirely and suffering, but sometimes even worse. It is a horror for two sorts of people – who are individual and who are non. For singles it is a acrimonious reminder that they have non found “ The One ” , that there is no 1 special in their lives. Or even worse, they have found their one and merely, but he or she will ne’er experience the same, and on this twenty-four hours of love, hope and love affair, they have to endure the thought that their dreams will ne’er come true. About 18 % of American adult females buy flowers or gifts for themselves ( AboutFlowers ) . If they have merely broken up, so it is the worst, watching others showing their love and fondness everyplace they go. Couples, couples everyplace – the existent incubus for singles. But they can merely seek to disregard it and take to remain at place. It is the 1s who are non individual that can ne’er disregard Valentines ‘ twenty-four hours. Personally, I think it is much harder for them. The intended intent of observing that twenty-four hours was to convey twosomes closer and portion their warm feelings ( if you have non shown any fondness for the whole twelvemonth, making so on February 14 likely will non make much ) . Today Valentine ‘s twenty-four hours “ has been transformed into a commercial spectacle peddled to us by florists, recognizing card companies, jewellery shops and shapers of stuffed animate beings ” ( Obeidallah ) . Harmonizing to statistics, about $ 18 billion is spent for this particular twenty-four hours in the United States ( The Guardian ) . On Valentine ‘s Day we are obliged to be nice and romantic, does non it sound a spot hypocrite? If you are non nice and passionate with your spouse any other twenty-four hours, you likely wo n’t be on February 14 either, unless you fake it. Many cats may acquire in problem, because their gift may be excessively inexpensive or non in their girlfriend ‘s gustatory sensation or they may non demo adequate attending. Gift is supposed to show love and fondness, but it is more like purchasing a “ acquire out of the problem ” ticket. There is a gift competition among misss and male childs are really good cognizant that their girlfriends expect to acquire a better nowadays than other misss do. It is rather common that a twosome has a awful battle or even interrupt up merely because of Valentine ‘s Day. They set their hopes and outlooks excessively high, and so they meet disappointment. About 53 % of adult females admit that they would interrupt up with their fellows if they did non acquire any present ( StatisticBrain ) . Divorce filings rise about 40 % this clip of twelvemonth, says information from Avvo, a site that rates and ranks attorneies ( The Guardian ) . These statistics show how much force per unit area couples experience on Valentine ‘s Day. But still, it is neither equal for both genders nor mutual. Even when a twosome agrees non to make anything particular on that twenty-four hours and a cat does non convey even a individual flower and a miss does non make anything either, it is ne’er the same. Man still feels guilty, because she may be a spot defeated, watching other misss acquiring nowadayss. It is ever nonreversible. Why is at that place no particular twenty-four hours, when misss are supposed to convey a cold six pack of Budweiser and a hot pizza? Gender equalityaˆ¦If it is a twenty-four hours of love, how many misss even think of doing a surprise for their fellows? It is supposed to be a twenty-four hours of love and felicity and in world it is a twenty-four hours of emphasis, fright and letdown soaked with cupid-shaped cocoas and downy animate being playthings.

No affair what, it is true there is a group of people who celebrate February 14 with their loved 1s and spend the happiest minutes of their lives together. But this group is far outnumbered but those who despise Valentines ‘ Day as dissembler, grandiloquent and highly commercialized. The worst may go on in this “ happy ” group, when twosomes drink and have fun, show fondness and less attending. And soonaˆ¦surprise! About 11 1000 kids are conceived merely on Valentine ‘s Day ( StatisticBrain ) . If you are born in the first half of November, you know your parents had merriment. But the intelligence is non exciting at all when it is unplanned, particularly for adolescents.

Mother ‘s or Father ‘s Day can be in the list of unpleasant yearss for many. Normally all sorts of vacations are commercialized, but in this instance, most likely, feelings are personal. For those who do non acquire along with their parent, were abandoned or had tough childhood issues due to a domestic force, observing Father ‘s or Mother ‘s Day is non rather nice, as it brings a batch of acrimonious memories. It is particularly difficult for orphans – may it be childs or adults that lost their parents. Life without a male parent or female parent is ever difficult, but on this twenty-four hours, particularly, these people feel the deficiency of parental heat and fondness. For me, it is a good chance to show my gratitude and love to my parents ( unluckily, most of the childs, like me, are non normally compassionate ) . But there is no vacation when everyone is happy. Mother ‘s or Father ‘s Day is straight related to one ‘s personal life and brings equal emotions. For some it is a twenty-four hours to demo regard, but for some it merely stirs up painful memories, or on the contrary, rather happy memories, which they can ne’er resuscitate with their lost parent.

“ Do n’t be a cooked Meleagris gallopavo ” there is no demand to think – we are traveling to speak about Thanksgiving ( WMBF News ) . What a beautiful twenty-four hours, whole household together eating fried Meleagris gallopavo and Sweet murphies. Who cares about history of Thanksgiving, the chief thing is a good repast. Look at all the lovely homemakers who are cooking 242 million Meleagris gallopavos every twelvemonth and more than 1000 fire accidents while frying those Meleagris gallopavos. Property harm due to fire costsA $ 15 million each twelvemonth ( WMBF News ) .A And this is non the terminal. Peoples want to see their relations so much that Thanksgiving in 2010 round every record in holiday history. 431 people died on roads ( ABC News ) . What will be thanksgiving without Meleagris gallopavo? Of class, nil. But more than 1000 fire accidents every twelvemonth is non a little figure even for such a large state as the United States. This twenty-four hours is one of the most atrocious yearss in lives of vegetarians. Imagine you are at the tabular array with all your relations and they are rupturing apart that hapless, fried, headless Meleagris gallopavo. Yes, it is really cheerless that this Meleagris gallopavo died so that some people would be able to eat so much nutrient, that it could hold lasted for 3 dinners. When we are speaking about Meleagris gallopavos, we must ne’er bury homemakers, who make everything for this twenty-four hours and unluckily, 14 February, which would pay this dorsum, is more than 2 month off. Making dinner for the whole household is non an easy occupation. Thanksgiving is non a good vacation for Meleagris gallopavo. It is more like a Holocaust than a vacation every twelvemonth for Meleagris gallopavos. With more than 1000 fire accidents every twelvemonth, 242 million dead Meleagris gallopavos and 431 fatal auto accidents in 2010 Thanksgiving is the bloodiest vacation in the United States. For this twelvemonth ‘s vacation, came out a new vocal “ It ‘s Thanksgiving ” and it is a existent offense against humanity. A miss is singing utilizing a Meleagris gallopavo ‘s fried leg, which makes Thanksgiving non merely the bloodiest vacation in the United States, but the weirdest one excessively.

“ Nightmare before Christmas ” is the scariest vacation in the United States. This vacation started 1000s of old ages ago in Europe but was reborn in the center of the 20th century in the United States. Halloween, chilling outfits, fast one or treating and a batch of confect is what we know, but Halloween has a darker side than we know. Not merely shades and lamias are scaring, Halloween is known for its high rate of prosaic decease. A batch of immature people off from place during the dark with black costumes of class it is unsafe for life. Cars are better slayers than living deads in existent life. Every twelvemonth more than 5 kids die in prosaic accidents during Halloween ( Republican Herald ) .

During the last few old ages, costumes of “ American Psycho ” became really popular and we can no longer see who is under the costume, a existent psycho or merely a adult male with a cool costume and a bloody axe in his manus. Man transporting an axe is non common in mundane life, but Halloween is an exclusion. It is the best twenty-four hours during the twelvemonth to convey your most barbarous purposes to life. So can we merely observe this vacation and non believe about what can perchance go on? It is a existent vacation for kidnapers, liquidators and psychos. A batch of costumes and everyone is happy: grownups with intoxicant, Captain America costumes for work forces and sexy Captain America costumes for adult females, avaricious kids and paedophiles with their cherished confect. Cipher will detect you, cipher will see your face, so you can make everything: score a bibulous adult female, nobble a kid, putting to death or crush person and following twenty-four hours travel to work like nil happened. Make you still think that Halloween is merely a amusing vacation? Merely believe about what can perchance go on to you or your kids. Every minute a jubilation can turn into a incubus. It is truly the scariest and the most awful vacation in the United States.

The twenty-four hours of national pride, Fourth of July, twenty-four hours of independency, can easy go a twenty-four hours of mourning and cryings. Fireworks are truly beautiful that twenty-four hours and, of class, who cares about kids? Last twelvemonth six kids were drowned during the pyrotechnics because their parents merely watched it and did non even think what was traveling to go on. It was non the lone accident that twenty-four hours ( The African Searchlight ) . People ne’er think that something awful may go on on vacations, which is why driving while intoxicated by intoxicant is a normal thing for vacations. During 2000-2009 old ages, Independence Day was the bloodiest vacation in the United States. Merely in 2010 Independence Day, with merely 392 deceases on roads, allow Thanksgiving hold the first topographic point ( ABC News ) . Following award for most hurts of the twelvemonth in the United States is traveling to Independence Day for 1000s of burn hurts around the state. More than 9000 hurts is an impressive figure. Hundreds of people lose their fingers because of their home-made pyrotechnics. “ Curiosity killed the cat ” . Now we can state “ wonder to do pyrotechnics at place cut 100s of fingers ” ( US Fire Administration ) . When you are traveling to purchase illegal pyrotechnics or you are traveling to do them yourself, foremost cipher good how many fingers it will be you.

In decision, vacations can go incubuss for 1000s of people every twelvemonth. When you are hiting pyrotechnics at Independence Day, think at the same clip about how many people are puting in infirmary beds because of the same pyrotechnics, with terrible Burnss all over their organic structure, or without fingers. When you are taking a costume for Halloween, think about how many psychos are fixing for their vacation. When you are looking at your beautiful Christmas tree, think about how many people were crushed by their Christmas tree. Think foremost, when you are fixing for Valentine ‘s Day, that it may be the last twenty-four hours with your love. How can you wait calmly for your relations when they are on the route? Do you still think that holidays conveying merely felicity and joy? You had better reconsider your ideas about it and poise yourself. Possibly you are a subsister of Thanksgiving, but Christmas and New Year are coming.

Beginnings

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Chittley, Jordan. “ San Diego Independence Day Fireworks Explode Prematurely in Merely 15 Seconds. “ A Yokel! News. N.p. , 5 July 2012. Web.

“ CPSC Special Study on Fireworks Incidents Finds Hundreds of Injuries a Day Surrounding July 4 Holiday Festivities. “ A NEWS from CPSCA 26 June 2012, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

“ Focus on Fire Safety: Fireworks. “ A U.S. Fire Administration. Web.

Lupkin, Sydney. “ More Fatal Car Crashes On Thanksgiving Day: Advice That Could Salvage Your Life. “ A ABC News. ABC News Network, 21 Nov. 2012. Web.

Marchiano, Amy. “ Statistics Show Halloween Has the Highest Rate of Pedestrian Fatalities. “ Republican Herald. N.p. , 31 Oct. 2012. Web.

Rice, Damien. AzLyrics. Web. 7 Dec.2012.

Green, John ; Levithan, David. Will Grayson, Will Grayson. New York: Dutton, 2010. Print.

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hypertext transfer protocol: //www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/christmas — -80000-accidents-every-266843

Post, Michelle. “ Home Matters: Not So Happy Holidays ” . Web. Counseling California.6 Dec.2012

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Rabiner, Stephanie. “ New Year ‘s Day Is Top Car Theft Day ” . FindLaw. Dec 29, 2011. Web. Dec 6. 2012

& lt ; hypertext transfer protocol: //blogs.findlaw.com/blotter/2011/12/new-years-day-is-top-car-theft-day.html & gt ;

“ SC Ranks in Top 10 for Thanksgiving Cooking Fires. “ A WMBF News. N.p. , 14 Nov. 2012. Web.

“ Six Children Drown Watching Fireworks during US Independence Day Celebrations. “ A The African Searchlight. N.p. , 5 July 2012. Web.

StatisticBrain. “ Valentine ‘s Day Statistics ” . 1 Feb, 2012. Web. 6 Dec.2012.

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The Guardian. “ Valentine ‘s Day statistics ” . February 13, 2012. Web. 6 Dec. 2012.

& lt ; hypertext transfer protocol: //www.guardian.co.uk/world/us-news-blog/2012/feb/13/valentines-day-pets-divorce-lawyers & gt ;

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