Russel Belk’s “Carnival, Control, and Corporate Culture in Halloween Celebrations” outlines that there are psychological reasons behind why we celebrate Halloween. Belk believes that there is a form of catharsis involved, meaning there is some sort of release of emotional tension after some sort of experience – or just life in general. It’s interesting that only in recent years we have seen more and more people dress up for Halloween in the workplace.
Rachel Neumann explains that “a traditional Halloween symbolizes all that used to be fun about this country before consumerism became our only god and every stranger became a potential terrorist”. I somewhat agree with this statement, and it relates to Belk’s idea of catharsis.
Halloween allows us, whether in the workplace or not, to become someone else. Whether one parties or trick or treats on the night, they will ultimately dress up to something or someone as vastly different than herself or himself. It is important to keep in mind here that dressing up in costume usually works as a good excuse to wear something gruesome, altering or revealing. Usually it’s the latter. Whatever the costume, one is still wearing something far from what they would wear on an everyday basis. Escapism? Maybe.
I think what Belk is trying to get at with this article is that Halloween is more a form of escapism rather than a catharsis. Escapism is “mental diversion by means of entertainment or recreation, as an ‘escape’ from the perceived unpleasant aspects of daily stress”. Belk writes that “the executive himself makes it a point to wear a costume Halloween day…and to walk around the entire office”. Dressing up in the work place allows employees to escape from their normal lives at work. Belk also says that offices in the United States make Halloween a type of special event which puts some spark back into the company while motivating people by showing them they are recognized and appreciated. I’m not entirely sure how allowing employees to dress up makes them feel recognized or appreciated – thinking about it seems really weird. “We like you, so dress up in a costume today”. Again I think allowing employees to dress up for Halloween is more a type of escapism than catharsis. We are just escaping from normal traditions of everyday life. This also relates to Neumann’s statement above. Instead of allowing employees to dress up to feel recognized or appreciated, I think employees are allowed to dress up because it symbolizes what is fun, can be fun, or should be fun in the workplace (escapism). But on the other hand, allowing employees to dress up could just be a simple way to ease tension in the workplace (catharsis).
Whatever the reasons employees dress up in the workplace, it’s mostly just for fun. Yes, it may involve some sort of catharsis or escapism, but it’s fun to dress up – right?