By Michael Somerby EBS STAFF
BIG SKY – There is no better way to tease the upcoming
Halloween holiday than by carving up a jack-o-lantern.
The ritual is well-known for anyone that grew up in the
U.S., which begins at the local pumpkin patch where only the largest or most
shapely pumpkins catch the eye, inspiring visions of pumpkin-carving greatness.
After hauling the pumpkin off the patch, typically with the
aid of a parent or wheelbarrow, the fun begins when the tools—knives and spoons
of varying sizes—are laid out over a makeshift canvas of newspaper. Of course,
the pumpkins are there too, washed and waiting for a facelift.
Cue the scooping of seeds and pulp, the gouging of triangle eyeholes
and crooked teeth, and the delight of placing the pumpkin on a stoop or house’s
entryway with a lit candle placed in its belly.
And while this cherished routine might feel familiar to
most, the history behind the jack-o-lantern is something that eludes the
majority of Halloween revelers, and we must turn to the Old World and to
immigrants for its genesis.
According to History.com, the roots of the jack-o-lantern
can be found in Irish folklore, which holds that “Stingy Jack” routinely fooled
the Devil in the hopes of seeking sanctuary from his wicked ways.
Stingy Jack first invited Lucifer to a drink, asking the
demonic king to transform him into a coin to pay for their brews. Once in coin
form, Jack placed the Devil in his pocket next to a cross, preventing the Devil
from returning to his typical form. Desperate to return to normal, the Devil
agreed to leave Jack unharmed for one year, as well as relinquish his soul to
heaven should he die.
Next, Jack convinced the Devil to climb into the branches of
a fruit tree, carving a cross on the tree trunk while the Devil searched for
fruit—in order to climb down, the Devil promised to leave Jack be for 10
additional years.
As legend would have it, Jack died, but God refused to let a
trickster beyond the pearly gates, and the Devil, keeping his word, would not
allow his soul into hell.
He sent Jack off into the world, with only a burning coal
for light, which Jack placed into a carved turnip. Jack forever roamed the
Earth as a damned soul, inspiring centuries of Irish and Scottish people to
carve turnips of their own, replete with scary faces, to ward off evil spirits
such as Jack.
So, as people from the British Isles immigrated to the U.S.,
so too did their customs, though they adopted the use of the American pumpkin
instead of turnips like in days of old.
Put your pumpkin
carving skills to the test at Lone Peak Cinema’s Pumpkin King & Queen
Carving Competition on Saturday, Oct. 26, from 5-7 p.m. Visit
bigskytowncetner.com for more information.
Quick jack-o-lantern
carving tips:
- Get a pumpkin with a greener stem, ensuring
freshness and proper handling
- Oddly shaped pumpkins can make for some of the
best designs
- Be sure to scoop every piece of innards out,
making your pumpkin less likely to rot
- Spray your carved pumpkin with water to keep it
firm
- Carve your pumpkin no more than 24 hours before
an event for optimal freshness and shape
- Refrigerate as necessary to prolong the life of
your jack-o-lantern
