Why ghosts are associated with Halloween

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By Made by History / Produced by Olivia B. Waxman Spooky season is upon us! As Tithi Bhattacharya explores in Made by History, our impulse to celebrate this time of year with pumpkins and ghostly spirits is rooted in a longer history of harvest festivals marked by visits from ghosts. In premodern societies, ghosts were an intimate part of everyday life, serving different roles, variously scary, pragmatic, and joyful.  From the Irish Samhain to the Bengali Bhoot Chaturdashi, festivals in agrarian societies recognized harvest time as a time when the veil between the worlds of the living and the dead is thin. This association persists in our Halloween. As modernity has delivered more distance from death, ghosts have changed—becoming infrequent, seasonal visitors; symbols of sorrow, mourning, and darkness. But tonight's ghostly costumes and decorations offer a portal to a bygone world.

HISTORY ON TIME.COM America's Forgotten Occult Origins By Ed Simon Occultism and nation-building have been strangely intertwined, particularly in the gestation of America, writes Ed Simon. Read More » History Suggests That Trump’s Approach to Putin Is All Wrong By Stephan Kieninger / Made by History Presidents dating back to Bill Clinton have courted Putin, only to have him ignore their views and engage in aggression. Read More » The Tariff History Donald Trump Is Overlooking By Ajay K. Mehrotra / Made by History Why the U.S. turned against the regressive 19th century tariffs favored by former president Donald Trump. Read More » How the Trump Rally at Madison Square Garden Follows a Long Tradition in Politics By KAREN MATTHEWS / AP Trump's rally on Sunday follows a long line of political events at the storied New York City arena. Read More » How Wisconsin Became the Ultimate Purple State By Nancy C. Unger / Made by History The Badger State offers a unique window into the cause and effects of national trends and shifts. Read More » The Story Behind James Earl Jones’ Narration of the Opening Video at Michigan Football Games By Lorena Chambers / Made by History Jones' time at the University of Michigan transformed his life. Today his voice welcomes Wolverines to home football games. Read More » In the Vatican Movie Conclave, Big Secrets Are Revealed. Here Are Three Real Life Papal Conclaves Marked by Controversy By Olivia B. Waxman Conclave is a fictional movie about a Vatican conclave. Here's a look at three real papal conclaves marked by controversy. Read More »

A Message from Inside Hotels TRAVEL SPOTLIGHT OUTRIGGER Maldives Maafushivaru Resort Maafushivaru Island, South Ari Atoll, Maldives Celebrate the holiday season in paradise at OUTRIGGER Maldives Maafushivaru Resort, a luxurious escape perfect for winter relaxation. Whether you stay in an overwater villa with a private pool or a beach villa steps from the sand, you’ll find festive cheer in the Maldives’ stunning surroundings. Relax with a rejuvenating couples massage at the spa or indulge in holiday dining  at the resort’s diverse dining venues, from Art-I-San set at the highest point on the island to Koto, an intimate Japanese fusion restaurant set over a sunset lagoon. For adventure, explore the crystal-clear waters with snorkeling or a marine biologist-led dolphin quest. Special holiday events and experiences make this an unforgettable destination to ring in the season. Read More »

FROM THE TIME VAULT This week in 1956: Maria Callas, opera singer HENRY KOERNER The Oct. 29, 1956, cover of TIME “In those years, tawny, big-eyed Maria Callas established herself as undisputed queen of the world’s opera...Soprano Callas has yet to face the ordeal of her Metropolitan debut next week. It is an ordeal that has yielded severe criticisms for such famed prima donnas as Melba. Sembrich, Nordica and Farrar, and conceivably could be a bitter experience for her as well. But Callas has faced bitter experiences before and triumphantly survived them. ‘People would like to see me flop, just once,’ she admits. ‘Well, I can’t and I won’t. I will never give any satisfaction to my enemies.’” Read More » This week in 1975: Bruce Springsteen, rock star TIME The Oct. 27, 1975, cover of TIME “Dressed usually in leather jacket and shredded undershirt, he is a glorified gutter rat from a dying New Jersey resort town…When he is not working, Springsteen takes life easy and does not worry about it. ‘I’m not a planning-type guy,’ he says. ‘You can’t count on nothing in this life. I never have expectations when I get involved in things. That way, I never have disappointments.’ His songs, which he characterizes as being mostly about ‘survival, how to make it through the next day,’ are written in bursts. ‘I ain’t one of those guys who feels guilty if he didn’t write something today,’ he boasts. ‘That’s all jive. If I didn’t do nothing all day, I feel great.’” Read More » This week in 2014: Rand Paul, politician Mark Seliger for TIME The Oct. 27, 2014, cover of TIME “‘If we want a big party, then the party has to look like the rest of America,’ he said, repeating a line he now uses across the country. ‘And that means with earrings, without earrings. With tattoos, without tattoos. With ponytails, without ponytails.’ American politics is a craft of competitive storytelling, and the story almost never changes. You probably already know what part you play–red, blue or sick of it all. Government is mostly bad or mostly good. The free market is either perverse or righteous. The art of presidential campaigns is to manipulate these notions with a stock set of characters and clichés, allowing only slight variations, enough to impart authenticity without putting at risk the basic two-party math.” Read More »

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