Happy Halloween from HWA!
Happy Halloween from the Horror Writers Association (HWA)!
As horror writers, of course we treasure Halloween, but we also understand the concerns of some educators in regards to the holiday.
Halloween has a rich history that goes back over a thousand years, encompassing elements of folklore, literature, sociology, and pop culture. In the 21st century it is celebrated as a secular festival with playful costumes, parties, and fictitious scares. We urge educators to consider Halloween’s literary and historical side; it’s a perfect time to interest students in such classics as:
- “The Black Cat” by Edgar Allan Poe
- “Young Goodman Brown” by Nathaniel Hawthorne
- “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” by Washington Irving
- “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson
- “The Outsider” by H. P. Lovecraft
- Dracula by Bram Stoker
- Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
- Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
Teachers, librarians, and others who want to learn more about the history of the holiday might consult:
- Halloween: An American Holiday, an American History by Lesley Bannatyne
- A Halloween Reader: Poems, Stories, and Plays from Halloween Past by Lesley Bannatyne
- The Halloween Encyclopedia (2nd Edition) by Lisa Morton
- On the web: Halloween Guru – http://www.halloween.guru
HWA is also happy to help with curriculum, arranging speakers, library activities, writing programs, and more. Visit us at https://www.horror.org or contact us at admin@horror.org .
