@Bobko, quoting Lenin and Marx on women, seriously? A pair of self-indulgent lay-abouts who never did an honest day's graft in their lives. It's always the intellectuals who couldn't find their own arse with both hands, who seem to be the experts on 'the worker'. As for men theorizing about what's best for women, here's a radical idea - ask the women.
the tradition of sending your kids out to ring on unknown doors
It's called guising. In Ireland going door to door dressed up is not unique to Hallowe'en but most of the other occasions are specific to particular regions eg. in Kerry they still celebrate the festival of Imbolc. There are four ancient Irish festivals, Imbolc, Lughnasa, Bealtaine and Samhain (Hallowe'en) which carried on and were woven into Christian festivals. At Imbolc a straw doll, the Brideog is made. She represents St Brigid. A group of men carry her from house to house and they come in and have to perform a song or dance, they usually have musical instruments with them and then they get something in return, in the old days some money, but now a bit of cake or a sip of whiskey or something like that or maybe a donation for a charity or local community project.
"They came over the threshold,
the Biddy Boys, with a straw doll
almost as big as myself, looking for money.
One had a mask with the face of the devil.
A melodeon started up. I was pulled
from my chair at the table and twirled."
"Away with youse now, and your Brideog,
my father said, giving them a handful
of coins. God bless you and may St. Brigid protect
you and yours, they sang from the door.
When the devil blew me a kiss
a wind raised the rushes from the floor."
Incidentally my granny played the melodeon!
