Death In Mexican Culture

The Day of the Dead and Halloween are alike in many ways. During the Day of the Dead, people dress in costumes and celebrate their dead loved ones returning to them. Similarly, on Halloween, people also dress in costumes and go “Trick or Treating”. Both holidays also come from Catholic roots, and believe the veil between the living and dead worlds is thinnest on these days. During the Day of the Dead celebrations, people cook, eat, and have a party, similar to what others do on Halloween.

Throughout history, various ancient civilizations all over the globe have created traditions and customs that have been passed down through generation to generation. The idea of having these customs withstand the test of time is truly remarkable. A perfect example of the passing of tradition is the Mexican celebration of El Dia De Los Muertos. El Dia De Los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a holiday that honors and celebrates loved ones of family who have passed away. Although it has its origins from the Aztec Empire, the holiday is widely celebrated in Latin America and even some parts of the United States. During the 1960s and early 1970s, the Chicano Movement embraced El Día de los Muertos as a way to reconnect with pre-Hispanic and Mexican

Family traditions were created to pass down the culture from generation to generation. Many of these traditions are ritual or rites of passage that emphasize the value of family and growing up within the family’s culture. Family traditions passed down through generations establish unity, responsibility, feeling of belonging and a well-rounded individual. Growing up in a house with three or more generations of family is very chaotic since the changing times clash greatly among each generation. Even if all three generations don’t live among each other, it’s still trouble when all three come together. In Mexican culture, the three generations are typically defined as the grandparents who came from Mexico, followed by their children who were born

The practices and attitudes of people vary from one country to another depending on the culture of the people. The common theme surrounding the attitude towards death and dying is based on the belief of a community about the soul of the deceased, which leads to the performance of rituals and ceremonies. Puerto Ricans comprise of Latinos who have demonstrated a greater external expression of grief towards death with the intensity of grief increasing depending on the suddenness of death. Puerto Ricans have strong family relationships, so they do everything to terminally ill family members do not learn about the seriousness of their illness to protect them from grief is detrimental. This information was the eldest son or daughter. (Purnell, Guide, 337) The patient's family is doing

Halloween and Day of the Dead, despite their similarities, are very different. They are similar because they both have sugary treats and they are different because they are celebrated in different ways, and the preparation of the holidays are different. Day of the Dead is a holiday celebrated in Mexico, and Central America where people celebrate their ancestors souls and bring them some of their favorite things to their graves and throw many parties. Halloween is a day when children go out in costumes to trick-or-treat for candies and other sugary items, people also setup decorations outside their houses that look go along with the holiday.

What is the difference between The Day of The Death and Halloween? In Mexican culture, we celebrate The Day of The Death on November 1 to honor ancestors and loved ones who passed away and invite those spirits back into our homes and be part of the family. In America people celebrate Halloween on October 31 and this tradition is related to The Day of The Death. However, these two traditions are similar but different meaning to American and Mexican culture in how people celebrate, different kinds of food, and decorations.

Mexican society tends to be religious, that is why the elements of Catholicism can be observed in many areas of Mexican’s life. This essay will investigate the Christian motives in Mexican literature, namely, the novel by Juan Rulfo “Pedro Paramo”. In this paper I will argue that the novel “Pedro Paramo” shows a typical view of Mexican Catholicism by focusing on Mexican beliefs of purgatory and ghosts, its role and image in the novel. Investigating its influence on plot and characters and making a comparison with The Bible and Catholic Doctrine of Purgatory’s description of these terms are crucial parts of the essay.

In our Mexican culture we celebrate el dia de los muertes or the day of the dead, in a lively and cheerful festival. Instead of mourning the loss of our loved ones we celebrate and have a day to remember how amazing those people were and how they lived their life. Probably one of the most important symbols to that festival and to our Mexican culture is the sugar skulls. Sugar skulls are handmade skulls made of mostly sugar. However, at first the skull is a blank canvas and anyone can decorate them to resemble their deceased loved ones. Some people even write the name of their deceased in the forehead of the skull. Usually we decorate the skulls extremely colorful with the primary colors of yellow, orange, light green, and pink. The reason for this is because we use vivid colors that represent the joyful times and things the deceased person lived through, instead of remembering the woeful times.

As hispanics we like to celebrate a lot, we celebrate some of the same holidays as other cultures. During Christmas time we make posadas which is half religious and half celebrating , we recreate Mary and Joseph’s pilgrimage to Bethlehem .When we finish with that part we start with the party half which we celebrate with food and piñatas. As Hispanics we really do believe in traditions, during christmas time we like to make big parties all our family and friends get together to celebrate we make some traditional food like tamales, punch ,buñuelos and many other food .

Nowadays, many people wear items of clothing decorated with sugar skulls or skeleton prints, such as shirts, dresses, or leggings on Día de los Muertos. You can also wear shells and dance so that the noisiness "wakes up" the dead or even dress up as the deceased.

They each celebrate the New Year, Easter, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Christmas, and All Saint’s Day. However, Hispanic countries also celebrate Immaculate Conception, Carnival, Festival of Saint John, and the Assumption of Mary (Spanish Culture). Where as in America also celebrates Martin Luther King Day, Valentine’s Day, Casimir Pulaski Day, St. Patrick’s Day, and Independence Day. Both countries take holidays seriously and usually, depending on the job they have, they get the day off to celebrate.

To many people skulls represent death and negativity however, for Mexicans that celebrate Day of the Dead sugar skulls represent death in a positive manner. In Mexico it is believed that death is not the final stage in life but rather a step forward onto a higher level of consciousness. This is similar to the beliefs of the Aztecs. The Aztec skulls were a positive symbol, not only of death but also of rebirth. The symbolism of sugar skulls is rooted in the decoration around the eyes. Life is symbolized by flowers, while death is symbolized by cob webs. Burning candles are also set inside the eyes as a sign of remembrance.

When you hear the word Christmas, what do you think about. Well, in other countries, people might think differently, like in Mexico. In Mexico, people have a variety of Christmas traditions.

There are many differences between el Día de los muertos and Halloween. One of these differences being the mood of the holiday. Halloween is dark and scary holiday, while el Día de los muertos is a joyful holiday. During el Día de los muertos, families buy foods to honor their lost loved ones. During halloween in contrast, candy is handed out to kids. Finally, el Día de los muertos is much more spiritual than halloween. El Día de los muertos is a time for people to pray and honor their dead family members and friends, while halloween has no spiritual or religious importance.

She claims that cultural rituals and public communication enhance understanding of other cultures and encourages others to become more involved in society (Marchi, 138). Additionally, Marchi notes that many times these events take on political meaning when we don’t even realize it. Marchi argues that the U.S. Day of the Dead celebrations have provided Latinos and non-Latinos with a sense of identity, community, and cultural pride. In conclusion, Latino culture and the Day of the Dead events in the United States have greatly influenced the lives of Americans and will continue to shape society for years to