Get into the Halloween spirit with our best stories on the holiday, which include a look into the Salem witch trials and the obsession with Satanism in nineteenth-century France. No tricks, only treats: all stories contain free links to the supporting academic research on JSTOR. Happy Halloween!
Holiday History
Halloween: A Mystic and Eerie Significance
October 26, 2022
Despite the prevalence of tricks and spooky spirits in earlier years, the American commercial holiday didn’t develop until the middle of the twentieth century.
How the Great Pumpkin Became Great
October 21, 2019
The origins of Linus's pumpkin deity, who "rises out of the pumpkin patch and flies through the air and brings toys to all the children in the world."
A Very JSTOR Daily Costume Guide
October 15, 2021
Get inspired for Halloween with these hand-curated historical images from JSTOR's Open Community Collections!
From Samhain to Halloween
October 10, 2018
Exploring the Celtic origins of everyone's favorite harvest holiday celebrating thresholds between life and death.
A Roman Feast… of Death!
October 17, 2019
The banquet hall was painted black from ceiling to floor. By the pale flicker of grave lamps, the invited senators coud make out a row of tombstones.
Trick or Treat Sadists: A Halloween Urban Legend
October 30, 2015
Are there a group of trick or treat sadists poisoning the candy they distribute on Halloween?
Ghosts, Spirits, and Phantasms
How to Summon Spirits
October 21, 2021
The Spiritualist, a newspaper published from 1869-1882, is filled with tales of supernatural phenomena and tips for communicating with the dead.
The Dressy Ghosts of Victorian Literature
July 30, 2021
Realism was exceptionally well suited (heh) for elaborate descriptions of spectral clothing.
Can You Photograph a Ghost?
October 25, 2024
William Hope claimed to be able to document the visitations of ghosts. The controversial images he produced add to our understanding of the history of photography.
A Belief in Ghosts: Poetry and the Shared Imagination
October 4, 2016
An essay from poet Dorothea Lasky on poetry, ghosts, and the shared imagination.
Haunted Soldiers in Mesopotamia
May 20, 2024
In ancient Mesopotamia, many medical disorders were attributed to ghosts, including mental problems faced by men who had spent years at war.
Witches and Their Familiars
Nine Black Cat Stickers
October 27, 2020
They crossed our path and we lived to tell the tale. Check them out in the Street Arts Graphics Collection!
What Caused the Salem Witch Trials?
October 27, 2015
Looking into the underlying causes of the Salem Witch Trials in the 17th century.
Sex and the Single Witch
October 23, 2023
On witch-hunting and the pursuit of sexual knowledge in early-modern England.
Is There a Witch Bottle in Your House?
May 13, 2019
In the 16th-18th centuries, vessels filled with nails, thorns, hair, and other materials, were used as a form of ritual protection against witches.
Witches’ Marks Protected Spaces from Evil
March 8, 2019
Throughout history, people tried to protect spaces from evil with apotropaic marks, ritual concealments, and other charms.
Rachel Carson’s Critics Called Her a Witch
February 21, 2019
When Silent Spring was published, the response was overtly gendered. Rachel Carson's critics depicted her as hysterical, mystical, and witchy.
Vampires
Vampires and Public Health
September 29, 2022
At the end of the nineteenth century, the people of Rhode Island were drained by a mysterious force that caused them to slowly waste away.
Marxferatu: Teaching Marx with Vampires
October 30, 2018
For a younger generation trying to understand Marxism, the best way in may be: vampirism.
The Real Vampires of Europe
October 31, 2017
In general, a vampire is a malicious spirit or soul of the deceased who is not confined to the grave. Where did the idea come from?
The Teyollohcuani: Cosmopolitan Vampire Witch
November 11, 2022
When different cultures meet, their languages, foods, and songs mix and change—and so do their monsters.
Haunted Places and Spaces
Do We Have to Tell Them the House Is Haunted?
October 27, 2018
On the law and mythologies of haunting, from antiquity to today.
How Victorian Mansions Became the Default Haunted House
October 16, 2018
Quick: Picture a haunted house. It's probably a Victorian mansion, right? Here's how these structures became signifiers of horror, haunting, and death.
And Other Spooky Things
The Very Human Appeal of American Horror Story
October 3, 2021
The late author Joanna Russ had insights about why horror speaks to ordinary experiences and emotions.
The D-I-Y Origins of Night of the Living Dead
November 5, 2020
Night of the Living Dead’s production story reads like a means to an end: a rag-tag group of creatives makes a movie on nothing to get noticed.
The Decapitation Experiments of Jean César Legallois
October 29, 2020
This French scientist conducted a series of gruesome experiments in his quest to discover the true limits of life and death.
The Pious Undead of Medieval Europe
October 14, 2019
Bishop Thietmar of Merseburg's eight-volume history contained stories of the living dead—and, he believed, proof of the Christian resurrection.
How Scary is Too Scary?
October 26, 2016
Halloween poses questions for parents, like how scary is too scary for their kids? The answer depends on when we ask the question.
Why We Love to Be Scared
September 2, 2016
Nearly 1.5 billion tickets to horror movies were sold in 2015 alone. But why do we love being scared so much?
Satanism and Magic in the Age of the Moulin Rouge
March 9, 2016
How did some of the most illustrious names of fin de siècle French literature end up in a newspaper battle over witchcraft and evil spirits?
Selling Slashers to Teen Girls
September 25, 2019
The heroines of 1970s and 80s teen horror movies were traditionally feminine, tough, and sexually confident.
The Horror!
October 26, 2022
If Dracula represented the collective fears of his day, what do the likes of Slender Man and other internet monsters tell us about the zeitgeist of right now?
The Magic Lantern Shows that Influenced Modern Horror
May 12, 2018
Eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century audiences were delighted and horrified by these spectral apparitions conjured in dark rooms.
The Therapeutic Value of Horror Video Games
June 15, 2020
In stressful situations, seeking out even more stress can be cathartic.
Editor’s note: This list is updated periodically, most recently on October 28, 2024.
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