[ti:Halloween in America: Costumes, Candy, Costs for Night of Fright]
[by:www.21voa.com]
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[00:00.04]October 31 is Halloween.
[00:04.96]But many Americans have been
[00:07.84]preparing for the holiday for weeks.
[00:11.64]And businesses are hoping
[00:15.32]for good profits
[00:16.96]from Halloween purchases.
[00:20.44]The National Retail Federation (N.R.F.)
[00:24.96]is the largest U.S. trade group
[00:28.16]representing sellers of material goods.
[00:33.20]It expects total Halloween spending
[00:36.64]in 2024 to reach about $11.6 billion.
[00:45.44]That sounds like a healthy amount,
[00:48.84]but it would be a drop from the year before.
[00:54.48]The N.R.F. says total Halloween spending
[00:58.88]in 2023 was a record-setting $12.2 billion.
[01:08.20]So, you might wonder:
[01:10.48]What are Americans buying for Halloween
[01:14.48]and how do they celebrate the holiday?
[01:19.76]Halloween traditions in America
[01:22.88]are linked to Celtic beliefs in ancient Britain.
[01:28.16]The Celts believed that spirits of the dead
[01:32.16]would return to their homes on October 31,
[01:37.48]the day of the autumn feast.
[01:41.32]Celts would build huge fires
[01:44.36]to frighten away any evil spirits that might return.
[01:51.56]People from Scotland and Ireland
[01:55.16]brought these ideas with them
[01:57.80]when they came to America.
[02:02.32]Some believed that spirits
[02:04.92]played tricks on people
[02:06.92]on the last night of October.
[02:11.36]In modern America,
[02:13.52]the holiday mostly belongs to children.
[02:18.52]After dark, children
[02:20.92]wear special clothing, called costumes.
[02:25.64]They often appear as frightening creatures
[02:29.60]like vampires, ghosts and witches.
[02:34.68]The children walk around their neighborhoods,
[02:37.96]knocking on doors of homes.
[02:41.44]When someone answers a door,
[02:44.32]the children yell "trick or treat."
[02:48.76]If the people in the homes
[02:51.24]do not give them a sweet treat,
[02:54.16]the children may play a trick on them.
[02:59.04]Some of the purchases people make
[03:01.72]for Halloween include candy and costumes.
[03:07.56]This year, the N.R.F. expects
[03:10.72]the superhero character Spider-Man
[03:14.48]to be the most popular children's costume.
[03:20.04]Children are not the only Americans
[03:23.28]in costumes on Halloween, however.
[03:26.56]Adults also dress up in costumes
[03:30.48]and attend Halloween parties,
[03:33.32]parades and other events.
[03:37.08]These celebrations often include
[03:40.48]costume competitions,
[03:43.12]with prizes for the most frightening,
[03:46.20]inventive or humorous costumes.
[03:51.08]Overall, the N.R.F. reports,
[03:54.16]total spending on costumes for Halloween 2024
[04:00.12]is expected to reach a total of $3.8 billion.
[04:06.80]It says buyers will spend $3.5 billion
[04:12.56]on Halloween candy.
[04:15.76]Americans also enjoy
[04:18.24]decorating their homes for Halloween.
[04:22.12]People hang fake skeletons, witches, spiders
[04:27.00]and other scary things around their doors
[04:31.52]and from trees and bushes.
[04:35.68]They also cut scary faces into pumpkins
[04:39.96]and light them to create a strange glow.
[04:45.84]Some people do a little decorating,
[04:49.16]others do a lot, and still others do none at all.
[04:55.92]But, the N.R.F. says researchers estimate
[05:00.24]Americans will spend about $3.8 billion dollars
[05:06.08]to dress up their houses for Halloween this year.
[05:12.08]I'm Caty Weaver. 更多听力请访问21VOA.COM