The hanging of lights is a common holiday tradition.
In 16 days, many people will be home with their families opening presents and celebrating Christmas day. The town basically shuts down except for essential stores. Some people attend a church service and celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. The majority of Americans celebrate the secular holiday centered around the idea of Santa Clause and gift giving.
Christmas has become one of the biggest money making holidays for businesses. Businesses are capitalizing on the fact that everyone is going to be buying gifts. You will see stores having major sales and extended hours. This custom of giving gifts has completely changed the focus of the holiday.
There are many traditions that are celebrated nationwide during the Christmas season. For example, an easy one to spot is the presence of Christmas lights on houses. As seen in the picture, millions of people decorate their houses with lights and other symbols of Christmas. Although this is an extremely common tradition, most people could not tell you the history behind Christmas lights.
So then why do people hang up lights? Most claim to do it because it is a holiday tradition. Their families have participated in the custom and, therefore, they feel the need to carry on this practice. They blindly follow society and abide by popular customs without knowing why or questioning the reason behind it.
Another tradition that is celebrated across the country.
Edmund Burke argues strongly in favor of tradition. As he talks about in his paper, Reflections on the Revolution in France, he values social order and even blatantly states that he “cherishes” prejudices. Burke would argue in favor of maintaining traditions like decorating a Christmas tree purely based on the fact that they are a tradition.
This mentality is the root cause of many forms of discrimination. Based on this ideology, slavery and gender discrimination would be acceptable practices in society simply because they are practices that have been in society for years. Burke wouldn’t stop to think about the impacts of his actions. He would focus on maintaining the social order.
Personally, I think this kind of mentality is harmful to our society. I agree with the ideas presented by John Stuart Mill in his book, On Liberty. Mill goes into a detailed discussion about the importance of critically thinking about one actions before blindly following society. He talks about what it means to be a human and how we need to think for ourselves in order to fully reach our potential. Mill even goes so far as to state that people who do not think for themselves are “ape-like”.
Although this may be an extreme stance, I think that Mill makes a good point. I believe that society today blindly follows traditions and popular customs. This mentality is what is fueling discrimination. If we can get people to think critically about their actions, we can prevent further cases of discrimination. By thinking about our actions, we can get rid of rash decisions and prejudices.
I am not arguing that all traditions are bad. I, personally, love the Christmas holiday, and I hang lights up on my house. These readings just made me question why I participate in this custom and if it was harming others. I decided that hanging up Christmas lights was not harming other people and brought my family pleasure. I think that if a certain action doesn’t harm other people and as positive outcomes, then people should feel free to participate in them. Just remember over these next couple weeks to think about your actions. Take a step back and truly ask yourself why you are participating in certain customs. You might be surprised at your answers.
Touchdown Theory 