[万圣节] 七嘴八舌话说万圣

The ancient Druids 督伊德教(古代高卢人与不列颠人的一种宗教)的教徒 who inhabited what we now call Great Britain placed great importance on the passing of one season to the next, holding "Fire Festivals" which were celebrated¹ for three days (two days on either side of the day itself).

One of these festivals was called Samhain (pronounced Sha-Von) and it took place on October 31 through to November 1. During this period, it was believed that the boundaries between our world and the world of the dead were weakened, allowing spirits of the recently dead to cross over and possess the living.

In order to make themselves and their homes less inviting² to these wayward spirits, the ancient Celts（凯尔特人）would douse³ （插入水中, 把弄熄, 弄湿）all their fires. There was also a secondary purpose to this, after extinguishing all their fires, they would re-light them from a common source, the Druidic fire that was kept burning at Usinach, in the Middle of Ireland.

Samhain was considered to be a gateway⁴ not only from the land of the dead to the land of the living, but also between Summer and Fall/Winter. For the Druids, this was the last gasp⁵ （喘息, 气喘）of summer (it was also the Celtic New Year), so therefore they made sure it went out with a bang before they had to button down （把...弄清楚）for the winter ahead.

They would dress up in bizarre costumes and parade through their villages causing destruction in order to scare off any recently departed souls who might be prowling （巡游）for bodies to inhabit, in addition to burning animals and other offerings to the Druidic deities⁶（神, 神性）. It is also a popular belief that they would burn people who they believed to be possessed⁷, but this has largely been debunked⁸ （揭穿, 拆穿假面具, 暴露）as myth.

This yearly festival was adopted by the Roman invaders⁹, who helped to propagate （传播, 宣传）it throughout the rest of the world (and at that time, the Roman Empire was the world). The word "Halloween" itself actually comes from a contraction¹⁰ of All Hallows Eve, or All Saint's Day (November 1), which is a Catholic day of observance in honor of saints.

This tradition was later brought to the North American continent by Irish immigrants who were escaping the Potato Famine in their homeland. In addition to the festival itself, the immigrants brought several customs with them, including one of the symbols most commonly associated with Halloween -- the Jack¹¹ 'O Lantern.

According to Irish folklore¹², there once lived a man named Jack who was known for being a drunk and a prankster（顽皮的人, 爱开玩笑的人）. One night Jack tricked the devil into climbing a tree, and quickly carved an image of a cross on the trunk, trapping the devil. Jack then made him promise that, in exchange for letting him out of the tree, the Devil would never tempt¹³ him to sin again. He reluctantly agreed, but was able to exact his revenge upon Jack's death. Because of his mischievous¹⁴ ways in life, Jack was barred from entering heaven and because of his earlier trick, he was also barred from hell. So he was doomed¹⁵ to wander the earth until the end of time, with only a single ember（灰烬, 余烬） (carried in a hollowed out turnip¹⁶.[植]芜箐, 芜箐甘蓝) to warm him and light his way.

In Ireland, they originally also used turnips¹⁷ for their "Jack Lanterns", but upon arriving in the new world, they discovered that pumpkins¹⁸ were abundant and easier to carve out.

1 celebrated
adj.有名的 ，声誉卓著的
参考例句：
He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。 The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家 。

2 inviting
adj.诱人的，引人注目的
参考例句：
An inviting smell of coffee wafted into the room.一股诱人的咖啡香味飘进了房间。 The kitchen smelled warm and inviting and blessedly familiar.这间厨房的味道温暖诱人 ，使人感到亲切温馨 。

3 douse
v.把…浸入水中 ，用水泼；n.泼洒
参考例句：
Men came with buckets of water and began to douse the flames.人们提来一桶桶水灭火。 He doused the flames with a fire extinguisher.他用灭火器把火焰扑灭 。

4 gateway
n.大门口，出入口 ，途径 ，方法
参考例句：
Hard work is the gateway to success.努力工作是通往成功之路 。 A man collected tolls at the gateway.一个人在大门口收通行费。

5 gasp
n.喘息，气喘；v.喘息；气吁吁他说
参考例句：
She gave a gasp of surprise.她吃惊得大口喘气 。 The enemy are at their last gasp.敌人在做垂死的挣扎 。

6 deities
n.神 ，女神( deity的名词复数 )；神祗；神灵；神明
参考例句：
Zeus and Aphrodite were ancient Greek deities. 宙斯和阿佛洛狄是古希腊的神。 来自《简明英汉词典》 Taoist Wang hesitated occasionally about these transactions for fearof offending the deities. 道士也有过犹豫 ，怕这样会得罪了神 。 来自汉英文学 - 现代散文

7 possessed
adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的
参考例句：
He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门 。 He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。

8 debunked
v.揭穿真相 ，暴露( debunk的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
His theories have been debunked by recent research. 最近的研究揭穿了他的理论的真相 。 Some advertising slogans should be debunked. 某些夸大的广告用语应予揭露 。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 invaders
入侵者 ，侵略者，侵入物( invader的名词复数 )
参考例句：
They prepared to repel the invaders. 他们准备赶走侵略军。 The family has traced its ancestry to the Norman invaders. 这个家族将自己的世系追溯到诺曼征服者 。

10 contraction
n.缩略词 ，缩写式，害病
参考例句：
The contraction of this muscle raises the lower arm.肌肉的收缩使前臂抬起。 The forces of expansion are balanced by forces of contraction.扩张力和收缩力相互平衡 。

11 jack
n.插座 ，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起 ，提醒 ，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克
参考例句：
I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。 He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎 。

12 folklore
n.民间信仰，民间传说 ，民俗
参考例句：
Zhuge Liang is a synonym for wisdom in folklore.诸葛亮在民间传说中成了智慧的代名词 。 In Chinese folklore the bat is an emblem of good fortune.在中国的民间传说中蝙蝠是好运的象征。

13 tempt
vt.引诱 ，勾引，吸引 ，引起…的兴趣
参考例句：
Nothing could tempt him to such a course of action.什么都不能诱使他去那样做 。 The fact that she had become wealthy did not tempt her to alter her frugal way of life.她有钱了 ，可这丝毫没能让她改变节俭的生活习惯 。

14 mischievous
adj.调皮的，恶作剧的 ，有害的 ，伤人的
参考例句：
He is a mischievous but lovable boy.他是一个淘气但可爱的小孩。 A mischievous cur must be tied short.恶狗必须拴得短 。

15 doomed
命定的
参考例句：
The court doomed the accused to a long term of imprisonment. 法庭判处被告长期监禁 。 A country ruled by an iron hand is doomed to suffer. 被铁腕人物统治的国家定会遭受不幸的。

16 turnip
n.萝卜，芜菁
参考例句：
The turnip provides nutrition for you.芜菁为你提供营养 。 A turnip is a root vegetable.芜菁是根茎类植物 。

17 turnips
芜青( turnip的名词复数 )； 芜菁块根； 芜菁甘蓝块根； 怀表
参考例句：
Well, I like turnips, tomatoes, eggplants, cauliflowers, onions and carrots. 噢 ，我喜欢大萝卜、西红柿 、茄子 、菜花、洋葱和胡萝卜。 来自魔法英语-口语突破（高中） This is turnip soup, made from real turnips. 这是大头菜汤，用真正的大头菜做的 。

18 pumpkins
n.南瓜( pumpkin的名词复数 )；南瓜的果肉 ，南瓜囊
参考例句：
I like white gourds, but not pumpkins. 我喜欢吃冬瓜，但不喜欢吃南瓜。 来自《简明英汉词典》 Then they cut faces in the pumpkins and put lights inside. 然后在南瓜上刻出一张脸 ，并把瓜挖空 。 来自英语晨读30分（高三）