Jack O’Lantern (also known as Stingy Jack, or Jack the Smith), is a character from Irish fairy tales. The story goes that he is a being condemned to wander forever between the world of the dead and the world of the living…
Jack O’Lantern – © iava777
It all began centuries ago. Stingy Jack, an old drunkard, is known in the area for his mischievousness and cheapness.
He likes to play tricks on those around him, drinking himself blind in the local pubs, and being downright nasty to those closest to him. Such is his cruelty that the Devil even hears about it, and decides to pay him a visit to punish him and condemn him to Hell. Descending to Earth, the Devil finds Stingy Jack staggering through the Irish countryside.
– Jack, you’ve been cruel all your life. Follow me, and I’ll condemn you to Hell for eternity.
Despite the alcohol, Jack doesn’t give up, and accepts: “Okay, I’m with you… But before you take me away, buy me a nightcap at the Pub“.
The Devil thinks it over and sees no harm in acceding to this request… He agrees, and takes Jack to the nearest pub. At the counter, Jack orders a beer, but can’t find a coin in his pocket to pay… The Devil decides to offer him the beer and turns himself into a sixpence coin. But instead of settling his bill, Jack grabs the coin and stuffs it into his pocket, where he holds a small silver cross. Contact with the cross prevents the Devil from reverting to his true form, and Jack proudly offers to free him if he leaves him alone for 10 years. The Devil accepts, furious, and returns to Hell.
Ten years pass. The Devil decides to return. Jack agrees to follow him, but asks if he’ll pick an apple before taking him away. The Devil accepts, climbs the apple tree, but Jack then encircles the tree trunk with several crosses, trapping the Devil once more.
– Free me! the Devil cries out
Jack agrees to free him on condition that the Devil leaves him alone forever, which he does.
Many years later, Jack dies, and finds himself at the gates of Paradise. But Saint Peter refused him access because of his former dissolute life. Jack then goes to the gate of Hell, and asks the Devil to let him in.
– I wouldn’t let you in… Remember the promise I made you…
Desperate, Jack has nowhere to go. He then asks the Devil what to do…
– Go back to where you came from...
So Jack decides to retrace his steps. But the path is dark and scary, and Jack needs light to progress… He then asks the Devil for a little help: the Devil accepts, and offers him embers from Hell, which he puts in a turnip to act as a torch. Since that day, Jack has wandered like a lost soul between the world of the dead and the world of the living, not knowing where to go…
A Jack O’Lantern pumpkin – © Andrey Armyagov
These days, Jack O’Lantern is a recurring character who appears every year at Halloween.
Halloween is in fact the modern version of Samain, a festival of Celtic origin, where the popular belief was that once a year, the world of the living and the dead co-existed for one night…
To avoid encountering ghosts and other wandering souls, people placed food in front of their doors to calm evil spirits, and dug into vegetables (rutabagas, turnips, etc.) to place candles to protect themselves from evil beings.
It wasn’t until the early 1800s that this custom spread to the United States, with the mass emigration of the Irish. The latter continued to celebrate Samain, and decided to use a pumpkin to hold their candles, considering this vegetable more practical to use…
Ever since, these famous pumpkins have been known as“Jack O’Lanterns“, in reference to the legend…
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