According to Irish folklore, there once lived a man named Jack who was known for being a drunk and a prankster（頑皮的人, 愛(ài)開(kāi)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 tempt him to sin again. He reluctantly agreed, but was able to exact his revenge upon Jack's death. Because of his mischievous ways in life, Jack was barred from entering heaven and because of his earlier trick, he was also barred from hell. So he was doomed to wander the earth until the end of time, with only a single ember（灰燼, 余燼） (carried in a hollowed out turnip.[植]蕪箐, 蕪箐甘藍(lán)) to warm him and light his way.
In Ireland, they originally also used turnips for their "Jack Lanterns", but upon arriving in the new world, they discovered that pumpkins were abundant and easier to carve out.
萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夕
萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夕是美國(guó)人年年都會(huì)慶祝的秋季節(jié)日。它的意思是“神圣的夜晚”，在每年的10月31日，也就是萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夜。但實(shí)際上這不是一個(gè)真正的宗教節(jié)日，而主要是孩子們的節(jié)日。
每年秋天蔬菜成熟可以食用的時(shí)候，孩子們就會(huì)挑出大個(gè)兒的橙色南瓜。然后在南瓜上刻上一張臉，把一根點(diǎn)燃的蠟燭放在里面?？雌饋?lái)就好像有人在向南瓜外面張望。這些燈就叫做“iack-o'-lantems”，意思也就是“杰克的燈”。
每年萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夕孩子們還戴上奇怪的面具，穿上嚇人的服裝。有些孩子把臉?biāo)⒊晒治?。然后他們拿著盒子或袋子挨家挨?hù)串門(mén)。每來(lái)到一個(gè)新房子他們就說(shuō)：“不款待就搗亂!給錢(qián)還是吃的!”大人們就會(huì)把用來(lái)招待的錢(qián)或糖放在他們的袋子里了。
不僅孩子，許多成年人也喜歡萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夕和萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夕晚會(huì)。因?yàn)檫@一天他們可以根據(jù)自己的想象把自己裝扮成名流或幽靈。這會(huì)帶給他們年輕的快感。
