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Carnival The Magic of the Mask Think of carnival, and you think of crowds, costumes, and confusion. The sounds and sights change from one country to another but the excitement is the same everywhere. “Carnival” comes from two Latin words, meaning “no more meat”. In Europe, where it began, carnival was followed by forty days without meat, as people prepared for the Christian festival of Easter. People saw Carnival as a last chance to have fun at the end of the winter season. Having fun meant eating, drinking, and dressing up. The most famous carnival in Europe was in Venice. At the beginning, it lasted for just one day. People ate, drank, and wore masks. As time passed, however, the carnival period was extended, so that it began just after Christmas. For weeks on end people walked round the streets wearing masks, doing what they wanted without being recognised. Ordinary people could pretend to be rich and important, while famous people could have romantic adventures in secret. Many crimes went unpunished. The government realised that wearing masks had become a problem. Their use was limited by laws, the first of which dates back to the fourteenth century. Men were not allowed to wear masks at night; and they were not allowed to dress up as women. In later times more laws were passed. People who wore masks could not carry firearms; and no one could enter a church wearing a mask. If they broke the laws, they were put into prison for up to two years. Finally, when Venice became part of the Austrian empire, at the end of the eighteenth century, masks were banned completely, and carnival became just a memory. But in the late 1970s the tradition was revived by students. They began making masks and organising parties, and threw bits of brightly coloured paper (called coriandoli) at tourists. The town council realised that carnival was good for business, and the festival was developed for tourists. Today, carnival in Venice is celebrated for five days in February. People arrive from all over Europe to enjoy the fun. Hotels are fully booked and the narrow streets are crowded with wonderful costumes. German, French and English seem to be the main languages. But the spirit of Venice carnival is not quite the same as the great American carnivals. If the key to Rio is music and movement, then in Venice it is the mystery of the mask. As you wander through the streets, you see thousands of masks—elegant or frightening, sad or amusing, traditional or modern-- but you have no idea what the faces behind them look like. Nobody takes them off. If the masks come off, the magic is lost. The Meaning of Carnival Carnival today is an international, multicultural experience. But how did it become so? To understand what carnival is all about, we need to look at the history of America and the meeting of two cultures – European and African. The arrival of Europeans in America, and the opening of huge farms and plantations to grow cotton, fruit and vegetables, meant there was an immediate need for people to work on them. This marked the beginning of the slave trade. For more than two hundred years, until the beginning of the 19th century, when the trade was finally stopped, millions of people were taken by force from their homes in Africa and transported to the New World to work as slaves. Six million were taken to the Caribbean islands where there were British and French landowners. Naturally, the Europeans also imported their own festivals. So the slaves were forced to watch as their masters celebrated carnival with food, drink, and masked dances. In Trinidad, the slaves began to hold their own carnival celebrations: they painted their faces white, imitating their masters and making fun of them. But at the same time they were continuing their own African traditions – such as walking round a village wearing masks and singing a custom which they thought would bring good luck. When the slave trade was abolished in 1838 the former slaves took over the carnival. It became more colourful and more exciting than it had been before. Magnificent costumes were made and musical bands created. Carnival became a celebration of freedom. With the passing of time, the white inhabitants of the island began to take part in the carnival, too – and they were welcomed by their former slaves. Carnival became a way to unite different communities, as people forgot their everyday problems and enjoyed themselves eating, drinking, and dancing. Today, visitors from all over the world come to this small state in the Caribbean to join in the fun. Carnival has become a celebration of life itself. |
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