A few years ago I read a short piece about the true origins of the modern Christmas. It explained in great detail how many common Christmas customs of today originated in fear and mistrust between the classes in Victorian times. I’m not sure if it was meant to be serious or not, but the tone of it was serious, and it was a bit depressing how all of it seemed emanate, if not from class warfare, then from the grinding poverty which was common at the time. Just reading the biographies of rock stars who were born into the English working class in the 1940s, I can almost imagine that poverty must have been as widespread in Victorian times as hinted in he article.
But let’s not debate that. What I want to know is, does anyone know the article I’m referring to, and where it might be online? I googled briefly for it, but without success.
Thanks for taking the time to reply, but that is not it at all. What I’m thinking of was a short article, maybe two or three pages, that went into considerable details about caroling, cards, and exchanging gifts. All I can remember is that gift-giving purportedly originated in presents to one’s underlings to stave off rebellion, and that you had to give money to carolers…or else!
Again, I see as I type it how wildly bizarre it seems, but I know I did read something like that.
That’s a bit confused. It was custom to give tokens to carrolers – and there was a sort of superstitious belief that it was “bad luck” to send people away without a gesture of thanks, but not the sort of immediate, practical bad luck implied. Some vague analogy with Mary and Joseph being turned away. Hot drinks and tasty sustainers were the usual reward, and you might offer coins if you didn’t have anything “proper” on hand. This is more like putting a penny in a wallet that’s given as a gift, though – it’s not the actual giving of money that’s important, it’s a “luck” thing.
The idea that people would band together to sing uplifting religious songs to to extort people with the threat of violence is harebrained.
Similarly, it’s backwards to think that gift-giving started as an inter-class idea (for whatever reason) and then “spread” to family and friends. Gift-giving at Christmas goes back a thousand years, when gifts were exclusively from parents to children, nominally either from Saint Nicholas or the Three Magi, depending on the locale.
If anyone can find the article you’re thinking of, it sounds like it could stand a thorough debunking.