Writer vs. Writer: Is Santa Claus Coming to Town?

by Meghan Mitchell '23 on December 8, 2022
Opinion Staff


Opinion


Santa hat
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Let Them Believe

by Sam Dietel ’23

The magic of Christmas is once again upon us. It’s time to decorate your tree, hang the stockings, and blare “Jingle Bells.” Many of us have memories—fond ones, hopefully—of a jolly fat guy in a red suit breaking into our homes, eating our cookies, and leaving gifts under the tree. The lie about Santa is far-reaching, and one that most parents push for years. This act of deceiving children is one of constant controversy. Is it right to lie to kids? Or does the magic of Christmas outweigh the harm? Numerous studies have found that there are no long-term problems for children if you encourage the Santa myth.

According to one research study, 84 percent of parents in the US lie to their children to encourage behavioral compliance. Among the lies being told, parents in the US were more adamant about lying to their kids about the existence of fantasy characters than in other countries, and 87 percent of US parents reported lying about Santa Claus. Parents reported that it’s important for the development of their children that they believe in such characters. Kids will have their entire lives to learn that magic isn’t real. Let them enjoy the fantasy while they can.

All of this being said, I’m not encouraging total dishonesty with children. This is where you need to pick and choose your battles—or in this case—lies. Research in Singapore has shown that the practice of parenting by lying, which is using deception to control children’s behavior, led to the children showing higher levels of deception to their parents and higher levels of psychosocial maladjustment. So, should we throw away all lies relating to Santa? No. You may want to consider removing the threats, though. The use of deception to exert control is a problem. If you tell a kid that they’ll be on Santa’s naughty list for not eating their vegetables, you’re contorting the magic of Christmas for your own agenda and potentially creating damaging effects that will follow the child to adulthood. The deception of Santa’s existence alone, however, is not inherently evil.

Besides, belief in Santa has an expiration date. As children grow older and continue developing, they get better at distinguishing between fantasy and reality. Age 7 is the typical age when kids discover the truth, and results indicate that parents are more upset by the discovery than the children are. Despite strong parental encouragement to believe in Santa, one study found that children reported predominantly positive reactions when they found out the truth. It was the parents who reported feeling sad at their child’s discovery. 

Not only is there no harm in believing in Santa, but there’s actually an abundance of benefits backed by years of research that shows belief in fantasy characters builds children’s ability to accept abstract concepts like generosity, change, and difference. It also serves to strengthen their ability for faith in the unobservable and intangible. Not only this, but it is an American rite of passage that many young children experience. Participating in this tradition also allows the parents to relive the childhood magic, showing the myth is for everyone and not just kids.

When determining whether to lie to kids about Santa, it is important to examine the issue from a child-centered perspective rather than adult assumptions on the impact of the deception. In my own research in the Imaginative Thought and Learning Lab, we have examined how children learn from fantasy. Studies on children’s learning through fantasy, pretend play, pretense, etc. is currently booming in the research field. Studies show that these scenarios don’t detract from learning. In fact, learning from fantasy may even increase learning. This is especially true when it comes to abstract concepts like generosity, on which the Santa myth is built. In the early stages of development, children struggle to understand abstract ideas and only think concretely. The stories of Santa Claus and other fictional characters are used to explain difficult, intangible concepts that don’t make sense yet to kids. The deception around Santa Claus ends when children are around 7, but the memories last a lifetime. There is no harm in letting children experience that fleeting magic that only a kid can experience.

Canceling Santa Claus

by Meghan Mitchell ’23

Historically, Christmas has been a powerful holiday that symbolizes giving and showing kindness to others. However, over the years, Christmas has become less about giving and more about capitalism. While there are many reasons for this, one of the most glaring reasons is Santa Claus. Santa has been a Christmas staple for many years and is known as the person who will essentially bribe kids into behaving properly with the promise of gifts under the Christmas tree if they do. Despite being around for years, is it really harmless to lie to your kids about his existence? 

While the person on whom Santa is based, Saint Nicholas, was a real person, Santa himself is not. Yet, year after year, parents feed lies to their kids telling them that if they are on the nice list, this jolly old man will sneak into their house while they’re asleep and leave presents under the tree. While this sounds cute, the idea of Santa Claus is creepy if you think about it. The lie implies that he stalks children, as he is always watching them to see if they’re misbehaving. Then he sneaks into people’s houses. Why would you lie to your kids about this? Lying to children about Santa being real could also have some unintended consequences. While the myth has good intentions, breaking and entering is still illegal, yet Santa has the audacity to judge people. 

If a child doesn’t get any presents because their parents cannot afford to get them, the child will blame themselves, thinking that they were not good this year. Furthermore, in 2016, The Huffington Post published an article suggesting that the Santa Claus mythos may be harmful to kids psychologically. Psychologist Christopher Boyle from the University of Exeter and mental health researcher Kathy McKay from the University of New England both say that this supposedly harmless white lie can severely damage a child’s trust in their parents. “All children will eventually find out they’ve been consistently lied to for years, and this might make them wonder what other lies they’ve been told,” they added. If anything, this teaches kids once they find out the truth that it’s okay to be dishonest. 

So, should you go out into the world and let all the children know Santa Claus isn’t real? No. Instead, let them believe and if they choose to ask you about it, have a mature conversation with them. Explain to them that while Santa Claus is not real, Saint Nicholas was a real person and that Santa was created as a symbol to keep the memory of his generosity alive. Just because someone is a child does not mean you cannot have mature conversations with them. They might be young, but they’re still humans with thoughts and emotions, so they deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. After all, Christmas is about kindness, so society should respect children instead of lying to them. 

Incessant Cycle: Mass Shootings Continue in America

by Samantha Dietel '23 on December 3, 2022
Opinion Staff


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It’s happening again and no one should be surprised. Mass shootings are nothing new, and the more we hear about them, the more desensitized we become. Late at night on Saturday, Nov. 19, another deadly shooting took place at an LGBTQ+ bar called Club Q in Colorado Springs, CO. The shooter murdered five people and injured at least nineteen others during this bias-motivated crime. Before Americans had time to process this tragedy, the next major shooting occurred. Three days later on Tuesday, Nov. 22, a Walmart manager killed six employees and injured six others in the Walmart break room in Chesapeake, VA. Despite all the shootings highlighted in the media, there are still countless mass shootings that aren’t publicized. This is truly an American problem. A recent study showed that the United States was responsible for 73 percent of the 139 mass shootings that occurred globally in developed countries between 1998 and 2019. The study described how the United States was also responsible for 62 percent of all 1,318 mass shooting fatalities from the same time period. How is this still a problem in America? Americans have learned that nowhere is safe—not the grocery store, not your favorite entertainment venue, not your place of worship, not your school. 

Mass shootings cause fear for most people in the United States. Despite this, nothing is being done to stop this never-ending cycle of violence. Politicians flock to Twitter to offer their “thoughts and prayers,” which do nothing to aid in ending the tragedies Americans face far too often. Citizens do not want your thoughts. Citizens do not want your prayers. What citizens need is action. Politicians tell Americans to avoid politicizing such tragedies, but how can they not? Gun violence in our country is a political issue and one that needs serious attention. How can nothing continue to change when employees are being murdered in their break rooms? When people are murdered at a club because of their sexual orientation? When children are murdered at school? 

The younger generation might remember sitting in the corner during lockdown drills at school and how exciting it was when it cut into class time. From the teacher’s perspective, the drill is terrifying. As an elementary school student teacher, I participated in ALICE training, which teaches active shooting preparedness. The police come to a school to tell staff about the statistics of school shootings and how faculty members can keep their students alive. During this training, teachers learned how to barricade entryways as the police tried breaking down doors. The main focus of the presentation is how to keep most students alive. The police officers went on to tell the teachers that if one student is not in the classroom when the lockdown sounds, they need to lock that student out to protect the other children. Furthermore, if someone can make it out of the building, they should leave as quickly as possible. If someone sees injured people on the way out, they are supposed to leave them to avoid slowing anyone else down. Teachers—including myself—were in tears, thinking about the kids we love and see every day, left for dead because protocol states staff should not help them. Why is this something Americans need to think about? Why is this a real experience teachers and students have faced and lost their lives over?

The number of mass killings in 2022 remains about average compared to previous years. However, there has been a relatively higher number of victims. When looking at all mass killings in the U.S. between 2006 and now, this year is currently the third highest for its victim count. Of the 202 killed this year, 58 were killed in a public fatal shooting, 128 were killed in non-public fatal shootings, and 16 were killed by other means. Gun violence is a major problem in this country and not much is being done to fix it. Thoughts and prayers don’t save lives—action and policy change do. Where are the stricter gun laws and better mental health screenings to prevent the tragedies we have seen time and time again? Without change, the list of the dead, already too long, will only continue to grow. In the period from 1966 to now, Rhode Island has never had a mass killing event. If nothing changes, how long do we have until this streak is broken? No one will feel safe until the people in charge start making decisions that enact real change and fix the laws that are killing their citizens.