"Some say that ever 'gainst that season comes
Wherein our Saviour's birth is celebrated,
This bird of dawning singeth all night long;
And then, they say, no spirit dare stir abroad,
The nights are wholesome, then no planets strike,
No fairy takes, nor witch hath power to charm,
So hallow'd and so gracious is the time."
Wherein our Saviour's birth is celebrated,
This bird of dawning singeth all night long;
And then, they say, no spirit dare stir abroad,
The nights are wholesome, then no planets strike,
No fairy takes, nor witch hath power to charm,
So hallow'd and so gracious is the time."
— Marcellus, Hamlet
Night has just fallen on Christmas Eve. You might expect to be suddenly attacked by monsters or haunted by wraiths, but instead, it's calm. You could even say...holy. As far as the demonic goes, Christmas truly becomes a silent night.
A rarer Sub-Trope of Special Occasions Are Magic, Powerless At Christmas keeps evil spirits from roaming, witches from enchanting, and black magic from taking effect. The spooks don't dare come out on such a sacred night. Or, perhaps, they simply can't.
This trope can also apply to other holidays, such as Easter or other holy days. Contrast with other holiday tropes, such as Horror Doesn't Settle for Simple Tuesday or Twisted Christmas.
Examples:
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Comic Books
- The Punisher: Exploited by the Punisher. Frank spent a lot of time around Christmas dressing up as Santa and mowing down criminals, who apparently think this trope is in play and that it is going to be a Silent Night. However, in keeping with the holiday season, Frank does take any ill-gotten gains he picks up while doing this and deposits them in the poor box of the closest church. This is also a decidedly non-demonic example.
Literature
- In the Discworld, All Fallows Eve is the one night of the year in Lancre where, by ancient tradition and binding custom, nothing supernatural, occult, or merely eldritch may walk abroad by night. As the Occult and Supernatural can pretty much manifest at will and do almost as they like on every other night (or day) of the year in Lancre, this makes the day especially unique and special. Witches - who police the borders between the Natural and the Supernatural and make pretty damn sure the supernatural realms know where the limits are - are also bound to remain indoors on this night and not step outside.
- In The Devil in Velvet by John Dickson Carr, the protagonist sells his soul to the Devil to travel back in time, hoping that since he was born on 25th December, that will void the deal (as long as he gives the Devil a Christmas present every year for the rest of his life). When he later puts the point to the Devil, the Devil agrees that this is the case. He then asks why the Devil took the bargain in the first place; the Devil replies that he was taking a chance on the protagonist not knowing the get-out.
Live-Action TV
- Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers has a variant based on location rather than time. Rita Repulsa sends her minions to take over the workshop of Santa Claus. The Rangers go to help, but the magic of the North Pole and Santa's workshop prevents them from using their morphing abilities. So they have to defeat the bad guys in a snowball fight.
Mythology
- Old English folklore states that those who are born on Christmas Day are immune to the power of spirits to the point that spirits can't even see them.
- A strange variation: in Nordic folktales, and several sagas such as The Saga of Grettir the Strong, it is implied or outright stated that failing to take part in religious activities on Christmas Day makes you a target for evil supernatural entities.
Other Sites
- Every Christmas Eve on http://www.scifiwright.com/
, from 2011 to the present, John C. Wright reposts the trope-naming Hamlet quote.
Theatre
- Hamlet: The Trope Namer, as seen in the above quote.
Western Animation
- The Leprechauns' Christmas Gold: Mag, a banshee, will turn into a fountain of tears on Christmas morning if she is unable to obtain gold before dawn.
