While some think it is acceptable to be listening to 'Deck the Halls' the day after Halloween, others differ by thinking these songs should be put aside until Thanksgiving has passed.
The Christmas windows are already on display at Macy's on State Street in Chicago; 93.9 FM changed to an all-Christmas format last week, and pre-Black Friday sales have already been popping up in stores.
"I think it's okay to listen to Christmas music anytime you want to. Personally, I like to start listening around the beginning of December just to get me in the mood for Christmas time," sophomore Monroe Torkelson said.
Even though some Christmas songs are played more than others, there is a common trend in playing the music earlier than the actual holiday. "As long as you're not tired of it by Christmas, I say go for it," sophomore Leah Kuhn said.
There are many reasons that stores large and small like to decorate early for the holidays. Stores like to get customers to know about their upcoming sales, and the decorations jump-start the anticipation of the sale hunters and encourages a rush of Black Friday shoppers.
Just a few years ago, Black Friday shopping was limited to only the Friday following Thanksgiving day, but it has crept earlier and earlier, first with stores opening at midnight and now with stores opening even before Thanksgiving dinner is served. "Going shopping on Thanksgiving says a lot about American culture. I know the sales are great, so I don't think it's necessarily wrong to do it, but I find it disturbing how many people spend the whole day shopping. I think it shows our lack of priorities as a nation," Kuhn said. Some stores are breaking with recent trends, because it's bad for their workers and opening earlier hasn't created more sales. For example, the Mall of America in Minnesota, the largest mall in the United States, announced it will be closed for Thanksgiving this year.
Furthermore, leaving a family gathering, when one is supposed to be grateful for those same family and friends, creates the ultimate contradiction."I think it's a bit disrespectful if you leave a family party, but if you go after your family party, I think it's okay," senior Ali Tworek said. At the same time, catching early sales can be a good thing if you find something at a discount that you are planning to give to a loved one or friend. "I think opening up earlier could be good and bad; good, because then more people could go but over a longer time, so maybe it wouldn't be too packed, and bad, because it would just get more packed and more people would be missing Thanksgiving," Torkelson said.