Party Hat

A person wearing a red party hat with yellow polka dots. The person has short hair and is dressed in a dark green shirt.

Definition:

A “party hat” is a festive accessory typically worn at celebrations such as birthdays, New Year Transition, and other joyous events.

Etymology:

The term “party hat” combines “party,” which comes from the Old French “partie” meaning “a division or part” and evolved to refer to social gatherings, and “hat,” from the Old English “hætt,” meaning a head covering. Together, they describe a hat worn specifically for celebratory occasions.

Description:

A party hat is often conical in shape and made of paper or cardboard, sometimes decorated with tassels, streamers, glitter or pom-poms, bright colors, and patterns such as stripes, polka dots, or stars. They typically have an elastic string or ribbon that goes under the chin to keep the hat in place.

Symbolism:

Party hats symbolize festivity, fun, and celebration. They are often associated with joy, happiness, and communal gathering. Wearing a party hat can also signify participation in an event and a willingness to engage in the festive spirit.

The act of putting on a party hat has sexual symbolism as the head is placed in an opening. The strap placed under the chin to make the party hat stick to the head has prison symbolism. Wearing a party hat symbolizes fantasizing, as celebration is fantasy, and parties have hellish symbolism.

In the movie “Pinocchio & The Emperor of the Night” (1987), Mr. Geppetto, the old woodcarver who carved a wooden boy and wished for him to become a “real boy,” has his wish fulfilled by a fairy. One year into Pinocchio’s life as a real boy, Mr. Geppetto introduces the concept of birthdays to him. Mr. Geppetto closes one eye as he puts a party hat on himself, then places one on Pinocchio’s head.


Mr. Geppetto, an elderly man with white hair and a beard, is seen with his right eye closed while putting a yellow and orange party hat on himself. He's inside a cozy workshop in his home filled with various wooden toys and tools. Pinocchio, a wooden boy, sits on the counter with a carved out tower covering his left eye, watching Geppetto.
Mr. Geppetto is placing a party hat on Pinocchio's head while wearing a matching party hat himself. They are in the same workshop, with a pink-frosted birthday cake with a lit candle on the counter beside them. Mr. Geppetto's head is blocking Pinocchio's right eye. The scene exudes a festive and celebratory atmosphere.
Mr. Geppetto, an elderly man with white hair and a beard, is seen with his right eye closed while putting a yellow and orange party hat on himself. He's inside a cozy workshop in his home filled with various wooden toys and tools. Pinocchio, a wooden boy, sits on the counter with a carved out tower covering his left eye, watching Geppetto. Mr. Geppetto is placing a party hat on Pinocchio's head while wearing a matching party hat himself. They are in the same workshop, with a pink-frosted birthday cake with a lit candle on the counter beside them. Mr. Geppetto's head is blocking Pinocchio's right eye. The scene exudes a festive and celebratory atmosphere.

In this context, the party hat symbolizes sex, as Mr. Geppetto is presenting a fantasy. Pinocchio makes a wish as he blows out the candle—a fictional concept which is also a sex symbol, as a burning candle is a symbol of a horny penis, and blowing it out symbolizes relieving it—and his fairy godmother appears to tell Pinocchio that he has been granted freedom. Freedom can be interpreted as synonymous with imprisonment. Mr. Geppetto gives Pinocchio a music box, symbolizing being chained to the music. This symbolism is later emphasized at the carnival, where Pinocchio gets hypnotized by Puppetino’s music box.