Final answer:
Thanksgiving is historically celebrated with family and friends, remembering the 1621 feast shared by the Pilgrims and Wampanoag Indians, which included a hearty meal eaten by hand and lacked modern dishes like pumpkin pie.
Step-by-step explanation:
The holiday of Thanksgiving is traditionally celebrated with family and friends, commemorating a historical event that occurred in 1621. The famous "first" Thanksgiving involved the Pilgrims and a group of Wampanoag Indians, led by Massasoit. It was a celebratory feast marking the Pilgrims' first successful harvest in the New World, with a meal consisting of venison, fish, fowl, and beer, as participants feasted without eating utensils, using only their hands.
Historian Nathaniel Philbrick notes that contrary to modern celebrations, there was no pumpkin pie or cranberry sauce present at this original feast. According to Edward Winslow's account in Mourt's Relation, those in attendance enjoyed their meal sprawled on the ground, highlighting the simplicity and the communal nature of the celebration.