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The significance of the rite of passage in African tradition and culture
Intro to rites of passage
Intro to rites of passage
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A rite of passage is described to be “Ceremonies such as christenings, puberty rituals, marriages, and funerals, which we hold when¬ever a member of society undergoes an important change in status within the lifecycle of the group” (Crapo, 2013, p. 159). A rite of passage that is common in my heritage culture today is a Quinceañera. Research indicates this transition is a celebration in combination of rite of passage from youth to womanhood when she turns fifteen years old (“The secularization of Quinceanera”, 2016). The meaning of this event usually starts off with a mass that has a total of fourteen young girls, each young lady signifies a year of her youth. Following the mass is a celebration where the fifteen-year-old is escorted by
I shouldn’t have a quinceanera , what’s so important you turning fifteen having a huge party having a big dress , food , make-up , and hair done . every one turn fifteen and some people don’t make a huge party and go all out just for you turning a age , it’s not a big deal turning fifteen you still a teen you're not an adult yet , your still a kid.
Envision stepping into the room, seeing your guess smile and talk quietly, the atmosphere of the room glowing, and feeling the warmth grow inside your chest as you know you planned a successful Quinceanera. The day a girl of the hispanic culture turns 15, is the day her fantasies come to life; and she becomes a women. Quinceaneras carry lots of quarks, small details, and ideas; but with these simple steps it can be perfected.
In Quinceanera, the concept of growing up is surrounded by cultural lies. In Latin culture, the celebration of when a girl turns 15 symbolizes the transition to adulthood. In the poem, we see the narrator showing resistance to the act of growing up. She expresses her emotions by saying, “My dolls have been put away like dead children,” to put away her dolls who are not supposed to be “dead” to her. She needs to move on from any tangible objects that have any
A quinceañera is an event that is celebrated worldwide. The term “quinceañera” means fifteenth years in English. It’s an extravagant birthday bash for a young lady turning the age of fifteen.”Celebrating my quince años meant beginning a life of a new adult. It has also given me much more responsibility for my own actions” (Xochitl Comparan, Victoria, Texas). This event is celebrated differently by many diverse cultures, and as time goes by some of the traditions change. Even though the traditions may alter, the whole point for this eventful activity stays the same. The point for this event is to recognize the young lady’s transition from childhood to womanhood. This is also known as “the coming of age.” On this one day, it’s all about the girl, nothing else matters! Organizing one of these events is a very expensive and lengthy process. It takes a lot of time and dedication. There’s a lot to be incorporated in the huge event; such as planning the ceremony, every decoration detail for the reception, all the traditions that must happen during the day, and most importantly to figure out who will be a part of this ritual.
What is the specific teaching of the four day ceremony for puberty also known as the kinaalda in Navajo? When I was a little girl I did not have my own kinaalda, but I took part in it when I was young for my older sister had hers done. I never understood the full meaning of what the ceremony meant for a girl to transition into a lady. A kinaalda is when a girl takes part of the Navajo blessing way ceremony (Amrani. 1988. Web). The kinaalda translated into the “Puberty Ceremony” is considered interchangeable with both the girl and the ceremony (Amrani. 1988. Web). At this time, the young lady is not a child anymore. In the Navajo myth, changing women, who is identified as all living things on the earth’s surface, is the face for many women. She is used as a figure during the rite of passage when a girl turn into a lady (Amrani. 1988. Web). Even though it is a good way to bring everyone together and relive our tradition, there is more to a puberty ceremony than just changing into an adult, because there is a lot that goes on in the four day ceremony. It is in our tradition, and there is a meaning to why we change from adolescence to adulthood.
Do I even want to have a sweet sixteen? I’ve never seen myself as the quintessential “princess”, in a flowing dress and mile high tiara. I could just wait until my eighteenth, then I’d be considered an adult, at least in American society. Do I even want a Quinceanera? It revolves around the church so much it’s practically the sun and the earth. Besides, could I even have a Quinceanera? My family would have to travel all the way to Mexico.
anit 1 of the textbook explores various rites of passage, which are ceremonies or events that mark an important stage in a person’s life. Rites of passage are important stages in someone's life. These include marriage birth, puberty, having a first party, leaving home, and death.
The second family that I interviewed was the Lyles family. Both Bro. Scotty, the father, and Mrs. Yolanda, the mother, participated in the interview and three of their children were in the room. Bro. Scotty was born and raised in Alba, Texas on the very same tree farm that he owns and operates today; he is also a deacon at our church. However, Mrs. Yolanda was born and raised in Guatemala. As a child she was raised Catholic, and is part of a large and growing family. She is one of eight children. Their family as well as anybody else in that culture celebrated their daughter’s 15th birthday with a Quinceañera which marked the transition from childhood to young womanhood. This was traditionally the first time the girls would wear make-up, nice
Ever since I was young I wanted to have a Quinceanera. I always wanted to wear a long and fluffy dress and a shiny crown on my head. I always saw many girls on t.v or family members have their own Quinceanera, so I decided that I wanted to have mine as well. Quinceanera are family traditions, in Mexico it’s when a young girl is about to become fifteen years old they have a Quinceanera, which represents that you are turning into a young woman.
When one thinks of a ballet they hear soft rhythmic notes and see elegantly dancing ballerinas softly tip-toeing around the stage. This is also what people in early 1900’s expected to see when they planned to attend a ballet. However, a couple of motivated artists in 1913 literally planned to change the design of ballet, music and dance forever. On May 29, 1913 a ballet named The Rite of Spring premiered in Paris, France. The original title as it translates from Russian to French is; Le Sacre du Printemps, meaning the rite of spring, but the literal translation from Russian to English means “Sacred Spring”. The ballet and music were composed by Igor Stravinsky, with the help of Nicholas Roerich, who proposed the general idea behind the ballet to Stravinsky. Roerich wanted to put into motion the ideas behind pagan pre-Christian rituals in Russia. Together the two created the story line behind the ballet; a sacred pagan ritual where a young female dances herself to death and is then offered to the “Gods” of spring to make them happy. The music was composed by Vaslav Nijinsky and the ballet was produced by Sergei Diaghilev for the Russian Ballet. This ballet was so different from what the spectators expected to see that it caused a riot. The Rite of Spring turned the tables of ballet in every sense: the dance, the music and the general idea of ballet was modernized by the group of artists who created and produced it.
Narratives are transmitted through myths, where they tell a story to us about ourselves. These messages are reenacted and performed through rituals, which embody the narratives that we hold close in a culture, containing the core set of values, morals, and traditions that make a society unique. Through this physical performance, narratives enact changes within us through rites of passage, specifically, taking place in the transition state. Narratives and belief systems both function as tools to organize a culture and aid its participants in making sense of their world. By exploring and appreciating the significance of narratives in a culture, we are able to learn about a way of life, both our own and of ‘exotic’ or foreign
In the poem, "Rite of Passage," by Sharon Olds, the speaker, who is a mother, goes into detail about her son's birthday party celebration. Let us first begin by analyzing the title of the poem, "Rite of Passage," Encyclopedia Britannica describes a rite of passage as a ceremonial event, existing in all historically known societies, that marks the passage from one social or religious status to another. Given the plot of the poem about a young boy having his peers over celebrate his birthday, one might be automatically compelled to say the rite of passage is for him, however with a closer analysis of the poem in its entirety, one can argue the title and the plot hold deeper meaning.
A rite of passage is defined as a ceremony marking a significant transition or an important event or achievement, both regarded as having great meaning in lives of individuals. In Sharon Olds' moving poem "Rite of Passage", these definitions are illustrated in the lives of a mother and her seven-year-old son. The seriousness and significance of these events are represented in the author's tone, which undergoes many of its own changes as the poem progresses.
In the film “Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)” there are many different beliefs, symbols and ritual that has different meaning to different characters. There are many rituals that takes places in this film that can be categories into van Gennep's rite of passage theory. Van’s theory groups religious rituals into tree different group stage called “separation, liminality, and incorporation” (Nye 2008). Furthermore. The separation stage can be when the person that’s undergoing the ritual separates from his usual life, for example, when Frodo was given the duty of moving the ring from Shire (his home town) to Rivendell (home of Elrond). This falls under the separation category because he is leaving his own town for the first
Exhilarating moments. Life or death decisions. Intense pain. Tear jerking memories. Obtaining note worthy achievements. All these moments happen in the lives of people every day. Different people turn these into rites of passage to become an adult. Some families or groups require their youth to have to go through a rite of passage to earn their parents or leading adult’s respect. The few in my life I had to complete rites of passage for are my father, mother and I.