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Maturation Rites By: Estelle Gibson Lauer The middle of the 20 Century was a time of turmoil. The Cold War was underway and Mr. McCarthy, chairman of the House UnAmerican Activities Committee, was weeding out those whose patriotism was questionable. At any moment Russia could drop an atomic bomb on Stockton, the only inland seaport in California. Therefore at the College of the Pacific, students were versed in survival procedures — “go rapidly to the levee and jump into the water” (girls on one side and boys on the other.) This was an example of a culture moving into the Atomic Age. Meanwhile at Mu Zeta Rho, Mrs. Dillingham was taking seriously her responsibility to lead her girls into adulthoods that conformed to her Victorian ideals. We were constantly subjected to the manners of that era. “We never pick up our forks before our hostess does”. “At the table we only talk about topics that concern everyone.” Sororities hosted “teas”, at which the attendees practiced “vital” behaviors such as how to pour the beverage into the cup and how to hostess conversations. But out of sight of our mentor, the adolescent behavior prevailed. In the privacy of our upstairs quarters, Mrs. Dillingham’s girls reverted to normalcy. We gossiped, we argued, we strummed ukuleles, we told raunchy jokes, and in the September heat we stripped to nothing and tap danced to the rhythm of “Eastside, Westside.” Interaction with boys was a major topic of conversation. We learned to say “You better have fun there because that’s all the farther you’re going.” We discussed who was cute and who had other redeeming qualities. But we learned how to perform the necessary rituals when ‘young men’ came to call. “Mrs. Dillingham, May I present Bob Young.” And our ‘suiters’ responded in the Victorian manner. Maintaining the rituals of the religions into which we had been baptized was a major responsibility of Mrs. Dillingham. In my case she was delighted that we were both Episcopalians. This necessitated attendance at 7:00 AM on Wednesdays. At that hour maintaining favor with God was not a priority in my life. Maturity eventually surfaced. I became a teacher and contact with the real world led me to understand what behavior is essential to make my share of society run smoothly. I do treasure these years of ‘coming of age’. And I note that my children and their children have also experienced their own brand of “Maturation Rites.”
This volume reflects on liminality as it relates to initiatory themes in Greek literature and on literary works, especially tragedy, that represent heroes and heroines undergoing rites of passage. Featured works include Aeschylus's Prometheus Bound, Euripides' Ion and Iphigenia in Tauris, and Sophocles' Antigone and Women of Trachis.
Scholars of classical history and literature have for more than a century accepted `initiation' as a tool for understanding a variety of obscure rituals and myths, ranging from the ancient Greek wedding and adolescent haircutting rituals to initiatory motifs or structures in Greek myth, comedy and tragedy. In this books an international group of experts including Gloria Ferrari, Fritz Graf and Bruce Lincoln, critique many of these past studies, and challenge strongly the tradition of privileging the concept of initiation as a tool for studying social performances and literary texts, in which changes in status or group membership occur in unusual ways. These new modes of research mark an important turning point in the modern study of the religion and myths of ancient Greece and Rome, making this a valuable collection across a number of classical subjects.
In this original and sweeping review of Jewish culture and history, Ivan Marcus examines how and why various rites and customs celebrating stages in the life cycle have evolved through the ages and persisted to this day. For each phase of life--from childhood and adolescence to adulthood and the advanced years—the book traces the origin and development of specific rites associated with the events of birth, circumcision, and schooling; bar and bat mitzvah and confirmation; engagement, betrothal, and marriage; and aging, dying, and remembering. Customs in Jewish tradition, such as the presence of godparents at a circumcision, the use of a four-poled canopy at a wedding, and the placing of small stones on tombstones, are discussed. In each chapter, detailed descriptions walk the reader through such ceremonies as early modern and contemporary circumcision, weddings, and funerals. In a comparative framework, Marcus illustrates how Jewish culture has negotiated with the majority cultures of the ancient Near East, Greco-Roman antiquity, medieval European Christianity, and Mediterranean Islam, as well as with modern secular and religious movements and social trends, to renew itself through ritual innovation. In his extensive research on the Jewish life cycle, Marcus draws from documents on various customs and ritual practices, offering reassessments of original sources and scholarly literature. Marcus’s survey is the first comprehensive study of the rites of the Jewish life cycle since Hayyim Schauss's The Lifetime of the Jew was published in 1950, written for Jewish readers. Marcus’s book addresses a broader audience and is designed to appeal to scholars and interested readers.
Audrey Richards (1899-1984) was a leading British anthropologist of the twentieth century and the first woman president of the Royal Anthropological Institute. Based on fieldwork conducted at a time when the discipline was dominated by male anthropologists, Chisungu: A Girl’s Initiation Ceremony Among the Bemba of Zambia is widely hailed as a classic of anthropology and African and gender studies. Underpinned by painstaking research carried out by Richards among the Bemba people in northern Zambia in the 1930s, Chisungu focuses on the initiation ceremonies for young Bemba girls. Pioneering the study of women’s rituals and challenging the prevailing theory that rites of passage served merely to transfer individuals from one status to another, Richards writes about the incredibly rich and diverse aspects of ritual that characterised Chisungu: its concern with matriliny; deference to elders; sex and reproduction; the birth of children; ideas about the continuity between past, present and future; and the centrality of emotional conflict. On a deeper level, Chisungu is a crucial work for the role it accords to the meaning of symbolism in explaining the structure of society, paving the way for much subsequent understanding of the role of symbolic meaning and kinship. This Routledge Classics edition includes a new foreword by Jessica Johnson and an introduction by Jean La Fontaine.
This book documents hundreds of customs and traditions practiced in countries outside of the United States, showcasing the diversity of birth, coming-of-age, and death celebrations worldwide. From the beginning of our lives to the end, all of humanity celebrates life's milestones through traditions and unique customs. In the United States, we have specific events like baby showers, rites of passage such as Bat and Bar Mitzvahs and "sweet 16" birthday parties, and sober end-of-life traditions like obituaries and funeral services that honor those who have died. But what kinds of customs and traditions are practiced in other countries? How do people in other cultures welcome babies, prepare to enter into adulthood, and commemorate the end of the lives of loved ones? This three-volume encyclopedia covers more than 300 birth, life, and death customs, with the books' content organized chronologically by life stage. Volume 1 focuses on birth and childhood customs, Volume 2 documents adolescent and early-adulthood customs, and Volume 3 looks at aging and death customs. The entries in the first volume examine pre-birth traditions, such as baby showers and other gift-giving events, and post-birth customs, such as naming ceremonies, child-rearing practices, and traditions performed to ward off evil or promote good health. The second volume contains information about rites of passage as children become adults, including indigenous initiations, marriage customs, and religious ceremonies. The final volume concludes with coverage on customs associated with aging and death, such as retirement celebrations, elaborate funeral processions, and the creation of fantasy coffins. The set features beautiful color inserts that illustrate examples of celebrations and ceremonies and includes an appendix of excerpts from primary documents that include legislation on government-accepted names, wedding vows, and maternity/paternity leave regulations.
In the topically organized Child Development: An Active Learning Approach, Fourth Edition, authors Laura E. Levine and Joyce Munsch take students on an active journey toward understanding children and their development. Active Learning activities integrated throughout the text capture student interest and turn reading into an engaged learning process. Through the authors’ active learning philosophy, students are challenged to test their knowledge, confront common misconceptions, relate the material to their own experiences, and participate in real-world activities independently and with children. Because consuming research is equally important in the study of child development, Journey of Research features provide both historical context and its links to today’s cutting-edge research studies. Students will discover the excitement of studying child development while gaining skills they can use long after course completion. This title is accompanied by a complete teaching and learning package.
"Transporting the reader to a place few have heard of, to examine the lives of people few will ever meet, Friends for Life, Friends for Death is an accessible account of day-to-day life and social construction in contemporary rural Africa."--BOOK JACKET.
This groundbreaking, first basic reference work on ancient religious beliefs collects and organizes available information on ten ancient cultures and traditions, including Greece, Rome, and Mesopotamia, and offers an expansive, comparative perspective on each one.
Making Men identifies and elaborates on a theme in the Hebrew Bible that has largely gone unnoticed by scholars-the transition of a male adolescent from boyhood to manhood. Wilson locates five examples of the male coming-of-age theme in the Hebrew Bible. The protagonists of these stories include the well-known biblical heroes Moses, Samuel, David, and Solomon. He also reveals the existence of a narrative theme of failing to mature to manhood, exemplified in the tales of Samson and Gideon's son Jether. Beyond identifying the coming-of-age theme, Wilson describes how the theme is employed by biblical narrators and redactors to highlight broader messages and transitions in the historical narratives of the Hebrew Bible. He additionally considers how these stories provide unique insight into the varying representations of biblical masculinity and how the ideals associated with manhood can change dramatically over time.