Liminality

and differences liminal identities as portrayed by Sandra Cisneros and Reyna Grande. In addition to the deconstruction of the American Dream narrative, once in El Otro Lado Grande experiences an identity crisis. Studying Grande’s The Distance Between Us: A Memoir (2012) though the concept of liminality facilitate the portrayal of a more realistic representation of the life of an undocumented immigrant in the U.S. After Grande and her sibling’s arrive to the U.S. due to their immigration status their mobility is limited to just school and her father’s apartment. Natalio constantly reminds her children that they are undocumented: “We didn’t speak a word of English, and we were frightened. But Papi wasn’t worried about our lack of English. He was worried about something else. ‘Don’t tell anyone that you’re here illegally’, he warned us” (Grande 2013:165). This quote points one of the two main aspects that put Grande in liminality: the language barrier and her undocumented status. She is now living in the U.S, however her mobility is limited and she does not participate in wider societal events. As emphasized by her father, her immigration status is a dominant marker of social liminality, since they run the risk of deportation. Also, her father uses their immigration status to implement his domination. According to the American Anthropologist Paul Stoller: “people that are in a liminal stage tend to be humble and follow instructions without complaint” (Stoller 146). This…

immigrants. With the topic of immigration comes the idea of assimilation, which is the “process by which a person or a group 's language and, or culture come to resemble those of another group” (PowerPoint). Characters in this book are from all over the world (Jamaica, England, Bengal) and while set in England all characters must in some way assimilate to the culture of the people around them. This book explores the history of colonization of India and its surrounding nations by the British, in…

Liminality is a central theme to most of Arthur Yap’s work, extending his material to a broad range of interpretations and possibilities that elude a definitive and denotative meaning. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, that which is liminal has three interpretations: “minimality”; something “characterized by being on a boundary or threshold” or a “transitional… state between culturally defined stages of a person’s life”. This liminality is evident in Yap’s distinct artistry, where he…

Raynise Adams Dr. Kathryn Crowther English 1102 9 September 2014 A Critique of Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been as an Archetypal Tale As children, people are told tales that are meant to entertain and educate. These tales introduce children to the complexities of human behavior when trying to make the right decision. Joyce Carol Oates’ “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” is an archetypal tale about fifteen year old Connie who while in this liminal phase of life makes the wrong…

How has your understanding of the world been broadened by the study of discovery? Discovery evokes new ideas and knowledge, capable of transforming and renewing our understanding of the world. The individual obtains this renewed perception of the world via the metaphysical voyages that are made alongside the physical journey taking place. Rosemary Dobson’s Young Girl at a Window and Cockcrow explore an individual’s spiritual metamorphosis; this notion is reinforced in Adrienne Rich’s Diving into…

In Between: An examination of three anthropologists’ moments of liminality Liminality is a term used in anthropology to describe a period of transition concerning social structure and understanding. Liminality consists of a pre-liminal state, a liminal period, and a communitas state. The pre-liminal state is characteristically defined as a time when events occur under specific conditions that start to press against an individual’s normal social structure and thought process. The liminal period…

My earlier inquiries ported between Biblical Spirituality, Celtic Spirituality, and City Spirituality. An M. Div. mini-thesis investigated the spirituality of the insular Celts (du Toit, 2007). This study focussed on two Celtic liminality sniglets. For the island Celts, thin designated liminality. Thin Spaces (for instance, beaches and mountaintops) and Thin Times (such as dawn and dusk) thinned the veil between the natural and supernatural. Liminality, as an abstract zeitgeber, makes life and…

After watching the film, The Devil’s Playground, it was clear that Turner’s ideas of liminality, communitas, and rituals of status elevation related to the film in various ways. Liminality is the transitional period when individuals began to not support something or lack social status during the rite of passage. Communitas refers to a group of people who shares a common belief or interest, sense of unity, and can also be working towards the same goal. Rituals of status elevation define as…

The architecture of Passage tombs reiterates the ritual stage of liminality in the articulation of entrances and the arrangement of motifs, features and space. The most illustrative examples of passage tombs are those at the Bend of the Boyne, Ireland. It is Knowth, Dowth and New grange tombs, which communicate liminality most clearly. Firstly, the entrances to these tombs emphasizes the threshold or liminality of the space, between the land of the living and the land of the dead (ancestors).…

Solomon et al (2006) describes liminality a passing zone which ‘suspends’ the employee culturally, individually and religiously between the two states i.e. his familiar world and the new marketplace, for a certain time period. Post immigration, the ethnic employee needs to do away with his past preferences and adopt the new roles and responsibilities. This state of suspension and the establishment of new roles is what designated as ‘role destabilization’ for the…