Rites of passage

The antebellum south was an intense and dangerous place. The slave trade was a very serious business for those involved, and trying to enter the business was difficult. Many southern whites believed that the more slaves they owned, they better they were. Slave’s were a sign of wealth, as plantation owners could afford a large quantity of captives. In Walter Johnson’s book on the subject of the slave trade, “Soul by Soul: Life Inside the Antebellum Slave Market,” he discusses how detrimental…

The Telemachy serves as a prelude to, or a microcosm of Homer 's epic poem, 'The Odyssey '. The entire narrative sequence of these first four books foreshadows the inevitable fate of Odysseus despite his adventures actually taking place twenty years before Telemachos ' cathartic experience with the suitors. The epic narrative serves as a bridge between the stories of Telemachos and Odysseus; Telemachos must partake on a quest to gain wisdom and will face many struggles on his way. Almost in a…

Death and the Afterlife Traditional Roman beliefs on Death and the Afterlife: Ancient Roman people had very specific ideas and beliefs about death and the afterlife. Romans often had traditions that would help a person’s spirit travel form earth to the underworld. Mostly of very high importance was ensuring a proper burial. Along with this other steps were taken such as a coin being placed of the mouth of the deceased, as payment to the demon boatman they believed carried the dead across the…

The Lost Tribe: The Timbubba’s Culture Enculturation is the process whereby individuals learn their group’s culture, through experience, observation, and instruction. As a part of this process, an individual learns and establishes a context of boundaries and accepted behaviors that dictates what is acceptable and not acceptable within the framework of that society. The influences that shape and direct the individual include parents, other adults, and peers (which can be either deliberate or…

in time of television. This generation is called "digital natives", its members grew up in a world where the personal computer, video games and the Internet are becoming increasingly important and accessible. This generation, in the absence of rites of passage to adulthood, do not build identity or specific adult culture. This generation that has only known the crisis, enjoy present life because they knows they live in challenging time. Generation Y lives in a continuous stream with new…

prayers and a meal and schedule their services on Friday and Saturday. Bar Mitzvah In Judaism, both Reform and Orthodox Jews experience bar mitzvah at the age of 13. (7) This is a rite of passage to have the rights and responsibilities of an adult, and is to be initiated by prayer service as well as reading a passage from the Torah. Passover In both Orthodox and Reform Judaism, the celebration of Passover is an important holiday. “It is a holiday that marks the event recorded in the Old…

refused it would be seen as abnormal act. For “the soul regularly leaves the body at the point of death and begins its journey towards Hades, and later it is clear that what really mattered was that the body receive proper burial rites (Easterling, 51).” Proper burial rites are needed because the true results of a person’s life would be chosen by the God of the underworld, Hades. He is extremely reluctant to allow any of his subjects to leave. Life in the underworld for many was is not…

A rite of passage that seemingly many East Asian children go through, with varying degrees of success, is learning an instrument. Parents hope that coercing their child into playing music will leave a positive influence. Similarly, I experienced this time-tried journey at the age of seven. With this paradigm in mind, my mother decided that it was the right time for me to start learning the piano, but I was completely against it. Initial rebellion were tantrums; fake tears spilt in hopes of…

In his article ‘A Metamodel of Theories of Psychotherapy’, Steven Morris (2003) examines the myths and rituals associated with various systems of psychotherapy. I think a similar structure of myths and rituals can also be used to understand education. The myth answers the questions ‘what challenges are we trying to overcome?’ and ‘where do these challenges come from?’, while the ritual answers the questions ‘what strategies will lead to the desired outcomes?’ and ‘how do they work?’ Cultural…

In fact, according to Volti, “Rites of passage have been analyzed as having three general phases: separation, transition, and incorporation” (143). I chose this chapter for it talks about relevant content that is inspiring. The chapter talks about occupational heroes and the power of socialization…