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Van Genneps Rites Of Passage, Durkheim And Van Genneps Rites Of Passage, Durkheim And Turners Theory Of Community Van Genneps Rites of Passage, Durkheim and Turners Theory of Community I. Classify using Van Genneps categories and point out aspects which would be of particular interest to Turner and to Chapple and Coons. The Mescalero girls puberty ceremony is an example of a Rite of Passage, a ceremony that marks the transition of an individual from one stage of life to another (Chapple and Coons, p. 484). The ceremony marks the transition from girl to mother of a nation (p. 252). The ritual serves as a means of establishing equilibrium after the crisis of puberty (Chapple and Coons, p. 484). It is a method of making this transition from girl to woman easier.
I classified this ceremony as a Rite of Passage, rather than a Rite of Intensification, because it is held in response to a non-periodic change (puberty) and it affects the participants individually. The community plays an important role in supporting the girls-by building the tepee, for instance. At times, as when the boys join the Singers, the community actively participates in the ritual. However, the community is involved only because of its members relations to the girls. Van Gennep divides Rites of Passage into three parts: separation, transition and incorporation. In the Mescalero puberty ceremony, separation is achieved when the girls move in to their camp homes.
During this stage, the Godmothers and Singers take the role of the parents. This may be described as a cessation of interaction between the individual and the group in which he or she has been interacting (Chapple and Coons, p. 485). However, there is not a complete separation from the girls and the community. There are instances (such as the time when the participants sleep while the community holds contests) when the two are physically separated, but they are near their families and friends during most of the ceremony. The stage of transition, or liminal ity, is a period in which the participants lie betwixt and between two poles (Turner, p. 95). For the puberty ceremony, this period lasts for four days.
In these days, the girls receive instruction from their elders-especially from Godmothers and the Singers. For example, the Singer teaches the tribes history through his chants and the Godmother teaches about sex. Gender differences seem to be exaggerated rather than abolished during this phase, however. The category female is related to fire, the color yellow, and the idea of being protected. Male is related to the poles, the color red, and the idea of being the protector. Yellow pollen, symbolizing women, is applied to the girls early in the ceremony.
Furthermore, rather than being stripped bare, the girls are ornately decorated. However, one may argue that they have been stripped of the attire they wore before the ceremony. According to Turner, the liminal period is one of humility, obedience, and danger. The girls do exhibit these qualities during the period of transition, particularly during the all-night dancing ordeal. I still would not interpret this as a low because of the blessings the girls bestow upon the community and because of the massages they receive from the Godmothers. The period of incorporation has been described as phase in which...
the individual begins once again his interaction with the members of his community... (Chapple and Coons, p. 485). As noted earlier, the girls interaction with the community is maintained at different points in the ritual. However, the girls do undergo a radical change during the ceremony, culminating in their reincorporation into their communities as new individuals. The ceremony began with the males constructing a lodge and ended with the girls destroying the lodge. In the beginning, the girls gave blessings and in the end, they received blessings. Through participating in the ordeal of the dance, the girls gain power.
This change is expressed in the following chant: Now you are entering the world. You become an adult with responsibilities (p. 252). Symbolically, the passage to womanhood is represented by painting the girls faces white-the color of purity and Mother Earth. II. Where do Durkheim and Turner find community? What creates feelings of solidarity in each?
Would they find it in this ritual? If so, where and why? Turner believes that community arises out of an ordeal shared by individuals. In the case of the Mescalero puberty ceremony, the primary ordeal is the overnight dancing session. Although not explicitly stated in the article, I can imagine strong feelings of solidarity would arise among the girls participating in the ritual. Durkheim's theory of community (or collective consciousness) begins with his analysis of Australian Aborigine culture (Durkheim, p. 34).
A totem is used to represent the community, then rituals are performed which make the totem sacred. There is a circular motion inherent in such religious traditions: the totem, as a reflection of the group, indicates that the group is worshiping itself. The rituals performed elicit feelings of effervescence, integration and revitalization. It is this process that promotes group solidarity, providing a connection to a larger community and that community's history. I believe that the Mescalero puberty ceremony is better suited to analysis through the Durkheim model.
First of all, the sacred space is a symbol of the Grandfathers. The fourth Grandfather represents humanity: ... (O) n the fourth day came man, the Apaches (p. 243). The Grandfathers and the history of the tribe are integral elements of the ceremony. The ceremony functions to keep the tribe together, functioning as a cohesive unit. The girls discover what roles they must play in this society and what is expected of them as women. For example, it is made clear that they are expected to bear children and to allow themselves to be protected by men.
III. Discuss elements which would be of greatest interest to Rosaldo/Atkinson, Order, and Gossen. Rosaldo/Atkinson The Rosaldo/Atkinson article places symbols into categories of binary opposition. The dominant binary opposition is that of man the life-taker and woman the life-giver (Rosaldo and Atkinson, p. 130). Elaborating on this idea, I have divided symbols used in the Mescalero ceremony into the following categories: Female is associated with motherhood, fire, the color yellow, the protected, and the center. Male is associated with warrior ship, poles (or structure, such as a frame), the color red, the protector, and the shield.
The Mountain God dancers, for example, use weapons in their dance. It is hoped that the girls participating in the ceremony will give birth to warrior sons. If the girls give birth to girls, it is hoped that these offspring will become mothers of warrior sons. The song tally sticks that are placed outside the fire provide a framework. These sticks are described as a pathway replicating the form of the holy lodge and its runway (p. 251). There is a balance inherent in these divisions.
For instance, the colors red and yellow are the basic colors of the universe. However, asymmetry is also evident. A basket-which represents the center and therefore the female-is placed in the center of a circle formed by poles. The girls wait inside the sacred lodge, awaiting direction from the male Singers.
Such incidents suggest the necessity of being restrained by and subservient to the males. Furthermore, there are many digressions from the binary categories. At one point in the ritual, the females dance around the males. Here, the men are the center and the women are the shield, or framework (p. 248). We see that the basket represents the center and the heart. The heart is also associated with the left.
But at another point in the ceremony, the males are painted on the left side of their faces and the women on the right. Women have been described as mothers (creators) and men as warriors. Yet it is the men who build the sacred structure and the women who destroy it! Ortner Sherry Ortner uses the term key symbol to describe the symbols that are most important to a culture. In order to find key symbols, it is necessary to understand their underlying principles.
There are five indicators used to locate key symbols: These symbols are culturally important; arouse positive or negative feelings; come up in different contexts, are elaborated by a culture; and have cultural restrictions placed upon them (Ortner, p. 93 - 94). This is the criteria I use to examine the key symbols of the Mescalero puberty ceremony. The author of The Mescalero Girls Puberty Ceremony locates 5 key symbols. These are: balance, circularity, directionality, the number 4, and sound / silence (p. 242). In my analysis, I will examine the key symbol of sound / silence . Singing, chanting, playing musical instruments, making noise and observing silence are important elements of the ceremony.
The cultural significance of the sound made by the girls when dancing on the hides is explained by one of the Singers: This is the sound that a people will make on this earth... Abide by it (p. 249). One of the most profound examples of emotional arousal through sound occurs at the beginning of the ceremony. Before sunrise, the lead Singer begins a song while slowly raising his left hand. His song is timed so perfectly that when he sings the last line of the song, the sun rises, striking his raised palm.
The writer of the article describes this as a moment of breath-taking Beauty (p. 244). Musical instruments include not only items such as sticks, but also articles of clothing. Jingles cut from tin cans are sewn onto clothing, providing music when the person dances. This is an example of a symbol appearing in different contexts. Here we see musical instrument crossing over into the domain of fashion.
The song tally sticks represent an instance of cultural elaboration. Each stick represents a song that has been sung. All the sticks together comprise a replica of the holy lodge and its runway. Whether it is the high- pitched ululation of the women (p. 243); the hooting sound resembling that of an owl or a turkey (p. 247); or the chants used to recount history (p. 249), the symbol of sound is significant in almost every aspect of the ritual. At one point in the ritual, females who are not participants in the puberty ceremony are forbidden from wearing clothing or jewelry that might make a noise. Only the participants, the Mountain God dancers and the clowns may wear such articles.
This is an example of a cultural restriction surrounding a symbol. Gossen The meaning of the symbols used by the Chamula's and Mescalero's differs greatly. According to Gossen, the Chamulas place a variety of meanings upon the cardinal directions. East is the primary direction, associated with God the Father and Creator (Gossen, p. 116). This is the domain of the sun, and therefore, the east is also associated with up.
The sun emits light and heat, through its penetrating rays. Other associations with the east include: male, goodness, day, fire, and mountains. To the Chamulas, the north is also good because it is to the right of God in the east. Negative qualities are ascribed to the south. The south is associated with killing frosts and death.
The west is down. Three different levels constitute the Chamula's sky. The bottom level is what people on earth can see. The second level (in ascending order) is where the Virgin Mary and the moon reside. The sun and the guardian of animal souls are at the top level. The Mescalero's associate each cardinal direction with their Grandfathers (p. 243).
While the Mescalero's also consider the east to be the primary direction, they associate the east with the First Grandfather, the moon and stars. The west is associated with animals. The sky-as well as wind, rain and mountains-lies in the south. Man is in the north, held up by the other three directions. This can be viewed as a difference or similarity between the Chamula's and the Mescalero's, depending on which of Gossen's informants you listen to. One person described the earth as being supported by man while another described the earth as being supported by bearers at all cardinal points.
One of the main differences between the Chamula's and Mescalero's is the value they place on the right or left sides. Mescalero's give preference to the left, and their rituals are primarily clockwise in nature. Left is also connected to the heart, to God and the sun. The Chamula's give preference to the right and to the counterclockwise direction.
The Chamula's connect women to the ground and to coldness. The Mescalero connects women to the ground and to heat. Fire is the primary symbol for the Mescalero women, particularly the pit fire. Many parts of the puberty ceremony involve the girls sitting or lying on the ground, symbolizing a connection with Mother Earth.
The Chamula's association between women and the ground, however, holds the negative connotation of lowness.
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