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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1909 1909]
==Definition==
*1: a [[ritual]] associated with a [[crisis]] or a [[change]] of [[status]] (as [[marriage]], illness, or [[death]]) for an [[individual]]
==Description==
A '''rite of passage''' is a [[ritual]] event that marks a person's [[transition]] from one [[status]] to another. The concept of rites of passage as a general [[theory]] of [[socialization]] was first formally articulated by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arnold_van_Gennep Arnold van Gennep] in his book ''The Rites of Passage'' to denote rituals marking the transitional [[phase]] between [[childhood]] and full inclusion into a [[tribe]] or social group. The concept of the ''rite of passage'' is also used to [[explore]] and describe various other [[milestones]] in an individual's [[life]], for any marked transitional stage, when one's [[social status]] is altered. Gennep's work exercised a deep impact on [[anthropological]] thought. Milestones include transitions from [[puberty]], year 7 to high school, coming of age, [[marriage]] and [[death]]. [[Initiation]] ceremonies such as [[baptism]], [[confirmation]] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bar_or_Bat_Mitzvah Bar or Bat Mitzvah] are considered important rites of passage for people of their respective [[religions]]. Rites of passage show anthropologists what social [[hierarchies]], [[values]] and [[beliefs]] are important in specific cultures.
''Rites of passage'' have three phases: [[separation]], [[transition]], and reincorporation, as van Gennep described. "I propose to call the rites of separation from a previous world, preliminal rites, those executed during the [[transitional]] stage [[liminal]] (or [[threshold]]) rites, and the ceremonies of incorporation into the new world postliminal rites."
In the first phase, people withdraw from their current [[status]] and [[prepare]] to move from one place or status to another. "The first phase (of separation) comprises [[symbolic]] behaviour signifying the [[detachment]] of the individual or group ... from an earlier fixed point in the social structure." There is often a detachment or "cutting away" from the former [[self]] in this phase, which is signified in symbolic actions and [[rituals]]. For example, the cutting of the hair for a person who has just joined the army. He or she is "cutting away" the former self: the civilian.
The [[transition]] ([[liminal]]) phase is the period between states, during which one has left one place or state but has not yet entered or joined the next. "The attributes of liminality or of liminal personae ("threshold people") are necessarily [[ambiguous]]."
In the third phase (reaggregation or reincorporation) the passage is [[consummated]] [by] the ritual subject." Having completed the rite and assumed their "new" [[identity]], one re-enters [[society]] with one's new [[status]]. Re-incorporation is characterized by elaborate [[rituals]] and ceremonies, like debutant balls and college [[graduation]], and by outward symbols of new ties: thus "in rites of incorporation there is widespread use of the '[[sacred]] [[bond]]', the 'sacred cord', the knot, and of analogous forms such as the belt, the ring, the bracelet and the [[crown]]."[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rite_of_passage]
[[Category: Anthropology]]
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1909 1909]
==Definition==
*1: a [[ritual]] associated with a [[crisis]] or a [[change]] of [[status]] (as [[marriage]], illness, or [[death]]) for an [[individual]]
==Description==
A '''rite of passage''' is a [[ritual]] event that marks a person's [[transition]] from one [[status]] to another. The concept of rites of passage as a general [[theory]] of [[socialization]] was first formally articulated by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arnold_van_Gennep Arnold van Gennep] in his book ''The Rites of Passage'' to denote rituals marking the transitional [[phase]] between [[childhood]] and full inclusion into a [[tribe]] or social group. The concept of the ''rite of passage'' is also used to [[explore]] and describe various other [[milestones]] in an individual's [[life]], for any marked transitional stage, when one's [[social status]] is altered. Gennep's work exercised a deep impact on [[anthropological]] thought. Milestones include transitions from [[puberty]], year 7 to high school, coming of age, [[marriage]] and [[death]]. [[Initiation]] ceremonies such as [[baptism]], [[confirmation]] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bar_or_Bat_Mitzvah Bar or Bat Mitzvah] are considered important rites of passage for people of their respective [[religions]]. Rites of passage show anthropologists what social [[hierarchies]], [[values]] and [[beliefs]] are important in specific cultures.
''Rites of passage'' have three phases: [[separation]], [[transition]], and reincorporation, as van Gennep described. "I propose to call the rites of separation from a previous world, preliminal rites, those executed during the [[transitional]] stage [[liminal]] (or [[threshold]]) rites, and the ceremonies of incorporation into the new world postliminal rites."
In the first phase, people withdraw from their current [[status]] and [[prepare]] to move from one place or status to another. "The first phase (of separation) comprises [[symbolic]] behaviour signifying the [[detachment]] of the individual or group ... from an earlier fixed point in the social structure." There is often a detachment or "cutting away" from the former [[self]] in this phase, which is signified in symbolic actions and [[rituals]]. For example, the cutting of the hair for a person who has just joined the army. He or she is "cutting away" the former self: the civilian.
The [[transition]] ([[liminal]]) phase is the period between states, during which one has left one place or state but has not yet entered or joined the next. "The attributes of liminality or of liminal personae ("threshold people") are necessarily [[ambiguous]]."
In the third phase (reaggregation or reincorporation) the passage is [[consummated]] [by] the ritual subject." Having completed the rite and assumed their "new" [[identity]], one re-enters [[society]] with one's new [[status]]. Re-incorporation is characterized by elaborate [[rituals]] and ceremonies, like debutant balls and college [[graduation]], and by outward symbols of new ties: thus "in rites of incorporation there is widespread use of the '[[sacred]] [[bond]]', the 'sacred cord', the knot, and of analogous forms such as the belt, the ring, the bracelet and the [[crown]]."[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rite_of_passage]
[[Category: Anthropology]]
