Van Genneps Rites Of Passage, Durkheim And Turners Theory Of Communitas

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Term Paper Title	Van Genneps Rites Of Passage, Durkheim And Turners Theory Of Communitas
# of Words	2033
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	8.13

Van Gennep's "Rites of Passage", Durkheim and Turner's Theory of Communitas

Van Gennep's "Rites of Passage", Durkheim and Turner's Theory of Communitas

I.  Classify using Van Gennep's 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 liminality, 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 tribe's 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
...

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