The coming of age is a young person’s transition from childhood to adulthood. The age, ceremony and particulars vary in society along with the nature of the transition. This essay will examine the significance a rite of passage is to various cultures. It will educate the audience how the rite of passage differs from one another while others resemble each other.
Though coming of age traditions vary from culture to culture nearly every society practices them. The only similarity all have is the meaning of the tradition; leaving childhood and entering society as an adult. From elegant balls to painful mutilation of the body these ceremonies are practice every year; and are passed down generation to generation. Most of this ceremonies,
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especially the balls, have change their meaning but are still practice today. Debutantes Marriage to a respectable young gentleman was what every Victorian girl wanted during the 17-1800’s. The 16th century debutantes were young ladies who had reached the age of maturity, completed an education and were ready to be introduced into society. It meant the girl was eligible to marry. Its purpose was to display her to bachelors and families for suitability. Referred to as the marriage mart this ball was the best venue for ladies to encounter possible suits. The balls were the highlight of the season. They were hosted at the grand houses of aristocracy. This tradition was introduced by Queen Elizabeth who started presenting ladies at court. During her reign Queen Victoria set the tradition for debutantes to present themselves before the royal court. This was use to classify a higher status in society. The term debutante is derived from the French which mean “female beginner”. During this era the debutantes’ varied in age when presented but usually started at 12 through 18. After the young ladies were presented into society they were expected to marry within two to three years. The balls could be done with numerous of debutants at once. The upper class usually held an exclusive ball for their own. During the 19th century this tradition crossed the oceans and reached places such as Australia, Ireland and America. Each country now have their own version of this ball, in United States it is known as cotillion and in Australia it is actually a mix version of prom. Though this celebration ceased in the United Kingdom due to WW II, economic change and differences views it is still practice today in America. There are various celebrations but one of the most revered is the International Debutante Ball. In the event daughters of the world’s richest families present themselves to high society at the glittering debutant ball which was held last year in New York. The world’s elite families are at attendance and at stake is their first impression on a world accustomed to only the greatest of poise. The debutantes of the modern era are college-aged young women from all over the world. The ladies attend in order to make what will likely become their future husbands, friends and business contacts. The evening begins with the receiving line where guests meet the debutantes. After the dinner and dancing in the Ballroom, each debutante is presented, one at a time and accompanied by a young man in white tie and tails. As the debutante walks down the center of the Ballroom to make her bow, the orchestra plays a song appropriate to the country or state represented. These daughters of nobility have for six decades used all their beauty, glamor and magnetism to help benefit a range of charities. While forty-six of the young women hail from the United States, by far the most represented country every year, about a quarter of the debutantes come from across the globe. The international debutantes come from France, England, Italy and German, China, Hong Kong, Scotland, Spain and Austria were also represented, among other nations. Quinceañera The transition from childhood to womanhood is a significant passage for adolescent girls; in Mexico it is marked with the celebration of the Quinceañera, or 15th Birthday. From a certain viewpoint, it may be seen as a cross between Sweet Sixteen and a debutante's coming out party. This celebration is a way to symbolized that a young woman has reached sexual maturity and is thus of a marriageable age. But how this tradition came to be. In that ancestral home of the Aztec Indians, whose empire thrived during the 1400s and early 1500s, young girls were considered marriage-ready at the age of 15.
They went through ceremonial rites of passage that included parental speeches giving advice to their daughters to become wise, upstanding women. Then the Spanish invaded the Aztec empire and overthrew them in the 1520s, bringing their European influence to the indigenous people. The upper class brought their debutantes aspects and with a combine culture the Quinceañera was born. When you look closely at Quinceañera history, the party may seem modern compared to old times, it is no secret how many things have changed. The Quinceañera traditions have evolved from their historical beginnings, growing to represent timeless, universal values of love, honor, and family. Although the historical meaning of the Quinceañera as a girl’s introduction into high society is no longer relevant, the deeper meaning of coming of age and being welcomed into an adult role in the family by parents and godparents is still deeply relevant. Quinceañera history evolved naturally and it remains a main celebration amongst Hispanic women and Latinas …show more content…
overall. The most important component of the celebration is invariably a Misa.
The birthday girl arrives in a fancy full-length dress. Flanked by her parents and padrinos (godparents), she is specially seated at the foot of the altar throughout the service. She may be accompanied by up to seven damas and chambelanes, selected from among close family and friends. Families usually rent banquet halls for the dance, while village folks are more inclined to set up rented folding tables and chairs in a freshly cleared and swept a yard or orchard. To cover the multiple expenses, a host of padrinos and madrinas may be invited to sponsor, respectively, the dress, the music, the locale, the bar, the cake and the table favors. Once the party starts it is custom for the birthday girl to be introduced and walk around flanked by her parents. Symbolizing her entrance into adulthood. One of the final rituals of a Quinceañera is the changing of the quince girl’s shoes. The father will remove the flat-soled slippers his daughter wore to the party and replace them with a pair of heels. Thus, the 15-year-old who sashayed into the Quinceañera as a girl will stride out and back home as a young
woman. She will dance a father daughter song. Once the song is finished it will be the turn on the maids of honor and chamberlains to dance a waltz and a cumbia. From surrendering the last doll during the Catholic mass to the shoe ceremony before the final father-daughter dance afterward, the Quinceañera is full of symbolic gestures and gifts. Unlike the ordinary birthday parties that the quince girl might’ve enjoyed for the prior 14 years, her 15th extravaganza officially marks her coming of age, and therefore requires appropriate gifts and apparel to carry her through that transition. Often, the Quinceañera itself is the present for the birthday girl, rather than a bounty of wrapped packages. Parents who can afford big-budget fiestas may give their daughter a
I shouldn’t have a quinceanera , what’s so important you turning fifteen having a huge party having a big dress , food , make-up , and hair done . every one turn fifteen and some people don’t make a huge party and go all out just for you turning a age , it’s not a big deal turning fifteen you still a teen you're not an adult yet , your still a kid.
The Quinceañera is a celebration in Latin America that is very comparable to our Sweet 16 celebration, also know as the fiesta de quince años. The origination of the word comes from the feminine term of fifteen-year-old in Spanish. The overall celebration marks the transition from childhood to becoming a young woman. In earlier times this celebration was meant to be a teaching point for young women to learn how to cook, weave, and the art of becoming a mother. Depending on the family specifically, some can carry a religious tone, and some can be more traditional and casual.
The Latinos make up close to 16 percent of the total American population, thus becoming the 2nd largest ethnic community. Just like many other migrant populations, the Latinos seek to keep in touch with their Hispanic traditions and cultures. As Alvarez puts it, children born in the US are thus taught certain cultural events and values so as to maintain their lineage. The most common one as discussed by Alvarez in her book is the quinceañera. This refers to a girl’s celebration as she reaches fifteen. This day of celebration is supposed to mark a girl’s transition from being a child to an adult woman. Among other traditional symbols, these parties are huge and include choreographed dances and ball gowns.
Envision stepping into the room, seeing your guess smile and talk quietly, the atmosphere of the room glowing, and feeling the warmth grow inside your chest as you know you planned a successful Quinceanera. The day a girl of the hispanic culture turns 15, is the day her fantasies come to life; and she becomes a women. Quinceaneras carry lots of quarks, small details, and ideas; but with these simple steps it can be perfected.
Ever since I was young I wanted to have a Quinceanera. I always wanted to wear a long and fluffy dress and a shiny crown on my head. I always saw many girls on t.v or family members have their own Quinceanera, so I decided that I wanted to have mine as well. Quinceanera are family traditions, in Mexico it’s when a young girl is about to become fifteen years old they have a Quinceanera, which represents that you are turning into a young woman.
In Quinceanera, the concept of growing up is surrounded by cultural lies. In Latin culture, the celebration of when a girl turns 15 symbolizes the transition to adulthood. In the poem, we see the narrator showing resistance to the act of growing up. She expresses her emotions by saying, “My dolls have been put away like dead children,” to put away her dolls who are not supposed to be “dead” to her. She needs to move on from any tangible objects that have any
quinceañeras are a tradition for a girl who at the age of 15 becomes a young women. Another example, in the United States Culture theres sweet 16 which is similar to a quinceañera, but in this case a girl becomes a young women at the age of 16. Each culture has their own rituals, traditions, rite of passage that contributes to the development or defines one’s self identity, there’s similarities or differences between the rites of passage, why do only girls receive quinceañeras, and does commercialization of rituals and or rite of passage have an affect on its overall
There are a number of activities that take place during the ceremony and each part has its own purpose and significance. As a whole, the procession takes place over a course of four days and within a decent amount of time of the first menstruation. However, in the event of the child being away at boarding school they will go home immediately or if this is not an option then the ceremony must be postponed. The ordering of events take place over the course of the four days directly relate to the myth of the origins of Kinaalda. For instance, in Marie Shirley’s Kinaalda the order and the events that take place resemble closely the events that took place during the mythical origin story. For Shirley’s own ceremony the events that take place include: hair-combing, dressing, molding, race one and race two, nighttime activities, and several others. To prepare for the events that will take place, the people involved do things such as shelling corn and cleaning the hogan. On the first day of the ceremony the girls involved have their hair combed to make the girl resemble Changing Woman and are dressed in their ceremonial clothing, which include adornments of silver and turquoise. When wearing the jewelry some feel that this is a testament of her future. If she wears large amounts of jewels then this will mean she will have a rich life full of success. Usually after the dressing is the lifting of the people. This is something that Changing Woman did during her own ceremony, as a way to thank the people for their gifts (Wheelwright, 1942). They are then to lay on their stomach to begin the process of the molding; this relates to the first girl’s kinaalda myth in which “she was molded and pressed so she would have a good figure” (T...
All birthdays are special. Birthdays celebrate life and the passing of time. In a young Mexican girl life, there is no birthday more important then her quinceañera. The quinceañera is a celebration of a girl’s journey into womanhood. The story of my fifteenth birthday is contributed for a better understanding of how special it is to celebrate a girl’s transformation into a lady, and how it differs from any other birthday she celebrates.
A quinceañera is an event that is celebrated worldwide. The term “quinceañera” means fifteenth years in English. It’s an extravagant birthday bash for a young lady turning the age of fifteen.”Celebrating my quince años meant beginning a life of a new adult. It has also given me much more responsibility for my own actions” (Xochitl Comparan, Victoria, Texas). This event is celebrated differently by many diverse cultures, and as time goes by some of the traditions change. Even though the traditions may alter, the whole point for this eventful activity stays the same. The point for this event is to recognize the young lady’s transition from childhood to womanhood. This is also known as “the coming of age.” On this one day, it’s all about the girl, nothing else matters! Organizing one of these events is a very expensive and lengthy process. It takes a lot of time and dedication. There’s a lot to be incorporated in the huge event; such as planning the ceremony, every decoration detail for the reception, all the traditions that must happen during the day, and most importantly to figure out who will be a part of this ritual.
Do I even want to have a sweet sixteen? I’ve never seen myself as the quintessential “princess”, in a flowing dress and mile high tiara. I could just wait until my eighteenth, then I’d be considered an adult, at least in American society. Do I even want a Quinceanera? It revolves around the church so much it’s practically the sun and the earth. Besides, could I even have a Quinceanera? My family would have to travel all the way to Mexico.
A Quinceanera is a hispanic tradition because it is to celebrate a girl's fifteenth birthday and her transition from childhood to adulthood, typically involving a mass followed by a party. All the family are gathered
The second family that I interviewed was the Lyles family. Both Bro. Scotty, the father, and Mrs. Yolanda, the mother, participated in the interview and three of their children were in the room. Bro. Scotty was born and raised in Alba, Texas on the very same tree farm that he owns and operates today; he is also a deacon at our church. However, Mrs. Yolanda was born and raised in Guatemala. As a child she was raised Catholic, and is part of a large and growing family. She is one of eight children. Their family as well as anybody else in that culture celebrated their daughter’s 15th birthday with a Quinceañera which marked the transition from childhood to young womanhood. This was traditionally the first time the girls would wear make-up, nice
According to Nelson, Badger and Bo (2004), non-Western culture tends to focus on practices that help the transition to adulthood instead of having the period of emerging adulthood. However, Asians usually leave home at a much older age compared to the Americans. With that said, Asians are slower in the transition towards adulthood by gaining independence and freedom much later in life. In addition to that, emerging adults of lower socioeconomic status reaches adulthood earlier than those who are from higher socioeconomic status (Settersten & Ray,
The progressive of everyone's coming of age is different. When we're able to read upon someone else’s transition it could help us reflect on our transition. Throughout Purple Hibiscus, we can see Kambili and Jaja story of coming of age. When one can analyze another story we can adopt it to our influences and personas.