Rites Of Passage In The Bridge And Barrio Boy

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A Rite of Passage is a reference to a ceremony marking the time when a person passes from one stage of life to another. There are universal rites of passage in many religions and cultures. There are also unofficial rites of passage such as a first love or getting a drivers’ license. Many stories convey a rite of passage through the ways in which their characters develop. Two stories that convey a rite of passage are The Bridge by Nicolai Chukovski and Barrio Boy by Ernesto Galarza. Although both of these stories discuss rites of passage, they differ significantly. The Bridge tells the story of a Russian boy named Kostya who was struggling to find himself as he grew older. Nervous about leaving home soon, Kostya goes for a bike ride until he sees a girl riding …show more content…

The girl however, is as competitive as Kostya is persistent. “Her calves with the little white socks began to push harder- the girl did not want to be outdistanced.” (180) As determined as the girl was, however, she fell down into the river, where Kostya saved her. It is at this moment that Kostya has an epiphany. He begins to realize who he is and who he can be. Kostya becomes excited to leave home, rather than frightened. The bridge in this story is the perfect metaphor for a rite of passage. Before Kostya rides onto the bridge, he is anxious and scared. Yet, once he has overcome his fear of the bridge, Kostya is much more confident in his abilities. This is the same for the “bridge” of maturity. Similarly, in the autobiography Barrio Boy, Ernesto speaks of his experiences with school as a young foreign boy. Ernesto came into first grade with no knowledge of the English language. Despite this hardship, Ernesto is kindhearted. In his class president election, “I had voted for Homer and so had he” (449) Clashing with the practice of his opponent, Ernesto generously voted for Homer which shows that

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