Rumspringa's Coming Of Age

Coming of age can occur in multiple environments or ages, as demonstrated in Monica Hesse's coming-of-age novel The Girl In the Blue Coat, Leticia Pfeiffer and Christiane Muñez’s article “13 Coming of Age Traditions From Around the World,” and Sylvia Plath’s short story “Initiation.”In The Girl in the Blue Coat, Hanneke comes of age as a result of her environment and her age when the Nazis invade Holland during World War II. The harsh environment of wartime Holland forces Hanneke to mature in order to survive, unlike others her age who slowly mature into adulthood. “We now have to put up with their presence, but we got to keep our buildings. It’s a bad trade-off. It’s all bad trade-offs these days, unless, like me, you know how to end up on the profitable side of

things” (Hesse 11). Growing up in Nazi Holland causes Hanneke to learn special skills from her war-stricken surroundings, which differs from typical coming-of-age experiences. Hanneke is about nineteen years old when the book takes place and has already come of age by separating herself from her naive childhood by becoming a black-market tradesperson to support her family. Upon entering the Lyceum, Hanneke reflects on her coming of age by looking back at her school years, “The school’s architecture reminds me of the school I attended. Three years ago: My friends and I would all have been sitting on the steps outside right now, arguing about where to go before our parents expected us home...My whole life has been demolished, brick by brick. It happened two and a half years ago, but standing in front of this school makes me feel like it happened two weeks ago. Or like it’s still happening, again and again, every day.” (Hesse 52). Hanneke comes of age by learning how to survive and be an adult, surrendering her childhood as the result of her environment and age.

Alternately, some teenagers come of age through tradition.

For example, Amish teenagers come of age through the Rumspringa tradition as explained by Leticia Pfeffer’s and Christina Nuñez’s article “13 Amazing Coming of Age Traditions From Around the World.” Rumspringa is an Amish tradition celebrating a teenager’s choice to become an adult in the Amish church. Leticia Pfeffer and Christina Nuñez explain the tradition, “The purpose of this period is to allow Amish youth the opportunity to see and experience the world beyond their culture and upbringing. In this way, returning to their community and way of life thus is entirely their choice.” (Pfeffer and Nuñez) For most Amish teenagers Rumspringa is the first time they have left their familiar and insulated communities, which can be difficult. Rumspringa can help Amish teenagers choose, “In Amish tradition, Rumspringa marks the time when youth turn 16 and are finally able to enjoy unsupervised weekends away from family.” (Pfeffer and Nuñez) Rumspringa brings teenagers to adulthood by giving them difficult choices, giving them a chance to leave their traditional community, and forcing them to make an adult decision to return to their community and

faith.

In contrast, some teenagers come of age by going against tradition. In the short story “Initiation,” Millicent comes of age due to the strict sorority community and her value of high school status. Watching the effect of the sorority on younger girls at her high school, Millicent longed to join,“What girl would not want to be in her place now? Millicent thought, amused. What girl would not want to be one of the elect…” (Plath 1). Millicent is impacted by the sorority's power due to her young age, and the pressure to be “perfect” during high school years. Millicent thinks, “Tomorrow she would come to school, proudly laughingly, without lipstick, with her brown hair straight and shoulder length, and then everybody would know, even the boys would know, that she was one of the elected” (Plath 2). In the end, however, Millicent comes of age by choosing not to join the sorority and finding popularity in her own way, so she can keep her friend Tracy.