Rites of Passage
Rites of Passage:
ceremonies that mark
a person’s progress
from one phase of life
to another.
Rituals: ceremonial
acts prescribed by
tradition or religion that
set humans apart from
other species.
Rites of Passage

All cultures mark
changes/transitions in
the life cycle.
 Some
rites of
passage are
ancient
(entering
adulthood)

Entering adulthood in Sepik
River, New Guinea:
Crocodile scarification
marking transition into
manhood
...Maori tattoos , New Zealand
...Land Diving in Pentecost Island
while others are
very recent…
(obtaining a
driving license).
...First car
...First time getting drunk
The term rites of passage was
coined by ethnographer
Arnold van Gennep.

Although rites of passage are
all very different, each one
shares a three stage process:
1.
Separation - You are temporarily
removed from society
2.
Transition - You learn the roles and
expected behaviours of the new
stage you are entering.
3.
Incorporation - You are re-admitted
back into society as a different
person.
Reasons for Rites

Relieve stress and help understand growth.

Group cohesion: everybody goes through the
same things.

Source of entertainment.

Pass on important traditions, religious or moral
values.
Coming of Age Ceremonies

Some of the most important rites of passage
are coming-of-age ceremonies.

Marks the transition from childhood to
adulthood.

Anthropologists believe that initiation into
puberty is universal; happens all over the
world throughout time.
Initiations
•Puberty rites all over the world share many
common features.
•May involve mutilation-scarring, piercing,
tattooing, endurance, fasting, pain, seclusion,
ritual markings, clothing, new name, etc.
•Emphasis on instruction in proper adult
behaviour.
Male Initiation in Australia
•Alkira-Kiuma Ceremony or the Tossing Ceremony of
the Aranda Tribe (1904).
•At age twelve, the boy's first initiation ceremony,
tossed up and caught by various males tribe
members.
Having already gone through the ceremony of
circumcision some six weeks earlier, the Parra ceremony
of sub incision follows. Newly sub-incised men rubbing
their blood on the backs of others, of the Aranda Tribe
(1944).
Tooth Knocking-Out Ceremony, as an additional,
optional initiation into the Rain Totem of the Aranda
Tribe. The right upper incisor would be knocked out with
a stone.
Death and Grieving

In many ways death is the most significant
rite of passage.

It is a phase of the life-cycle/rite of passage
that all humans go through.

The inevitability of death means that people
prepare themselves for death throughout
their lives.
30,000 year old burial
of two infants in
present day Austria.
Many people believe that death
is just another transition to one
phase of life to the next.
 Accordingly, some culture include
grave goods to accompany the
soul.
 Many cultures believe in the
afterlife where souls are sent
following death-often the location
depends on earthly behaviour.
i.e. Christianity
 Other cultures believe in the
concept of reincarnation-the soul
lives on in another living being.

Funerary Rites

Every society has different customs for the
preparation and disposal of the dead.

The body is usually washed, shaved,
cleansed, blessed…

The body is then typically inhumed (buried)
or cremated (burned) but other methods
include mummification or left to the
elements.

This process is often accompanied by
ceremonies for the mourners i.e mass.

Some cultures see death as a sad event
while others view it as a joyful occasion.
Terracotta Army
guarding burial of Qin
Shi Huang, first emperor
of China 210-209 BC.
Death
Elizabeth Kubler-Ross’s
Stages of Death / Grief.
1.
Denial
2.
Anger
3.
Bargaining
4.
Depression
5.
Acceptance