Essays on Rite Of Passage

I am a man. I know this because of the following reasons. First, the most obvious reason I consider myself a male is that I possess almost all physical features that are considered manly. These include the masculine physique, deep voice, beard, and mustache; just to mention but a few. Secondly, being the natives of Saudi Arabia, we are technically Muslims; and according to our culture boys and men put on thobes, outfits specially designed for hot-weather regions. Since I do have and wear them, it gives me another reason to count myself as one. Additionally, I always handle ...

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is the complete or partial removal of the female genitals. Different cultures in various locations perform the practices in a variety of different ways and to differing degrees. The World Health Organization describes four different standard procedures: a) Clitoridectomy – a practice where all or part of the clitoris is detached; b) Excision –a practice where the clitoris and part or all of the labia minora, the inside vaginal lips, are eliminated; c) Infibulation – a practice where all of the outside genitalia is eradicated and then the opening is tacked up to where there is only ...

The philosopher Plato once claimed that the purpose of education is “to ensure that the habit and aspirations of the old generation are transmitted to the younger- and then presumably to the next one after that” (Plochmann). In “Reporting Live from Tomorrow,” from his book Stumbling On Happiness, Daniel Gilbert likens this transmission of beliefs to the process of genetic replication, arguing that like bad genes, false beliefs—those which do not, in fact, contribute to an individual’s happiness—can easily become “super-replicators,” within a culture (Gilbert 171). In Julia Alvarez’s Once Upon a Quinceañera, the ...

Culture, Advocacy and Sexual Practices

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is the partial or complete removal of the female genitals. Different practices are preformed depending on culture and location. The World Health Organization describes four different procedures: a) Clitoridectomy – a process where all or part of the clitoris is removed; b) Excision –a process where the clitoris and some or all of the labia minora which is the inside vaginal lips is removed; c) Infibulation – a process where all of the outside genitalia is removed and then the opening is stitched up to where there is only a small hole left for urine and menstrual ...

My Freshman Pool Jump as a Rite of Passage

I have gone through the freshman jump which is a rite of passage that involves jumping off a diving board into a pool in prom dresses. The tradition is as old as the school itself, and it symbolizes the shedding off of young ways and embracing the newly found adulthood as we start our college years. The jump happens at the beginning of the first school semester, and the freshmen are required to carry their high school prom tuxedos and prom dresses and wear them over swimming costumes. The act is presided over by the students' association leaders and ...