Going to Disney World a childhood rite of passage?

[GinnyEmma]

Any vacation is a rite of passage? I don't think so. A rite of passage has to do with a change of status.

 

[RMulieri]

Any vacation is a rite of passage? I don't think so. A rite of passage has to do with a change of status.

I agree..Disney is a privelage definitely, but not a rite of passage.
Definition
Cultural Dictionary

rites of passage definition


Ceremonies that mark important transitional periods in a person's life, such as birth, puberty, marriage, having children, and death. Rites of passage usually involve ritual activities and teachings designed to strip individuals of their original roles and prepare them for new roles. The traditional American wedding ceremony is such a rite of passage. In many so-called primitive societies, some of the most complex rites of passage occur at puberty, when boys and girls are initiated into the adult world. In some ceremonies, the initiates are removed from their village and may undergo physical mutilation before returning as adults

Here is another
rite of passage 
–noun
1. Anthropology . a ceremony performed to facilitate or mark a person's change of status upon any of several highly important occasions, as at the onset of puberty or upon entry into marriage or into a clan.
2. any important act or event that serves to mark a passage from one stage of life to another

 

[crisi]

I agree..Disney is a privelage definitely, but not a rite of passage.
Definition
Cultural Dictionary

rites of passage definition


Ceremonies that mark important transitional periods in a person's life, such as birth, puberty, marriage, having children, and death. Rites of passage usually involve ritual activities and teachings designed to strip individuals of their original roles and prepare them for new roles. The traditional American wedding ceremony is such a rite of passage. In many so-called primitive societies, some of the most complex rites of passage occur at puberty, when boys and girls are initiated into the adult world. In some ceremonies, the initiates are removed from their village and may undergo physical mutilation before returning as adults

Here is another
rite of passage 
–noun
1. Anthropology . a ceremony performed to facilitate or mark a person's change of status upon any of several highly important occasions, as at the onset of puberty or upon entry into marriage or into a clan.
2. any important act or event that serves to mark a passage from one stage of life to another

I was thinking about this in the car. For MY kids, by the second definition, their first Disney trip WAS a right of passage. It marked the difference between them being non-travelers to them being travelers - a different stage of life for them. Before that, they'd never been more than 30 miles from home, had never been out of the state. Since then (not quite ten years) they've been to five countries (not including the ones in Epcot ) and a dozen states.

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

Anything that is a marked occasion is a rite of passage. For some families it's a boy going hunting or fishing for the first time. For other families it's a Sweet 16 party or riding a bike without training wheels.
Rites of Passage have evolved. Being we no longer live in villages or caves why can't Disney be considered a right of passage.

Rites of passage are often ceremonies surrounding events such as other milestones within puberty, coming of age, marriage and death. Initiation ceremonies such as baptism, confirmation and Bar or Bat Mitzvah are considered important rites of passage for people of their respective religions.

 

[tlbwriter]

Anything that is a marked occasion is a rite of passage. For some families it's a boy going hunting or fishing for the first time. For other families it's a Sweet 16 party or riding a bike without training wheels.
Rites of Passage have evolved. Being we no longer live in villages or caves why can't Disney be considered a right of passage.

Rites of passage are often ceremonies surrounding events such as other milestones within puberty, coming of age, marriage and death. Initiation ceremonies such as baptism, confirmation and Bar or Bat Mitzvah are considered important rites of passage for people of their respective religions.

A rite of passage is something that everyone in a particular culture is expected to go through. It's something that marks the completion of one phase of your life and the beginning of another. You're expected to hit puberty. You're expected to complete some type of education. You're expected to find a life partner. But in general, people aren't expected to go to WDW. No one (in their right mind) would say "You're only a young pipsqueak; you haven't even gone to Disney yet." Now, it could be that an extremely narrow culture (like, say, your own family) has a tradition that everyone goes to WDW when they're 10, and for that particular family this trip would be a rite of passage. But for the general population, no.

 

[GinnyEmma]

Agree

 

[RMulieri]

Again ...here is some more info on Modern times and Rite of Passage
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rite_of_passage

 

[CandleontheWater]

well, at least one cultural anthropologist agrees that a trip to Disney World can fit contextually within a "rite of passage" framework.

http://www.jstor.org/pss/3318104

Here is some more

On the express monorail, which bridges the opposition between the secular areas and the Magic Kingdom, similarities between Disney pilgrims and participants in rites of passage are especially obvious (rites of passage may be transitions in space, age, or social status). Disney pilgrims who ride the express monorail exhibit, as one might expect in a transition from a secular to a sacred space ( a magic kingdom), many of the attributes associated with liminal states, as discussed in the chapter "Religion." Like liminal periods in other passage rites, aboard the monorail all prohibitions that apply everywhere else in Disney World are intensified. In the secular areas and in the Magic Kingdom itself people may smoke and eat, and in the secular areas they can consume alcohol and go shoeless, but all these things are taboo on the monorail. Like ritual passengers, monorail riders temporarily relinquish control over their destinies. Herded like cattle into the monorail, passengers move out of ordinary space and into a time out of time in which social distinctions disappear and everyone is reduced to a common level. As the monorail departs, a disembodied voice prepares the pilgrims for what is to come, enculturating them in the lore and standards of Walt Disney World.

Symbols of rebirth at the end of liminality are typical of liminal periods. Rebirth symbolism is an aspect of the monorail ride. As the monorail speeds through the Contemporary Resort Hotel, travelers facing forward observe and pass through an enormous tiled mural that covers an entire wall. Just before the monorail reaches the hotel, but much more clearly after it emerges, travelers see Walt Disney World's primary symbol - Cinderella's castle. The sudden emergence from the mural into full view of the Magic Kingdom is a simulation of rebirth.

WITHIN THE MAGIC KINGDOM. Once the monorail pulls into the Magic Kingdom station, the transition is complete. Passengers are on their own. Attendants, so prominent at the other end of the line, are conspicuously absent. Walking down a ramp, travelers pass through another turnstile; a transit building where lockers, phones, rest rooms, strollers, and wheelchairs are available; and a circular open area. Soon they are in the Magic Kingdom, walking down "Main Street, U.S.A."

The Magic Kingdom itself invites comparison with shrines and rites. Pilgrims agree implicitly to constitute a temporary community, to spend a few hours or days observing the same rules, sharing experiences, and behaving alike. They share a common social status as pilgrims, waiting for hours in line and partaking in the same "adventures." Several anthropologists have argued that the major social function of rituals is to reaffirm, and thus to maintain, solidarity among members of a congregation. Victor Turner (1974) suggested that certain rituals among the Ndembu of Zambia serve a mnemonic function (they make people remember). Women's belief that they can be made ill by the spirits of their deceased matrilineal kinswomen leads them to take part in rites that remind them of their ancestors.

the original can be found here

Based on these anthropological examples, I would say that a trip to Walt Disney World could be considered a modern rite of passage.

 

[GinnyEmma]

Lol, just a fluff paper to justify a degree or position.

 

[NotUrsula]

I agree that it doesn't qualify as a rite of passage, though some trips can be in some cultures; upper-class British kids are very much expected to do a gap-year trip abroad.

Does it qualify as a cultural norm for some classes of American? Yes, I think so. It's a very middle-class thing in America these days, to make sure that sometime in childhood your kids do Disney at least once; it is right up there with owning your own home and getting a degree on the list of things that middle class Americans just *do*. The poor generally are expected to aspire to it, even if it never happens for them.

You might argue that a Disney trip *is* a rite of passage in some strata of Brazilian society -- all Dis'ers know that tours bringing them in groups after grade school graduation is an industry unto itself.

BTW, as a shareholder I'll go on record as being all for it.

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

A rite of passage is something that everyone in a particular culture is expected to go through. It's something that marks the completion of one phase of your life and the beginning of another. You're expected to hit puberty. You're expected to complete some type of education. You're expected to find a life partner. But in general, people aren't expected to go to WDW. No one (in their right mind) would say "You're only a young pipsqueak; you haven't even gone to Disney yet." Now, it could be that an extremely narrow culture (like, say, your own family) has a tradition that everyone goes to WDW when they're 10, and for that particular family this trip would be a rite of passage. But for the general population, no.

But for our particular culture it's a rite of passage.
I would dare to say in the community we reside it's a rite of passage.

 

[Jynxed]

What's a deb ball?

 

[tlbwriter]

On the express monorail, which bridges the opposition between the secular areas and the Magic Kingdom, similarities between Disney pilgrims and participants in rites of passage are especially obvious (rites of passage may be transitions in space, age, or social status). Disney pilgrims who ride the express monorail exhibit, as one might expect in a transition from a secular to a sacred space ( a magic kingdom), many of the attributes associated with liminal states, as discussed in the chapter "Religion." Like liminal periods in other passage rites, aboard the monorail all prohibitions that apply everywhere else in Disney World are intensified. In the secular areas and in the Magic Kingdom itself people may smoke and eat, and in the secular areas they can consume alcohol and go shoeless, but all these things are taboo on the monorail. Like ritual passengers, monorail riders temporarily relinquish control over their destinies. Herded like cattle into the monorail, passengers move out of ordinary space and into a time out of time in which social distinctions disappear and everyone is reduced to a common level. As the monorail departs, a disembodied voice prepares the pilgrims for what is to come, enculturating them in the lore and standards of Walt Disney World.

Where did you find that? It's hilarious!

But for our particular culture it's a rite of passage.
I would dare to say in the community we reside it's a rite of passage.

Depends on how you define "culture." If you mean "Americans" or "upper middle class" or "people who live in New Jersey," then probably not. If you mean "people who live in my home town" then it's possible, though it really seems kind of unlikely that everyone in your home town would have that exact same expectation. If you mean "my circle of friends, close coworkers, and people from my church," it's a more likely.

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

I agree that it doesn't qualify as a rite of passage, though some trips can be in some cultures; upper-class British kids are very much expected to do a gap-year trip abroad.

Does it qualify as a cultural norm for some classes of American? Yes, I think so. It's a very middle-class thing in America these days, to make sure that sometime in childhood your kids do Disney at least once; it is right up there with owning your own home and getting a degree on the list of things that middle class Americans just *do*. The poor generally are expected to aspire to it, even if it never happens for them.

You might argue that a Disney trip *is* a rite of passage in some strata of Brazilian society -- all Dis'ers know that tours bringing them in groups after grade school graduation is an industry unto itself.

BTW, as a shareholder I'll go on record as being all for it.

 

[GinnyEmma]

I should add that I don't see anything wrong with fluff publishing. Between academic papers and the need for publishing for tenure fluff gets published all the time.

 

[crisi]

Depends on how you define "culture." If you mean "Americans" or "upper middle class" or "people who live in New Jersey," then probably not. If you mean "people who live in my home town" then it's possible, though it really seems kind of unlikely that everyone in your home town would have that exact same expectation. If you mean "my circle of friends, close coworkers, and people from my church," it's a more likely.

Sub cultures can be very granular. If you identify "Disney Fans" as a subculture (and it fits many definitions for such) then a first trip to Disney is a right of passage for DisBoard posters.

Now, is it a cultural right of passage for my friend group? - nope....none of them have taken their kids to Disney. My community - yeah, almost everyone in my middle class neighborhood in the burbs has taken a trip to Disney.

 

[crisi]

What's a deb ball?

A coming out party

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Débutante

 

[Jynxed]

All the people I work with think I am nuts for taking DS to Disney. A few have been and hated it, others have no desire to go. Since their children are not brought up with the "Disney is the be all end all of childhood entertainment" I doubt they will feel slighted if they do not go.

That is until some kid comes to school after spring break with the stories of his vacation...

Also, advertisements work wonders on kids... we all have seen "where dreams come true"... It has the same effect on kids as it does us. We want to call and book a trip then and there.

So yeah, kids want to go. Of course they do. But if Johnny came exclaiming with the same excitement over his trip to the zoo those same kids would run to their parents wanting to go to the zoo next week too.

 

[NotUrsula]

All the people I work with think I am nuts for taking DS to Disney. A few have been and hated it, others have no desire to go. Since their children are not brought up with the "Disney is the be all end all of childhood entertainment" I doubt they will feel slighted if they do not go.

As a general rule, middle-class American Disney Objectors are a bit out of the mainstream, they tend to either be on the crunchy side, or fanatically frugal.

Disdain for Disney is less unusual among the upper classes, particularly in the old-money milieu. In that sub-culture it is often seen as gauche to admire things Disney, or anything connected to any theme park, for that matter. (DH once worked for a wealthy guy who personally hated visiting Disney World, and who was always trying to convince his wife that "people like us" don't go there.)

 

[Magpie]

We're not upper-middle class. Well, I guess some of us are. Some of us are on disability, or working in shops. Our social circle is very mixed.

We're tech industry, gov't., academia, that sort of thing. And Disney just isn't a big thing here. It's a poster in the window of the travel shop. My children reported FAR more envy from their peers when they got to go to "Harry Potter Land" than either of the times they've been to Disney. Universal is definitely somewhere all their friends want to go! I think my son doesn't talk about his trips to WDW, because it's a little embarrassing to admit to his friends that a big guy like him enjoys Disney stuff.

The only other mother I actually know who did take her kids to Disney wasn't that impressed. She says you can get more rides for less money at Canada's Wonderland, and she doesn't understand what all the hype is about. Her view is a lot more common than mine.

It may be a rite of passage in some parts of the US, but I don't think it is here. It's just something our family likes to do.