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Malinowski Rite Of Passage Summary

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Malinowski’s view of myth is that we need to understand the culture and social context behind the myth. He argues that a myth serves as an ultimate truth that attempts to explain why society or culture is the way it is. He also states that if this points made by the myth are challenged than the myth serves as a weapon or justification against those claims. Malinowski’s major approach was the study of the mythos of the people of the Trobriand Islands. Theses myths involved the telling of how their ancestors arose from the earth. Each one of these ancestors brought upon new knowledge. This myth was perfect because it tied into present day membership into a clan. Malinowski stated that the myths can change however, in order to justify present day issues. Claude Levi-Strauss however transformed the myth all together. He argued that myths have meaningful structures that are worth studying. He compared interpreting a myth to reading a musical score. Essentially he is saying that in a myth, the sum of all its parts are greater than the whole and each part contriubutes to the overall lore of the myth. 2. …show more content…

A rite of passage is a ceremony or ritual marking an important stage in someone's life, and in most cases becoming a different or new person by the end of it. Some examples of rite of passage would be puberty, marriage, and death. There are three stages in a rite of passage. The first stage is the separation stage. In this stage, an individual begins the process of going from the old to the new. The person undergoing this transformation leaves behind the person they were before. The second stage is transition. In this stage, the passenger is in a state of limbo. They are neither who they were before and yet are not quite who they are trying to become either. This stage involves the process of rebuilding, or grinding out the old you. The final stage is Reaggregation. In this final stage the passenger is reintroduced into society as a new and changed

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