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Locate as many examples of Hellenic coming-of-age rites - ancient as well as modern - as you can. Compare and evaluate them.

"Arrival at adulthood is measurable in terms of a threefold alteration in status which - to put it in our terms - comprises biological development, intellectual capacity and emotional stability." (Garland, 163). I've already discussed the ritual structure of most of the authors that I'll be referring to here when I wrote of offertory rites so in this article I will confine my remarks to the ritual's effectiveness as a modern coming of age ritual.

"at this festival [Arrhephoroia], the two young girls, the Arrhephoroi, who have lived for almost a year on the Acropolis, conclude their term of priestly service." (Burkert, 228). "The girls were of noble family, they were four in number and had to be between the ages of seven and eleven," (Harrison, 228). The authors go on to explain how the girls were given a basket which they are to bring to the temple without looking into it. Once there, they were given something wrapped in a veil to take back to where they started. If this is updated to be non-gender specific, it can be used in a modern coming-of-age ritual to demonstrate the participant's ability to take responsibility. (The basket should be sealed in some way that the Arrhephoroi can open it but not re-seal it. Then something, such as a realistic looking doll that cries out when it is moved, should be put inside to make them curious.)

"Enrollment in the deme register and, as a result, the right to be considered a full citizen was a delicate step." (Cambiano, "Becoming an Adult", 107); In ancient Athens, coming-of-age included a vote to be accepted as a citizen and a year or two in the army. If the vote went against them, they could appeal and if they also lost the appeal, they would be sold into slavery. Now obviously in modern times, we don't have slavery but a vote on citizenship status is completely reasonable. The decision to join the military should be left participant since coming-of-age symbolizes taking responsibility for one's own life

"Perhaps the most meaningful way to reconstruct rites of passage for boys, then, is to add a religious element to those existing secular rites." (Campbell, 169); "Therefore, we may adapt a ritual that was traditionally performed before marriage to mark a young woman's coming of age." (Campbell, 171); Campbell presents modern versions of coming of age rituals that highlight the exact things that are important in modern times in a simple oath of acceptance of responsibility for ones own actions. They are completely acceptable as written or can be used as the foundation of a longer, gender non-specific ritual.

"The erastês or lover informs the friends of the pais three or four days beforehand that he intends to abduct him." (Garland, 175). Garland describes a coming of age ritual from ancient Crete where the lad is abducted, given gifts, hunts and feasts with his abductors for two months then returns to the city. This was to prepare the lad to fend for himself and show that he is a responsible adult. The same ritual could be used in modern times but would require large changes. First, like most ancient rituals, the gender specific portions would need to be changed for modern sensibilities. Next, in modern times not everyone provides for themselves by hunting so the ritual would need changes to reflect what the participant actually intends to do for a living. Last, but most importantly, considering the number of predators that turn out to be close friends of the family, the person to supervise and advise the participant has to be chosen very carefully.

Works Cited