Author Archives: mchollin

12 Grapes at Midnight on New Year’s Eve

Text: Every New Year’s Eve, the informant’s family eats 12 grapes within the minute-or-so leading up to midnight. Each grape represents one of the 12 months, and as they eat each grape they make a wish for that month. It is a way for them to bring consistent good luck into the new year.

Context: The informant has participated in this tradition every year as far back as they can remember, and their family is who taught it to them originally. The informant and their family are Argentinian and have always lived in Los Angeles. The informant said that this is their favorite New Year’s tradition because it becomes a fun competition between her and her siblings (as to who can finish the grapes the fastest) and looks forward to it every year.

Analysis: This is far from the first time I’ve heard of this New Year’s tradition, as it seems that many Spanish-speaking cultures partake in similar traditions. Potentially, I could see this tradition as an expression of optimism for the incoming year. I could also see this tradition as a way of trying to attract what you want into the new year, as in class we talked about how many New Years traditions revolve around manifestations during the liminal time that is the transition from year to year. In this case, the grapes might symbolize wealth or luxury.

Jolly Ranchers for Test Taking

Text: In high school, the informant would have a Jolly Rancher candy while studying for tests, and she would also have a Jolly Rancher while taking the test to help her remember the information she had studied.

Context: She learned this trick from her Biology teacher early in high school, who gave the class green Jolly Ranchers to study with and provided more green Jolly Ranchers during the tests to help them jog their memories on the content they studied. The informant adopted this ritual and used it throughout the rest of high school. She would even use a different flavor of Jolly Rancher for each subject she would study for. She believed that this ritual would help her better recall the information she studied during the test, and she said that she felt it did help her a little bit and that it was fun to get to have candy while studying.

Analysis: Although this study trick may or may not have scientific backing, the power of belief is at play here. If she believes that having Jolly Ranchers will help her perform better on a test, it is more likely that it actually will. Additionally, this ritual may have partially been for enjoyment because it involved eating candy.

Basketball Free Throws

Text: The informant would dribble five times before shooting a free throw when she played basketball for her high school. She performed this ritual because she believed it would help her make more of her free throws.

Context: The informant noticed that she would make a higher percentage of her free throws when she performed this ritual, although she says it was probably because of a placebo affect more than anything else. She started this ritual when she first joined the team and realized that her teammates all had pre-free-throw rituals of their own.

Analysis: For the informant, creating her own ritual was a way of becoming a true part of the team, since everyone else had their own rituals. Additionally, this is an example of the power of belief, and how thinking can actually influence one’s physicality. Just because she believed that her ritual was helping her score more points, it actually was.

Birthday Morning Tradition

Text: The informant’s parents wake them up with balloons and by singing the happy birthday song every year.

Context: The informant thought that everyone had this tradition when she was growing up. She learned that it was specific to her family at her 10th birthday sleepover party, where the informant’s friends woke her up that morning before her parents did, without singing or balloons. She refused to start the year off badly so she went back to sleep until her parents woke her up with the singing and balloons she was expecting. Additionally, her parents were the one’s who started this tradition for their family. They did not learn it from other generations. The informant has had this tradition every year since she can remember.

Analysis: Traditions like this, which are only between family, could be a way of creating a feeling of distinction from other families or people outside of the family. Since this family is the only one who knows the tradition, it is a way of expressing that they are an in-group. It is also a way of expressing love and affection from the parents to their child and making them feel special. Additionally for the informant, since she’s grown used to experiencing this tradition, not experiencing it on a given year is a sign that the year will be thrown off.