Author Archives: Kelly Williams

Proverb – French

Nationality: French
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: St. Louis, IL
Performance Date: April 12, 2008
Primary Language: English

“les jours se suivent et ne se ressemblent pas”

“the days itself follow and not resemble not”

“what a day may bring, a day may take away”

Elizabeth first heard this proverb from her father. Her parents are both French and often her father would comment on Elizabeth’s daily activities in French. One of the things she remembers him saying most often is the proverb above. Her Dad would always say this to her when she had a bad day in hopes of comforting her. Elizabeth remembered one special occasion when she was in middle school. Commonly in middle school girls would begin to form cliques and act catty towards one another. She said that one day she got into a fight with a close friend of hers and was really distraught by it. Her father came into her room and talked to her about the situation and before he left her alone told her the proverb.

Elizabeth believes it to mean that no matter how bad your day may be there is always a new day tomorrow and that new day can make you forget about the bad day you had earlier. Elizabeth also tells this proverb to her little brothers and friends when they have a bad day too, it helped her so she hopes that it will help others too.

Perhaps not this exact proverb but others like it are popular in American society. Most notably is the song from Annie, “Tomorrow” in which orphan Annie sings; “The sun will come out tomorrow, bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow, there’ll be sun!” I’ve also heard other variations of this proverb in simpler phrasing such as “Tomorrow’s a new day.”

This reveals the idea of optimism popular in many cultures. The French are known for the romanticism and love of the beauty in life. When the romance and beauty disappears this quote is fitting. It reassures whoever hears it that the beauty and romance taken away in one day can just as easily be regained. The origin of the proverb is unknown to Elizabeth and her father but both imagine that it has been around for quite sometime. Historically it is possible that the quote was popular during the French revolution when the French people were so dissatisfied with their government and caste system. This quote may have been said to the nobles who feared the anarchy or to the revolutionaries who hoped that justice would return to them.

Elizabeth believes that this quote is still said in households in France today. Proverbs are usually capable of transcending time, perhaps slightly changing to be more applicable to a specific period. This proverb has transcended time, even if it does not date back to the Revolution, it has transcended two generations of Chabots and will likely transcend more.

Superstition

Nationality: German
Occupation: Student
Residence: Seattle, WA
Performance Date: April 05, 2008
Primary Language: English

When you are on a boat or ship a lot of sailors think its bad luck to have bananas on board. Bananas at see are bad luck and can bring bad fishing/ bad catch and sickness to the crew. We never had bananas on board our ship the captain wouldn’t allow it.

Julia learned this about this superstition when she spent a semester at sea through the semester at sea program this past fall. She spent three months sailing around the world but never once was allowed to bring bananas on the boat. She said it was one of the rules associated with traditional nautical superstitions. She was told by the crew how the superstition came to be.

About a hundred or so years ago banana boats used to travel really quickly between the Caribbean and the east coast ports in the United States. The boats traveled fast to keep the bananas from going bad before the reached market. The boats traveled so fast that fisherman never caught anything when trolling for fish from the banana boats. Therefore fisherman believed that bananas on board a boat meant a bad catch.

Julia also said that she was told by some less superstitious crew members that bananas, if grown with out pesticides, often are home to lots of bugs and parasites some which can make the people on board really sick. So it is better to not bring the bananas on board period. It just keeps the crew and passengers from the possibility of a banana related sickness.

I find this superstition very unique. Julia’s explanation of the origin provides a terminus post-quem for the folklore. Folklorists know that this superstition must have started after the discovery of the Americas and American occupation in Cuba, Puerto Rico and/or other tropical islands close to the East Coast based on this specific story of its origin. I would not be surprised if the superstition dates back even earlier because sailing is an ancient practice and it is difficult to determine if the superstition were around based on a different reason before the banana boats came to be.

The term banana boat has infiltrated consumer society in the United States and the tourism industry in beach vacation destinations. A popular sunscreen brand is named Banana Boat and has a wide variety of products all advertised with a beach vacation lifestyle. Banana Boats are also popular tourist attractions in Mexico. Usually Banana Boats are a modified inflatable inner tube in the shape of a banana that 3 to 4 people straddle. The banana boat is tied to a larger boat with an engine that pulls the banana inner tube around at high speeds with the objective of seeing who can stay on the boat the longest.

This superstition, like many others is probably not going to go away soon. Although the original banana boats are no longer in use and are no longer associated with a bad catch the fact that this superstition has been around for so long and is still held by many sailors and crew (who tend to take superstitions very seriously) makes me believe that it will stick around for many more years to come.

Tradition

Nationality: Irish
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Scottsdale, AZ
Performance Date: April 13, 2008
Primary Language: English

In the Greek system when a sorority and a fraternity member are in a serious romantic relationship the fraternity guy can “pin” his girlfriend. Every system has different variations of the same basic tradition. Basically, when the guy wants to pin his girl friend he tells the president of his house who tells the president of the sorority that the girlfriend is in. They keep it a secret from the girlfriend while planning the pinning. Then one night after the chapter meeting, when the entire house is present the president will announce to the sorority to head downstairs to the dining room for a special ceremony. Right away everyone knows that it’s a pinning. All the girls make a large circle in the dining room and turn the lights down low. The president lights a candle and it is passed around the room and passed past the girl getting pinned, once it passes her the candle switches direction and moves back towards the girl to be pinned. Once the girl has it in her hand her sisters to her left and right blow the candle out, the house claps.

Once this happens the president opens the door and members of the boyfriend’s fraternity come in one by one usually dressed in suits, each with a single rose in their hand. Each brother hands the rose to the girlfriend and gives her a smile and a hug. Lastly the boyfriend comes usually with a bouquet of roses and kisses his girlfriend. Next the two closest friends of the boyfriend and the girlfriend tell stories about the relationship between them, funny, serious, anecdotal etc. Lastly the boyfriend tells his girlfriend how much he loves her and gives her his fraternity pin as a symbol of his commitment to her and her official invitation into the fraternity’s family. This is the end of the ceremony, however each fraternity has a different variation of this basic ceremony.

I have witnessed 3 girls get pinned from my sorority in this past year. The particular pinning described above was the most formal and respectful. The other pinnings were less formal and frankly, more embarrassing for the girl. Because each house cultivates its own traditions each pinning will differ depending on the house. To pin your girlfriend was once synonymous with proposing; however with time it has lost a lot of that connotation.

Currently, when a girl is pinned it means that her boyfriend is putting her first in his life. He is putting her before the brotherhood, which is a very big step for any fraternity brother. When initiated brothers take a vow of allegiance to the fraternity and pinning is one of the ways to respectfully break the vow. Also, symbolized by the rose received by each brother, when a girl is pinned she is welcomed into the house, into the family of that particular fraternity. Usually only juniors or seniors are pinned. The couple has usually been dating for more than a year as well. Pinnings don’t happen unless the relationship is very serious and long term.

Pinning is a public display of affection and commitment accepted in the Greek community and an active tradition. For sororities pinning usually embodies the girlish fantasy of a wonderful boyfriend who isn’t afraid to show how he feels, and secretly, every girl wants to be pinned at some point.

Tradition – Russian

Nationality: Irish
Age: 21
Occupation: Student
Residence: Quicny, MA
Performance Date: April 01, 2008
Primary Language: English
Language: Russian

Traditionally, in Russian weddings receptions there is a tradition to determine who the head of the household will be. The bride and the groom both are given bread and salt from their parents. Together they (the bread and salt) are supposed to symbolize good health. The bride and groom have to take a bite of the bread and whoever takes the biggest bite of the bread supposed to be the head of the household or family. Sometimes the bread and salt are given after the civil ceremony, depends on the family.

Tom first heard about this custom from his Russian professor here at USC. Although he has never attended a traditional Russian wedding his professor has talked extensively about the differences between Russian weddings and American weddings. Tom thinks that the bread and salt were first used during the communist regime when bread and salt were scarce items and highly prized. Giving bread as a gift came to symbolize wealth, prosperity and good health (if you could afford the bread and salt you were probably in good health is the assumption Tom made).

Similarly Tom thinks that who ever can take a bigger bite of the bread, symbolizing a bigger part of health and prosperity and therefore heading the family. Usually this would be the man as men tend to have larger jaws. Tom also mentioned that if a woman took the bigger bite it might mean that she would have lots of children. Because she would be home with the children most she might be seen as the head of the household. Tom says this tradition is still carried on today but is merely for entertainment and fun rather than a means to predict a couple’s life together.

Traditions and customs in weddings are usually meant more for entertainment and are usually taken lightheartedly. This attitude however, differs depending on the religious association with the wedding. In Russia, the government does not recognize religious weddings therefore a civil ceremony is required. Because religion is removed from the ceremony, I think, Russians take more liberty in providing entertainment for entertainment’s sake rather than rituals based on religious orders. The Russian wedding traditionally is more focused on the reception and the playful nature between the bride and groom, the families, and friends. This tradition exemplifies the nature of the Russian attitude towards weddings.