Sorority Ritual dissertation
 

http://etd02.lnx390.lsu.edu/docs/ava...ed/callais.pdf

Hope this link makes it. It's to a dissertation about sorority rituals. Cited by Ms. Robbins in Pledged, though she misspelled wrote the author's name. Mari Ann Callais is a Theta Phi Alpha. I haven't read it all -- 174 pages will take up more ink than my printer has right now! -- but it appears to be a thoughtful study. Certainly not an expose.

P.S. if the link doesn't make it, you can go to Google and search "callais sorority dissertation" and you should find it

I'm very bored at work today so I have quickly read through some of the dissertation. I found it to be very interesting! I'm definitely going to attempt to finish it!

that IS interesting! Thanks for posting it!

Very interesting, though she definitely has some of the founding dates wrong.

She says that Alpha Phi and Gamma Phi were both formed in 1874, along with Delta Gamma and Sigma Kappa. We all know that Alpha Phi was 1872 and DG 1873, right?

Then, later, she says that Gamma Phi was founded in 1894. Talk aout a typo!

She also had a few problems with spelling and grammar in other areas.

But, overall...it has been pretty interesting so far (I haven't read it all yet). I'll definitely try to make time to read more of it.

I do not plan to write a thesis per se about sorority ritual, but I am collecting data on them and will write a descriptive essay about the similarities and differences in the rituals w/out naming the actual groups. I think it would be itneresting to many people to know some of the similarities.

I read the paper at the above post a while back and that is what got me interested in possibly publishing a piece of my own one day. But writing is soooo laborious. Who knows if it will ever be finished?:)

How many Greek Organizations want their Ritual published?

DTD I think is the only open one!

Sorry, but My Ritual, LXA is Secret to the Brothers only.

I can say that I know of No Brother that divulged our Ritual.

I will not say it hasnt happened but?

One of the most knowledgeable is wptw on G C. But, He collects them and does not divulge those to anyone. I admire him for that. Remeber, he has been very helpful with information on GC!

He is a young Intellect! Is that okay to say wptw!:cool:

The author doesn't reveal any sorority ritual in this dissertation-- she just interviews girls from various universities about what ritual means to them personally.

She did a fairly good job, but getting years wrong, grammar and spelling errors-- on a dissertation? I guess that's the copy editor in me screaming.

I think Tom was referring to Diamond Delta's post saying she wanted to write a piece on the similiarities/differences of sorority rituals?

Correct me if I'm wrong Tom :)

YEP, GPHIB Sisters are not all a like!:)

Thank Goodness!

Maybe one of these days I will read it used so as not to give Her a Royality from the sounds of it.:)

I always Love to hear a bout a book written by a Non Greek. Aint it gloriashit!

Hi, I am blind, but I am writing a book on being deaf! Da !!:(

DiamondD,

There is a dissertation that analyzes the content of rituals. I borrowed it via interlibrary loan. Written by a man -- University of Mississippi, maybe? Don't know author/title/year. A search of Dissertation Abstracts would turn it up.

In 1993 I went to a conference in Indpls and took time to tour all the GLO HQs. At the Lambda Chi HQ they gave me a publication called "Ritual--What and Why." The intro says it is "an exoteric or open publication of the LXA Fraternity. The booklet should be readily accessible to Associate Members as well as to Initiated Members. It is appropriate to share it with prospective members, members of other college fraternities, and individuals interested in the subject of ritualism."

AGDAlum

It's titled A Content Analysis of the Esoteric Ritual Manuals of National College Social Fraternities for Men by Bobby Lawrence McMinn, published in 1979.

Jumping in on Delt Alums behalf...

Tom, the Delts ritual is secret. You may be thinking of Delta Upsilon....

I have been told that both Delta Upsilon and Alpha Kappa Lambda have open or partly-open rituals.

talking about deaf eh? my ears are burning :o oh wait its not i didnt hear you after all, maybe i am getting fried by my hearing aids LOL. ;) I have seen books by hearing people talking about best way to deal with deaf and in terms of education and rearing, etc..... its true that I prefer to read books by deaf but its interesting to see from a hearing point of view. I wonder if i should write a book "What it is like to hear" hmmm....somehow i dont think it will sell

There was a terrific, funny movie called Can You See What I Hear about Tom Sullivan in the early 70's, I think.

Anyway, back to the thread...

No matter public or not, if members don't follow their Ritual, things go down hill fast.

It's really interesting, but I'm dying from the poor editing. My professors would laugh if I turned in something sloppy.

^ I'll 2nd that.

Thanks for posting the link. Mari Ann spoke at one of our Alumnae Panhellenic meetings and later mentioned that she was in the middle of writing this dissertation. It sounded facinating and I certainly wanted to read it.

FWIW, she is the Naitonal President for Theta Phi Alpha.

She is also a speaker available through campuspeak.com:

http://www.campuspeak.com/speakers/callais/

I've written to ask her if the PDF link posted above is the final version, and asked her about the founding date inaccuracies in the abovementioned PDF.

More to follow...

There is an earlier dissertation (1979) on fraternity rituals. One Bobby McMinn sent out requests to 67 fraternities for copies of their rituals, agreeing to provide anonymity for participating fraternities. He got 22 rituals in response and used them as source material for what is reported to be an interesting content analysis.

I wish that McMinn's dissertation was available on line -- or elsewhere. Anyone ever seen it?

I think I've read it -- or at least something similar to it -- online, but I wouldn't be able to find it again without some serious work. But at least it's probably out there.

McMinn's ritual dissertation
 

You can order it online through University Microfilm Inc. for $36 plus postage unbound. Here's the site: http://wwwlib.umi.com/dxweb/details?doc_no=1615494

Thanks, AlphaSigOU.

Re: McMinn's ritual dissertation
 

I borrowed it for free via interlibrary loan.

Q1
 

Thanks lifesaver, You are correct.

The book given by LXA Hdq is just talking about ritual, and does not have anything about the True LXA Ritual in it.

It is a way to ease peoples minds about some of the things that they hear about Greek Rituals.

LXA is open to a ceratin asspect. But not about certain things.

We do have an open New Associate Ritual and a closed one.

Nothing bad happens in either one.

We also intituded and Alum Ritual, for graduating Seniors. I was lucky enough to be selected when My Chapter did it for the first time ever. This is to try and show the New Graduates that LXA is not for the 4-5 years of College, but for life.

Of course, I had Graduated in 1967. That is no indication of how old I am by any means. I was a Child Prodegy;)

I guess, I was the Guenie Pig!:D

A .pdf version can be found at Lambda Chi's website here. Worth reading.

Thank You MCat.

I think this could be a general Rule for All Greeks.:)

Greek Organizations are not as bad as many try to make us out.

Yes, there are Chapters who do things against What Hdq try to instill in all, some slip and do stupid things. That is the only thing we hear about.

Just Remember what All of the Things that we do for the betterment of others.