Quote:
Originally posted by DGMarie
Without meaning to stir a hornets nest, what is the difference between a fraternity (composed of only women) and a society (composed of only women)?
Marie
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Hi Marie
My understanding of the difference is this:
A society is a group of people brought together by a common interest, this could be an honor society, a literary society, a local historical society, etc.
A fraternity is a specific type of society. One based on fraternal/brotherly ties (or in our case, sisterly, however there was no word for that at the time). Theta was considered a Fraternity because it was founded based on Bettie Locke Hamilton's vision of an organization for women based on friendship, sharing of ideal, and loyalty, much like the men's fraternities found on campus. Therefore, the purpose of Theta was always 'fraternal' ties.
I'm not saying that Phi Nu didn't have the same purpose...I know nothing more of their history than what has been posted here. However, from the post that stated that they were founded as a literary society, it is my understanding that it was not originally founded as a fraternal organization....I'm sure that later on it evolved into a sorority, and I can't say if this happend before or after Theta was founded, that's something for NPC to look into, not for me to judge.
So, basically, the difference in my eyes is that while I may be close and friendly with the people in my book club or honor society, I wouldn't consider them my sisters.
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