Rene Alexander
English 120: Rosemary Kwa
Essay #2 Rite of Passage
In “The Initiation of Maasai Warrior” Tepilit Ole Saitoti tells everyone her life for the massai is a series of conquest and tests involving the endurance of pain, which consist of cutting the front skin of the penis representing his responsibility and a big change from childhood to adulthood. When people read the story “The Initiation of Maasai Warrior” they start to notice how painful the rites of passage transformation between childhood to adulthood is for the Maasai people, another common culture has the similar believes is the Americans concerning the rites of passage which Naomi Wolfs explains in her story “Promiscuities: The Secret Struggle Towards
Womanhood.” In both the Maasai and American cultures, both men and women go through rites of passage in order to learn responsibility and respect for family needs. When it comes to honoring your family’s name you’ll do anything to make them proud.
In “The Initiation of Maasai Warrior” Tepilit Ole Saitoti tell “Ours has always been a proud family, and we would like to keep it that way. We will not tolerate unnecessary embarrassment, so you had better be ready. If you are not, tell us now so that we will not proceed.”(1) The key words in this quotation are “Tolerate” and “unnecessary” Webster’s new dictionary defines
“tolerate” as the exixting presence, practice or act of without prohibition or hindrance and
“unnecessary” as essential, needless. The children of Maasai must do what is needed for a family need and to not disappoint there family reputation because then it will effect there life style and the kids childhood would be rough. In “Promiscuities” Naomi Wolf's tells “In addition to the sexual education, a family's friends can commit to being part of a wisdom initiation: transmitting