Prenuptial Rituals in Scotland: Blackening the Bride and Decorating the Hen (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781793603869)

The hen (or bachelorette) party, with its groups of visible, raucous women on trains, planes, and in public spaces is ubiquitous throughout the English-speaking world. The practice of the blackening, a unique form of kidnapping and "punishment" ritual, is limited to North Eastern parts of Scotland and to specific sectors of the population. Both are prenuptial rituals enacted by women. In Prenuptial Rituals in Scotland, Sheila Young produces a thorough description of how these two rituals were and are enacted and analyzes the ways these practices have changed through time as a social commentary. Young's study provides valuable insights into identity, gender, social class, contemporary attitudes to ritual, and what it means to approach marriage in the twenty first century.

Author: Sheila M. Young
ISBN-10: 1793603863
ISBN-13: 9781793603869
Publisher: Lexington Books
Language: English
Published: 10/11/2019
Pages: 220
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.02lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.56d