Author Archives: f002qjg

Rush Lunches

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Title: Rush Lunches

Information about Item:

  • Customary folklore
  • Informant: S.B.
  • Collected 5/17/2020

Informant Data:

S.B. is a member of the Class of 2020 at Dartmouth from New Jersey. He is affiliated with Greek Life and is studying Mathematics.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural: Rush lunches may be a part of the Interfraternity Council rush process.
  • Social: This item was collected through a video chat interview. According to the informant, rush lunches add a new component to the rush process by allowing more personal connections to be formed. The potential new members are able to get to know current members of the specific organization.

Item:

Rush Lunches are organized events where members of a specific fraternity may go to lunch with a potential new member.

Collector’s Comments:

I found this item to be informative of fraternity rush, as it displays an aspect of the rush process that occurs in smaller groups and allows for more conversation. It seems as though this would help potential new members decide if they are interested in a specific fraternity.

Collector: Meredith Srour

Tags/Keywords:

  • Customary folklore
  • Fraternity rush

Rush Round Themes

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Title: Rush Round Themes

Information about Item: 

  • Material folklore
  • Customary folklore
  • Informant: H.W.
  • Collected 5/13/2020

Informant Data:

H.W. is a member of the Class of 2020 at Dartmouth from Portland, OR. She is affiliated with Greek Life at Dartmouth.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural: Rush rounds are the three steps of the Inter-sorority Council (ISC) sorority rush process taking place over 1.5 weeks.
  • Social: The item was collected through a video chat interview. Only current members of the organization dress according to the theme. According to the informant, the social significance of this item is that it is a way to “be memorable” to potential new members and ultimately tells something about the specific organization.

Item:

Current members of sororities may dress according to different themes for the three rounds of the rush process. Some examples given by the informant are Outer Space theme and Rock and Roll theme.

Collector’s Comments:

This item made clear the importance of how the Greek organization presents itself to potential new members during the rush process.

Collector: Meredith Srour

Tags/Keywords:

  • Material folklore
  • Customary folklore
  • Sorority Rush
  • Themes

 

 

Fraternity Shake Out

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Title: Fraternity Shake Out

Information about Item:

  • Customary folklore
  • Verbal folklore
  • Informant: K.I.
  • Collected 5/18/2020

Informant Data:

The informant, K.I., is a member of the Class of 2020 at Dartmouth. He is from Massachusetts. At Dartmouth, he is affiliated with Greek Life and is studying Engineering.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural: Shake Out is a part of the Interfraternity Council rush process.
  • Social: The information was collected through a video chat interview. Participants in Shake Out are potential new members of the Greek organizations, and the event indicates possible intent to join a specific house.

Item:

Shake Out is a two-night event that occurs during fraternity rush. For this event, potential members must shake the hands of current members. Additionally, during Shake Out, potential members communicate their interest in a Greek organization by signing their name in a book.

Collector’s Comments: 

I found this item to be interesting, as it indicates a unique component of the fraternity rush process. I was not aware of the details of this process prior to the interview.

Collector’s Name: Meredith Srour

Tags/Keywords: 

  • Customary folklore
  • Verbal folklore
  • Fraternity rush

Fraternity Shake Out Clothing

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Title: Fraternity Shake Out Clothing

Information about Item:

  • Material folklore
  • Customary folklore
  • Informant: R.B.
  • Collected 5/13/2020

Informant Data:

R.B. is a member of the Class of 2020 at Dartmouth and is affiliated with Greek Life. He is from California and studying Engineering.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural: Shake Out is a step of the Interfraternity Council rush process.
  • Social: This item was collected through a video chat interview. Not all fraternities request that potential new members wear formal attire. It may be “out of respect” to dress formally, and this is only done by potential new members.

Item: Potential new members of fraternity organizations wear formal attire for the Shake Out event.

Collector’s Comments:

This item is similar to a different item collected- Sorority Pref Night clothing. Formal attire may be required for both processes, potentially indicating the significance and formality of certain events.

Collector’s Name: Meredith Srour

Tags/Keywords:

  • Material folklore
  • Customary folklore
  • Clothing
  • Fraternity rush

Sorority Pref Night Clothing

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Title: Sorority Pref Night Clothing

Information about Item:

  • Material folklore
  • Customary folklore
  • Informant: M.F.
  • Date Collected: 5/8/2020, 5/17/2020

Informant Data:

  • M.F. is a female member of the Class of 2022 at Dartmouth. She is affiliated with Greek Life, and she is from Minnesota.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural: Pref night is the third and final “round” of Inter-Sorority Council rush, where each round is a different step of the process. After pref night, potential new members must determine which sorority they are interested in joining.
  • Social: This information was collected through a video chat interview. All current members of the Greek organization and selected potential new members must participate in pref night. The significance of dressing in more formal attire for pref night may be out of respect and to demonstrate that the matter is taken seriously.

Item:

  • On pref night, potential new members and current members of the organization must dress formally, often in all black clothing.

Collector’s Comments:

I recognized a similarity between this item and a different item collected- Fraternity Shake Out Clothing. It seems that formal attire is a common feature of both.

Collector’s Name: Meredith Srour

Tags/Keywords:

  • Material folklore
  • Customary folklore
  • Clothing
  • Sorority rush