Liminality is discusses by Turner in great detail. The root of liminality comes from the word limen, meaning threshold. According to Turner, liminality is the intermediate area between two rites of passage. This transitional “betwixt and between” stage occurs because of changes in place, state, social position, & age in culture. Its phases: Separation, Margin/Limen, Re-aggregation. Each of the phases is an imperative part of the journey. Some characteristics of liminality include no social structure and communion (or communitas). An example used by Turner to describe liminality is a tradition practiced by the Nuer tribe in Sudan. In this coming of age ceremony, young men carry dirt from an old village to the newer one. After performing this ceremony, the boy officially begins his duties as an adult in the tribe. Liminality is seen in the space between the old and new villages.
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