Cultural Festivals

Cultural Festivals

Cultural Festivals

Number of replies: 3

You will choose a French traditional festival and research information about its meaning, history, and cultural impact. 

Then, you will choose one of your own (family or cultural) traditions OR an Indigenous tradition to compare against the French festival/tradition.

You will then write a paragraph to describe similarities and differences of these festivals/traditions. The goal is to show connections between cultural traditions, so extend your thinking past tangible facts such as dates and clothing.

Copy your paragraph into a response in this Forum.

To help and inspire you, look at the image of the 'Cultural Iceberg'. This shows all the aspects of a culture - try to touch on one or two aspects that are below the surface, usually unseen or unnoticed in everyday life.


In reply to First post

Re: Cultural Festivals

by Nolan Benson -
For this project, I am comparing the French holiday 14 Juillet also known as bastille day, to Christmas. Le 14 Juillet, also referred to as the Juliette is held every year on the fourteenth of July. It is a large social event with friends and family, there is no expensive food or fancy clothes allowed, on this day all participants, whether you are rich or poor young or old, wear white clothes and jousting weapons. Le 14 Juillet is the anniversary of the storming of the bastille on July 14, 1789, a major part of the French revolution it is reported to be one of the largest and oldest military parades in Europe.

Christmas is celebrated annually all around the globe on December 25, it commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, it is a Christian holiday but celebrated by many non-Christians. Some Christmas activities include gift-giving, home decorating, festive movie watching, caroling. Christmas has a mascot figure mainly referred to as Santa Claus but also called Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Christmas does have parades as well but is not scheduled as with le 14 Juliette. These two holidays have similarities but are different in their own ways.
In reply to Nolan Benson

Re: Cultural Festivals

by Laura Harty -
In France, one of the most popular festivals is the Dunkirk Carnival, which occurs every weekend from January to March. The Dunkirk Carnival is often considered one of France’s strangest and most spirited festivals; and it is also quite a singular one, for, in it, there are no spectators, for everyone is an actor, and anonymity is essential. More than four thousand blithe revelers sport disguises - typically including a mask, makeup, and ludicrous grimaces - and all are permitted great liberty to roister and celebrate in whatever fashion they choose. The object of the Dunkirk Carnival for all to appear similar and thereby temporarily eliminate social classes. Also, it is a time to escape from the cares of ordinary life by indulging in the pleasure of peculiarity and humour, and to express oneself in a lively and individual way.
Mother’s Day, also known as Mothering Sunday, is a popular North American holiday which takes place on the second Sunday of May each year. On this day, the object is for all people to honour their mothers - living or dead - and to show them how much they are loved. Cards are a common way of displaying this love, and many children make breakfast in bed for their mother and try to make her day pleasant. I have often written poems for my mother on Mother’s Day, and my brother and I always give her a card with drawings and messages from us both inside.
Although the Dunkirk Carnival and Mother’s Day obviously have many differences - one being a festival filled with grotesques, peculiarity, and the celebration of individuality, the other being a day filled with displays of love and tenderness - yet they share one common characteristic: the conveyance of emotions in different ways and the celebration of the worth and importance of individuals.
In reply to First post

Re: Cultural Festivals

by Angel Mir -
For this assignment, I explore a popular festival in Russia called Maslenitsa, also known as Butter Week or Pancake Week. Maslenitsa is a traditional Slavic festival that marks the end of winter and the beginning of spring. It is celebrated in the week leading up to Lent, which is the period of fasting and repentance before Easter in the Russian Orthodox Church.

During Maslenitsa, people indulge in the consumption of blini, which are thin pancakes made from buckwheat flour, eggs, and milk. The pancakes are usually served with various fillings, such as caviar, sour cream, honey, or jam. The pancakes represent the sun and are meant to symbolize the warmth and brightness of spring.

In addition to eating pancakes, Maslenitsa is also a time for outdoor festivities, such as sledding, ice-skating, and traditional games like tug-of-war and pillow fights. There are also traditional ceremonies, such as the burning of a straw effigy of Lady Maslenitsa, which symbolizes the end of winter and the welcoming of spring.

Now let's compare Maslenitsa to a festival/tradition in Canada. One festival that comes to mind is Thanksgiving, which is celebrated in both countries. Although Thanksgiving has a different origin and cultural significance than Maslenitsa, there are some similarities between the two festivals. Both festivals involve the gathering of family and friends to share food and celebrate the changing of the seasons. Both also involve traditional foods that are associated with the festival, such as turkey for Thanksgiving and pancakes for Maslenitsa.

However, there are also significant differences between the two festivals. Thanksgiving is a national holiday in Canada and the United States and has historical roots in the colonization of North America. In contrast, Maslenitsa is a cultural festival with Slavic roots and is primarily celebrated in Russia and other Eastern European countries. Additionally, the religious connotations of Lent and Easter give Maslenitsa a different significance than Thanksgiving.