The rituals of Carnival had several purposes in the traditional European life.
The European lifestyle often included festivals and rituals of sorts. One of the most prominent was called Carnival, which began as early as January and continued until Lent. Several other festivals were celebrated throughout the year, and some communal rituals could be practiced at any time. Rituals and festivals had several purposes in traditional European life. Festivals and rituals served to unite communities for a common cause, allowed people to act frivolously and vent the emotions of everyday life, and placed people of different social classes and genders on equal grounds.
Festivals and rituals frequently brought together communities for a common purpose. One such festival occurred where the sons of people in the village would parade through the streets imitating their parents; citizens gathered together at the local buildings to view themselves as performed by their children (1). Oftentimes, European inhabitants would gather to punish or mock someone who had committed an injustice. This was very prominent in the charivari, which could be practiced at almost any time of the year. For example, both men and women would be punished surrounded by large crowds gathered together banging on pots and pans (8 and 9). In the latter document, the writer has a feminist attitude towards the punishment of abusive men. This charivari was also a boisterous punishment given to even the nominal of crimes, such as picking berries past the accepted hour (10). Finally, citizens would gather to commit unlawful acts upon others and their property. This is shown in John Taylor's account of a group of youth's destruction of houses (4). Taylor viewed these acts with contempt because they were uncivil, and they defied justice. Civil unrest even brought together citizens of different background, as shown by the disturbance cause in Toulouse (7). The festivals often served the purpose of bringing together citizens, even those who would not usually associate.
Festivals and rituals during the Europeans' life cycles also allowed people to vent their emotions and act inconsequentially. The most direct depiction of this is by the French traveler, R. Lassels, who stated that the Italian Carnival gave the Italians a chance to act freely and be happy after a year of depression (5). People even would dress up as the opposite sex, and they would dance and joke with one another (6). Not all people partook or even agreed with these frivolous actions. Brueghel the Elder's painting, Battle Between Carnival and Lent, portrays people letting loose with alcohol, food, and outrageous behavior of festival, while the solemn nuns enter the church (3). Raltasar Rusow, a Lutheran pastor, remarked the festival as being joyous, while also condemning its apparent sin (2). Rusow, being a Lutheran pastor, had a strong dislike for festivals and the sin committed during them. Though not always looked favorably upon, festivals and rituals allowed for people to let loose in ways not permitted at other times.
Europeans festivals and rituals also served to make people of all social classes and both genders equal. Masters and their servants were treated equally, and they could even sit together and speak with one another during midsummer night (6). Men and women were also treated as equals, as shown with their respective punishments. A woman would be paraded through a town or village on an old horse with noisy clatter around them, while men would have to endure the same noise while being thrown into an outhouse (8 and 9). The events during these festivals and rituals show how people, regardless of their gender or social standing, were allowed to participate and were treated as equals.
Festivals and rituals served many purposes in traditional European lives. They united communities to view spectacles that appealed to all who were watching. They also allowed European citizens to let loose from their normal, and often melancholy, lives. Finally, almost all people were regarded as equals during these festive events, and they interacted in ways that would normally be looked down upon. These purposes of festivals and rituals provided a time in the lives of Europeans unlike any other in the lives of Europeans.
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