Realities of Greek Organizations

The Realities of Greek Organizations

When a fraternity is mentioned, what are the first three thoughts that come to mind? Well most people would say beer, parties, and sex. Where do these misconceptions come from; where were they formed, and how are they maintained? The media messages that are sent to us everyday play a huge part in maintaining these myths and blurred perceptions of fraternities and what they are and represent.

To begin to analyze what fraternities are, you must know where they started and how they began. The origin of the college fraternity dates back to December 5, 1776 with the creation of Phi Beta Kappa. Originally a secret society, it later changed in the 1830’s to become an honorary fraternity. In the early 1820’s, several other fraternities were created, all utilized Greek letters, displayed a badge, had a ritual, and were secret societies(North American Inter-Fraternity Council). By the turn of the century, 40 fraternities were in existence throughout the North America. When many fraternities were founded, initiation rites and ceremonies were often borrowed and/or modified from any combination of the following items in history: philosophy and literature from Ancient Greeks and Romans; Jewish and Christian Scriptures; Chivalric traditions; military codes of honor, precepts and forms of Freemasonry; Enlightenment Science; and philosophy and Romanticism(North American Inter Fraternity Council). These items no longer held as much importance in the curriculum of the fraternity that they had previously. As time went on, teachings of these traditions became less and less common. As a result, the meanings of many of the rituals the fraternity was originally based on began to fade and become unknown to its members. Due to this lack of knowledge, some fraternities began to depend on theatrical aspects of ceremonies, as opposed to the deeper, more profound meaning that had essentially been lost. Some say this was the period in which “hazing” took its roots ( qtd. Brent Allen Eminent Commander Sigma Nu A1).

There are several different types of Greek organizations. There are fraternities, which are held for men to be initiated to, and sororities which are held for women to join, but there are also several Greek organizations delegated to specific departments of schools like math, English, psychology, and several other areas of study. Though these organizations are not given as much attention as the fraternities and sororities, they still hold Greek letter designations. The purpose of a fraternal organization can vary from fraternity to fraternity. Some are founded on military issues, or non hazing fraternity there are some many different founding principals just depends on which organization you are looking at..

You also may ask why would you join a fraternity. There are several reasons unknown to most people who look no farther into the subject than what they have seen on movies like Animal House and Old School. These movies continue to show how little most people know about real fraternity life and what it entails. There are so many benefits to joining and organization like a fraternity. Fraternities can mean many things to many people. They can mean academic benefits, varied social life, personal involvement with others, chances to develop personal and group leadership capabilities, the opportunity to make friends for a lifetime, or a balanced combination of all these elements. Fraternity brotherhood is an opportunity. It’s an opportunity to meet a lot of different people who have varied views, maybe like your own, and maybe completely different. Brotherhood is being able to get along with various people and appreciating each person for his own opinion. Also fraternities give you a chance to network across the country to have the chance to join an organization where you can go to a chapter on another campus with people you have never met and be welcomed into their household no questions asked just knowing they are apart of the same fraternity is enough for them.

There are also several myths about what fraternities are and aren’t most are perpetuated by media outlets like movies news stations that only air the negative issues on these organizations. One of the biggest myths is. Hazing is simply a reality among fraternities. Although many people automatically associate the term “hazing” with the idea of mistreating or abusing pledges or new members, any member can actually be a victim of hazing. Hazing can be defined as singling out an individual or group of people and forcing them to do something that is psychologically, physically, or emotionally harmful or damaging. Greek organizations nationwide have striven to eliminate hazing from their cultures through proactive approaches and strict enforcement of anti-hazing policies. Hazing is strictly prohibited by several Greek organizations.

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