Secret Society

Music Home >> Music Genres >> Undetermined Music



< < < < < > > > > > More Info on Secret Society Similar Undetermined Music Search Artistopia

Biography

A secret society is a club or organization whose activities and inner functioning are concealed from non-members. The society may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as intelligence agencies or guerrilla insurgencies, which hide their activities and memberships but maintain a public presence. The exact qualifications for labeling a group as a secret society are disputed, but definitions generally rely on the degree to which the organization insists on secrecy , and might involve the retention and transmission of secret knowledge , Denial of request|denial of membership in or knowledge of the group, the creation of personal bonds between members of the organization, and the use of secret rites or rituals which solidify members of the Social group|group .

Anthropologically and historically, secret societies are deeply interlinked with the concept of the Mannerbund , the all-male "warrior-band" or "warrior-society" of pre-modern cultures (see H. Schurtz, Alterklassen und Mannerbunde , Berlin, 1902; A. Van Gennep, The Rites of Passage , Chicago, 1960).

Definition

Several definitions for the term have been put forward. The term "secret society" is generally used to describe Fraternity|fraternal organizations that may have secret ceremonies and means of identification and communication, ranging from college fraternity|collegiate fraternities to organizations described in conspiracy theories as immensely powerful, with self-serving financial or New World Order (conspiracy)|political agendas .
A purported "family tree of secret societies" has been proposed, although it may not be comprehensive.Stevens (1899), p. vii.

Application of the term is often hotly disputed, as it can be seen as pejorative.
Therefore, the criteria that can be adopted as a definition for the term are important for which organizations any one definition would include or exclude.
Alan Axelrod, author of the International Encyclopedia of Secret Societies and Fraternal Orders , defines a secret society as an organization that:

Is exclusive

Claims to own special secrets

Shows a strong inclination to favor its own

David V. Barrett, author of Secret Societies: From the Ancient and Arcane to the Modern and Clandestine , uses slightly different terms to define what does and does not qualify as a secret society. He defines it as any group that possesses the following characteristics:

It has "carefully graded and progressed teachings"

Teachings are "available only to selected individuals"

Teachings lead to "hidden (and 'unique') truths"

Truths bring "personal benefits beyond the reach and even the understanding of the uninitiated."

Barrett goes on to say that "a further characteristic common to most of them is the practice of rituals which non-members are not permitted to observe, or even to know the existence of." Barrett's definition would rule out many organizations called secret societies; graded teaching is usually not part of the Fraternities and sororities in North America|American college fraternities , the Carbonari , or the 19th century Know Nothing s.

Oath taking

Many organizations require members to take an oath, not just secret societies. These oaths often include promises to keep specific things about the organization secret.

Politics

Since some secret societies have political aims, they are illegal in several countries. Poland , for example, has included a ban of secret political parties and political organizations in its constitution.

Colleges and universities

Many student societies established on university campuses in the United States have been considered secret societies. Perhaps one of the most famous secret college societies is the Skull and Bones at Yale University|Yale . The University of Georgia has a similar, highly secretive society called Gridiron Secret Society . Its purpose and membership are a closely guarded secret and there is speculation that Skull and Bones and Gridiron Secret Society are somehow linked together. University of Virginia also has a long history of secret societies playing an active role in University life. The influence of undergraduate secret societies at colleges such as Rutgers University , Washington and Lee University , Harvard College , New York University http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eucleian_Society, and Wellesley College has been publicly acknowledged, if anonymously and circumspectly, since the 19th century."Student Government at Wellesley and How It Makes for Loyalty Among the College Girls and Faculty." New York Times. 12 February 1912. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html? res=F40712FD385E13738DDDAC0A94DA405B828DF1D3

British Universities, too, have a long history of secret societies or quasi-secret societies, such as Pitt Club|The Pitt Club at Cambridge University , Bullingdon Club at Oxford University , the The 16' Club|16' Club at University of Wales, Trinity Saint David|St David's College D T W Price, A History of Saint David's University College, Lampeter, University of Wales Press, Cardiff. Volume One, to 1898 (ISBN 0-7083-0606-3) and the Speculative Society at the University of Edinburgh .
In Canada, there are currently two secret societies at institutions of higher learning currently known. At the University of Trinity College , a component of the University of Toronto , there is the controversial Episkopon, founded in 1858. McGill University in Montreal is home to the notorious Renard Noir Society, a secret society known for its libertine endeavours, heavy consumption of absinthe , and vandalism.

Secret societies are disallowed in a few colleges. Virginia Military Institute has rules that no cadet may join a secret society, and secret societies have been banned at Oberlin College from 1847 "Revised codes were issued every few years, but not many important changes were made in them. Provisions with regard to the hours of 'athletic exercises and sport' were added in 1847. In the same revision there appeared for the first time the 'peculiar' Oberlin rule against secret societies. 'No student,' it runs, 'is permitted to join any secret society, or military company.'" to the present D. Secret Societies: "No secret society is allowed at Oberlin, and no other societies or self-perpetuating organizations are allowed among students, except by permission of the faculty. This is to be understood to include social and rooming-house clubs.", and at Princeton University since the beginning of the 20th century.

External links

& mdash; Documents and illustrations of Freemasons , Jesuits , Illuminati , Carbonari , Burschenschaften and other putative secret societies and clandestine organizations

Stevens, . A comprehensive, though dated, review of the subject.

Category:Secret societies|

ar:????? ???
bg:????? ????????
ca:Societat secreta
cs:Tajná spolecnost
de:Geheimbund
et:Salaühing
es:Sociedad secreta
eo:Sekreta societo
fr:Société secrète
ko:????
hr:Tajna društva
it:Società segreta
he:????? ?????
mk:????? ??????????
nl:Geheim genootschap
ja:????
pl:Tajny zwiazek
pt:Sociedade secreta
ro:Societate secreta
ru:?????? ????????
sk:Tajná spolocnost
sr:????? ???????
fi:Salaseura
sv:Ordenssällskap
ta:?????? ??????
uk:?????? ??????????
zh:????

Copyright Citations

This article is licensed under the GNU License
Click here for original article: Secret Society


1. Asatru 2. Greg Evigan 3. John and Mary 4. Momus 5. My Vitriol 6. Joey Tempest 7. Spear of Destiny 8. Skull and Bones 9. Ill Bill 10. John Norum 11. Wolfman 12. Stephen Sondheim 13. Outlaw 14. Blonde Redhead 15. Brian Fuller 16. Chi 17. Chris Holmes 18. Eight 19. Fountain of Youth 20. Harry Potter 21. James Fox 22. Molly Maguire 23. Pistolera 24. Red Dragon 25. Seduced

Undetermined Music Artists