Mardigras
MardigrasThis paper is about Mardi Gras, A festival or Carnival
celebrated once a year. In this paper I will discuss how
Mardi Gras originated, when it is celebrated, how it is
celebrated, and what does it mean to all the different
cultures.
Mardi Gras, in the French speaking parts of the world
and in some US southern states is the last day of carnival
festivities preceding Lent, the time of penitence observed
by Christians in preparation for Easter. Mardi Gras (�Fat
Tuesday�) is a French term for Shrove Tuesday, the day
before the start of Lent. Before Lent festivities reach the
climax on a day in February or March, depending on what
date Easter is.(Americana pg. 308)
French colonists brought Mardi Gras to America in
the early 1700�s. It grew popular in New Orleans,
Louisiana, and spread through the southern states. Mardi
Gras is a legal holiday in Alabama and Florida and in eight
counties of Louisiana. The New Orleans celebration is the
most famous. But Biloxi, Mississippi, and Mobile,
Alabama also have celebrations. (World Book pg. 197)
History of Mardi Gras in New Orleans during the 18th
century. Many wealthy Louisiana families would leave their
rural plantations to spend the winter months in New
Orleans, where they held lavish parties and masked balls.
The first written reference to Mardi Gras celebrations in
New Orleans appears in a 1781 report of the Spanish
government, which controlled Louisiana. The report
addressed problems that might arise from allowing slaves to
wear masks at the winter festivities. The United States took
control of Louisiana in 1803, and the New Orleans� city
council banned all masked entertainment three years later.
Enforcement of the law appears to have been erratic. By the
mid-1820s masks and costumes were again legal. The first
documented Mardi Gras parade took place in 1837, and the
parade soon became an annual tradition. However,
outbursts of violence at the parades gave the festivities a
bad name.(�Mardi Gras� Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 99)
Shrove Tuesday immediately precedes Ash
Wednesday and is the last day before Lent. Mardi Gras has
been noted for the elaborate mumming parades and
boisterous parties that characterize its celebration in New
Orleans, Trinidad, France and Italy. The name comes from
the custom of �shriving� or purification through confessing
ones sins prior to Lent. The holiday is related to the coming
of a New Year. (The Folklore of American Holidays pg. 84-97)
In England, football games were played on shrove
Tuesday, ritualistic contests embodying the conflict
between winter and summer, darkness and light , death and
rebirth. Traditional food for this holiday includes thick
soups of pigs feet, beans, peas, and pancakes. In fact
�Pancake Day� is another name for Shrove Tuesday.
Carnival season begins on Twelfth Night and ends at
Midnight on Mardi Gras.(The Folklore of American Holidays pg. 84-97)
Mardi Gras goes back to an ancient Roman custom of
merry making before a period of fast. In Germany Mardi
Gras is called Fastnacht. In England it is called pancake
day or pancake Tuesday.(World Book 2000 pg. 197)
Around1820 a group of Creole youths, returning to
New Orleans from Paris, decided to liven things up in the
continental style with a masked procession of substantial
size. They appeared in the streets in every variety of
costume while women leaned over galleries to throw roses
and bonbons. (The Folklore of American Holidays pg.84-97)
In 1857, the date usually given as the beginning of the
Mardi Gras, a new organization was formed. It was to
present a parade with floats and torch lights. The
organization called itself �The Mystic Krewe of Comus,�
and it put on a parade of two floats: one carrying a King,
the other showing Satan in a blazing hell. Since that time
only major conflicts have interfered, the Spanish American
war not having been considered �Major.� (The Folklore of American
Holidays pg. 84-97)
Mardi Gras owes its present day exuberance to a
twenty two year old Russian Grand Duke, who was present
only by chance. In 1872 Alexis Alexandrovich Romanov,
brother to the tsar�s heir apparent, was in America
traveling. While in New York he became enamored of an
actress, Lydia Thompson, who was then appearing in �
Bluebeard.� As she sang the song �If Ever I Cease To
Love,� Alexis found himself completely lost to her charms.
He trailed her on a tour south and cought up with her in
New Orleans. It was almost Mardi Gras and when the local
inhabitants discovered a real Grand Duke was to be among
them, they sat up and took notice. A new carnival Krewe
was elaborated.� A new king was named -Rex- Lord of
Misrule. An official holiday was announced and street
maskers were forbidden to form a united procession.
Carnival colors were chosen - purple, green, and gold. At
the city hall a throne like chair was erected for Alexis.
Alexis arrived on the scene and the parade ensued.
Since all the bands knew of his great liking for the song �
If Ever I Cease To Love,� band after band played it. The
song has remained an integral part of Mardi Gras.
Alexis Alexandrovich had helped to fix the pattern
that Mardi Gras would thence forth follow: official holiday,
Rex, and � If Ever I Cease To Love� as its song.(The Folklore of
American Holidays pg. 84-97)
Mardi Gras in New Orleans attracts tourists from
around the world. Parades begin the week before Mardi
Gras. Societies called Krewes organize and pay for the
parades and other festivities. During the carnival season,
they parade in masks and fancy dress. A parade of floats
and marching bands climaxes the carnival on Mardi Gras.
Riders on the floats throw necklaces and coins called
doubloons to onlookers. Each year there is a theme. (World book
2000 pg. 197)
Mardi Gras is a traditional Cajun celebration dating
back to the 1800�s in which costumed revelers and
musicians follow a masked rider from house to house
seeking ingredients for a gumbo, while performing tricks
and antics. Public is invited to join the courier Du Mardi
Gras to parade along with Krewe members - ending
downtown with a fais do-do (dance). Trophies are awarded
for most authentic and original costume.�
(refer to work cited page web address : portarthur.com/mardigras)
The Mardi Gras season begins for many people on
January 6 when king cakes are served during the feast of
Epiphany, a holiday commemorating the day three kings
arrived from the east to honor the Christ child.
King cakes are circular pastries usually decorated in
the Mardi Gras colors. Traditionally, a king cake containing
a bean or a small baby figurine was divided and served to
the unmarried women attending a Mardi Gras banquet.
Whoever received the slice containing the hidden object
was crowned queen of the festival. Today king cakes are
popular with office workers, and the person who finds the
hidden treasure is obliged to buy the next day�s cakes.
Carnival parades through the streets of New Orleans
begin 12 days before Mardi Gras day. Most parades,
sponsored by private and highly secretive organization
known as Krewes, combine imagery from classical Greek
and Roman mythology with satirical references to
contemporary events. During the parades, costumed Krewe
members ride highly decorated floats and toss strings of
plastic beads and other trinkets into the crowds of
spectators lining the streets.
Many Krewes hold elaborate private balls following
their parades. On Mardi Gras day many ordinary people
dress in costume and wander through the city. Revelers jam
the narrow streets of the city�s oldest neighborhood, known
as the French Quarter. The atmosphere in the French
Quarter is marked by drunken euphoria and general
abandon.
African American Mardi Gras Traditions Although
modern Mardi Gras festivities have become increasingly
integrated since the 1960s. The African American
community of New Orleans has long nurtured a number of
distinctive carnival customs. The largest African American
Krewe of Mardi Gras is the Zulu Social Aid & Pleasure
Club Inc., which presents one of the premier attractions of
the Mardi Gras season. Combining Mardi Gras revelry with
features reminiscent of an elaborate minstrel show, the Zulu
parade is especially boisterous. Many Zulu�s march in
blackface (black makeup traditionally used in minstrel
shows) and wear grass skirts as they distribute gold-painted
coconuts to crowds of observers.
Another important African American Carnival
tradition is the annual appearance of the Mardi Gras
Indians, groups of black men who dance through the streets
in costumes inspired by the traditional clothing of Native
Americans. Each member of a Mardi Gras Indians tribe
creates his own costume, usually incorporating colorful
feathers and intricate beadwork. Most scholars believe that
the Mardi Gras Indians tradition began in the late 19th
century. In the past, rivalries between tribes sometimes led
to violent confrontations. Today, such conflicts have given
way to a competition among the Mardi Gras Indian tribes
for the most elaborate costume.(�Mardi Gras� Microsoft Encarta
Encyclopedia 99)
Mardi Gras continues to attract tourists to New
Orleans from around the world. Today Mardi Gras draws
more than 3 million people to parades and generates
approximately $1 billion for the local economy. (�Mardi Gras�
Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 99)