Prenuptial Rituals in Scotland

This fascinating book offers detailed accounts of two Scottish rites of passage associated with weddings. One, the hen party, is familiar to most in the United Kingdom and many outside it. The other, the blackening, which primarily involves pouring disgusting substances over the bride and/or groom, may be unknown even to substantial numbers of Scots. As the latter’s terminology suggests, participants are pretty exclusively White. But they’re also mainly heterosexual, cisgender, and cissex. Those who take part in hen parties need sufficient economic capital in the form of income or credit but those involved with the blackening must have a particular kind of cultural capital that comes from insiderhood in specific local communities. Combining ordeals and hazing with expressions of love and community support, these edgy events require social and economic investment. And the possibilities for spectacular failure—from disappointment and hurt feelings to physical violence—clearly show that the alibi that these customs are fun doesn’t tell the whole story. There are implications for gender, sex, sexuality, class, religion, and nation. Interpreted by participants as both positive and negative experiences, the raucous, sexualized, and obnoxious elements of these transitional rituals demonstrate the ambivalence that characterizes life partnering in Scottish cultures today. -- Pauline Greenhill, University of Winnipeg, Canada