The graduation ceremony is a peculiar tradition. Many of its unique features have been kept unusually unchanged through decades or even centuries. With the great accomplishments, excitement, and busyness around graduations, most don’t pause to question the purpose of its customs. The following are explanations behind some of the graduation traditions we view as given.
- The CaP
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I venture to claim the cap as people’s least favorite graduation tradition. With its odd shape and fit, videos on decoration ideas and suggestions for how to wear it circulate every spring. The associated tassel seems to be inconvenient more than anything else, and it’s not uncommon for graduates to remove the whole thing for most of their pictures.
The classic cap we have today originated from a hat worn by Roman Catholic clergy in medieval times called a biretta. The iconic, cinematic act of throwing the cap in the air after the ceremony came much later. In 1912, graduates of the United States Naval Academy discarded their midshipmen hats by throwing them into the air to symbolize their advancement, and the commemoration caught on.
- The gown
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The gown is widely renowned as oversized and overpriced, but it’s a universal standard of the ceremony. Similarly to the cap, the gown originates from 12th-century clergy, who wore hooded garments to combat the cold of the buildings they studied in. Gown style and color became symbols of religious and academic status, which continues to be seen in both churches and schools today.
- A white dress
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One might attribute white as a common color for graduation outfits for a number of reasons: its ability to match any cap and gown or adornments, its formality, its brightness for the spring or that it’s simply a classic trend. Wearing white to graduation is indeed a classic practice, dating back to the 1800s. White dresses were originally worn to create a look of unity among female graduates who were not granted caps and gowns. White was also becoming a symbol for wealth during this time; wearing white to graduation and weddings marked upward mobility and status, as white was harder to clean. It also may have stemmed from racist backgrounds, in an attempt to depict white as “superior.” Moreover, white symbolizes innocence and new beginnings, as with weddings or debutante balls.
- “Pomp and Circumstance”
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This piece was originally composed for the 1901 coronation of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom. Four years later, the composer, Sir Edward Elgar, was recognized with an honorary Doctorate of Music from Yale, and the piece was played as the recessional. After this, Princeton, the University of Chicago, and Columbia used the piece in their own graduation ceremonies, and the tradition took hold.
- Bonus: Recognizing a Valedictorian at VT
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From 1882 until 1936, two students among the highest academic rank were selected to give commencement speeches at Virginia Tech. Traditionally, the valedictorian and salutatorian were selected, although this varied after 1910. In 1932, two male students were voted to give speeches, though neither held either of these titles. Instead, a female student had earned valedictorian and a transfer student had earned salutatorian. As past years’ graduations had not required their speakers to fulfill these ranks, protests that the students were snubbed for their identities were dismissed. One of the elected speakers, however, refused to perform his speech unless the female student was named as valedictorian during the ceremony, thus she was able to receive some recognition for her accomplishments.
Although this practice is no longer in place, it is important to acknowledge history and how it has affected people, especially those who did not fit the “ideal” or majority, in order to consider how current practices may be doing the same.
Understanding the origin behind traditions we might take for granted connects us with the past and gives meaning to the things in our lives, whether mundane or milestone.
Congratulations to everyone graduating this year!