The Power Of The Pearl III, The Second Half
I wish to welcome you to this the final piece of the puzzle, in the pursuit of an understanding of The Power Of The Pearl in the life of the WASP and Preppy. Up till now, I have given you a bit of history, a bit of science, a bit of psychology and of course a bit of humor.
“My dear, this is something you must always remember. Your bosom can be fake. Your smile can be fake and your hair color can be fake. But your pearls and your silver must always be real.” – from A Southern Belle Primer by Maryln Schwartz
For those of you that are just joining the conversation, please read the earlier posts to catch up. The Power of the Pearl, The Power Of The Pearl II and The Power Of The Pearl III.
My editor suggested to me that I should give you my gracious reader, fair warning that this post will be of some length.
Admittedly, when it was strongly suggested to me that I take a few posts and explore the subject of the power and place that the pearl has in the everyday life of the WASP and Preppy. I thought ” Well, this will be easy “, I was so very wrong. When I started to look into the matter I found that almost nothing existed on the subject. I had no reference points. I quickly realized that I would never be able to do an extensive treaties on the subject. The pearl and its history could fill volumes, as well as the discussion over the WASP and Preppy. For the purpose of this discussion, I have needed to narrow some things and generalize others. It is the hope of every writer including myself, that when the day is done you have enjoyed the read.
Now, to the heart of the matter.
I must remind myself as I begin this last segment, in order for any of this to make sense one must come to an understanding and acceptance of the mind-set of the WASP and of the Preppy. The intertwining, as well as the separate but equally important responsibilities of each not only to each other but to society in general.
” First things First” In order to give you an understanding of the power and position that the pearl has in the WASP and Preppies life I must first explore the relationship between the two. I began this in the first part of this posting with the analogy of the Sun and the Moon. Let me take this a little farther. It is often mistakenly thought that the Preppy and the WASP are the same or that they are at war with each other. The truth is that they really complement one another and support each other in sometimes bold and sometimes very subtle ways. One is or isn’t a WASP, there are rituals and experiences that only a WASP goes through, our families our religious upbringing, our schooling “The Breeding ” To the outsider it may seem as though we are just Rich, Spoiled, Uncaring, Harsh, Boring and Controlling but the most polite people you will ever meet ( as long as we are getting you to do what we need you to do ). All of this ” The Breeding” forges in the WASP certain qualities as in tempered steel.
In metallurgy, there is always a trade-off between strength and ductility. This delicate balance highlights many of the subtleties inherent to the tempering process. Precise control of time and temperature during the tempering process are critical to achieve a metal with well-balanced mechanical properties. (Wikipedia)
As in metallurgy, the tempering process of the WASP consists of a precise control of time, temperature, the proper mix of ingredients and proper environment.
In constructing a skyscraper tempered steel is a critical component in the strength and integrity of the building. The tempered WASP, was a key element in the construction of this nation, as I stated in my very first post, Preppy To The Bone .
” Inasmuch, as we created and continue to create these institutions, we also shoulder the responsibility for them. We have held and continue to hold, for over 200 years now, the foundational underpinnings of power in this country and no matter how far to the right or left that society swings at any given time in our history, we hold that foundation, we are its anchor and its bedrock. That is our lot in life. “
If you reveal everything, bare every feeling, ask for understanding, you lose something crucial to your sense of yourself. You need to know things that others don’t know. It’s what no one knows about you that allows you to know yourself.
- Don DeLillo, Point Omega
At this point in the post you might be saying … Bumby, what does this all have to do with the pearl ? I am so glad that you have asked. With modern technology it is all but impossible to distinguish a modern synthetic pearl from a Mikimoto cultured pearl except to some one who knows what to look for. With the 1980 release of The Official Preppy Handbook, Edited by Lisa Birnbach, it has become almost all but impossible to distinguish a Preppy WASP from just a preppy by choice.
As there is only one biological byproduct known as a pearl, there is also only one biological byproduct known as a WASP, Preppy WASP or High WASP, and we come in many different sizes, shapes and variations.
There is the synthetic pearl and the preppy by choice and design and to the untrained eye they are the same as the real and hold the same power and position.
THE DIVINE RIGHT
Throughout history the pearl has been a symbol of divine right to rule and possess. The pearl has also been a symbol of wisdom, as well as a symbol of the right to reproduce to control.
For a moment let us return to the beginning of this narrative, as much as Kipper, wanted to control and possess Bunny Boleyn, he could not and she went to her death with her pearls.
The belief in divine right moves us from 1503 to 1630 with the charter for the Massachusetts Bay Colony. In his rousing sermon, ( City On The Hill ) John Winthrop preaches to those that are about to set sail with him, that New England was their promised land and that God Himself, had granted them the right to rule over and completely posses all lands and people. The King thought that he was sending them to New England to keep it from becoming Roman Catholic, the Puritans for the most part were separatists not beholding to the Pope or King. New England was given to them by Divine right.
The belief of divine right is central to the understanding of the mind-set of the WASP. The Pearl, the symbol of Divine right is part of our birth-right.
At this point I am going to try to bring this home. I will need to explore other aspects of the Divine right and the Pearl in upcoming posts. But to bring some closure, the Pearl has throughout history been looked upon as some piece of the Divine full of mystery. We WASPs, believe deep down that we have a soul connection with the Pearl it is God’s perfect gem and we are his perfect people. The Preppy by choice or design is also drawn to this soul connection not really understanding its deep meaning to the WASP.
I really hate to leave this hanging…but I must for now.
I will wrap this up by stating that what the pearl means to you; specifically, is a very intimate subject. I don’t presume to know what that is for you.
I really thought that I would be able to complete this in three posts, I think that I have proven I can’t. There are many more aspects that I feel need to be explored, the differences between a Southern WASP and a Northern WASP and how these differences affect the wearing of pearls, then we still have the sex issues to deal with.
Thank you for continuing to read. Please join me at my sister site The Preppy Chronicles II.
Always, Bumby
The Preppy Chronicles Edition II Vol. III Part III.V
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Bumby Scott. Bumby Scott said: Please stop by.The Power Of The Pearl III Second Half – http://thepreppychronicles.com/2011/01/18/the-power-of-the-pearl-iii-second-half/ [...]
Wow… I pictured you tall and dark… large stature (though in height not otherwise) as you seem larger than life in your posts. Thank you for the introduction… nice to have something to visualize other than the mallard! Nice post and nice header… I have to go back and read part II now.
Jessica, welcome to my world. Thank you for your kind comment and I am so very glad that I have given you something other than my mallard to envision. Please feel free to stop by often .
Always, Bumby
Dear Bumby, Thank you for such a lovely post. Pearls have been part of my family for the last two hundred years. I have a lovely memorial ring that bears a caplet of pearls around the central stone. This ring is engraved 1774. It came down to me two years ago. I have my great grandmamas pearls, a lovely triple strand. They glow with an inner light. I almost live in mine as does my mother. I truly enjoy your post and look forward to future ones. As always, Jane
Dear Jane, I would like to welcome you and say thank you for stopping by and leaving such a gracious comment.
Always, Bumby
Don’t neglect the west coast, Pasadena preps. Remember Julia Child?
Bumby old boy, how dare you think you could sum up the power of the pearl in three posts (ha ha). I’m kidding of course. It was well done as always and like you my friend, original.
Cheers!
@ O.C. Cavanaugh, thank you for your support:)
Oh boy, I seem to still be misunderstanding the actual terms of prep/preppy and WASP. I didn’t think that a WASP would refer themselves as a prep. I think that’s one of the reasons that the average person easily blurs the line. If all are referred to as prep, the distinction seems to be lost, but then again I’m obviously not understanding the term prep and why that term is also attached to WASPs. Maybe it’s because the term prep and WASP was originally belonged to the WASP, and then non-WASPs simply adopted the prep part of the terminology for themselves???
I thank you for any clarification you can give me. I’m really looking forward to the rest of the series.
@Pink One, Thank you so very much for stopping by. I will see if I can bring some clarity to the difference between the WASP and the Preppy. All WASPs, even the “hard core” WASPs, have a Preppie inside just dying to break free it is our alter Ego, to be blunt, some WASPs are so tight-assed that they would not know what fun was if it came up to them and shook their hand and said Hi I’m fun glad to meet you. A WASP that has resolved the inner conflict of Ego or at least is willing to open that door and embrace his or her alter can be considered a Preppie.
I hope that helps.
I will look into what can be done with the avatar, from what I understand it is a reflection of the comment, I will see what other plugins are out there.
Always, Bumby
Funny! (Let’s see if that changes my avatar
) I’ve never seen avatars that change based on what you say. Don’t worry about it if that’s all it is. I thought it was a permanently assigned avatar and I hated the thought of seeing that face every time I posted. It’s so depressing looking, and I like cheerful things.
Onward. I never would have imagined that you were going to tell me that the difference between a prep and a WASP was a sense of fun! That threw me a little. So preppies who try to have others believe they are a WASP, or, at least, try to “act” like one, are the type that you would refer to as posers, then? I would then assume that’s where the poser comments were coming from with others who were making those comments? The conversation at TDP is making a lot more sense now. In my opinion, a preppie WASP sounds like a great combination.
Thank you for all the great explanations and clarifications through your unique blog. It makes things much clearer, especially for this mutt.
I’m really enjoying learning so much from you. I feel the need to dig through your previous posts now.
I might be wrong about the avatar, I will look into it.
Sorry.
Forgive me, Bumby. I’ve been reading through your previous posts and just realized that there has been a mistake in my understanding, which has probably led to confusion. I have been thinking that the W in WASP stood for wealthy. I now realize that the W in WWASP is what stands for wealthy. So in my comment above, it should have said, “So preppies who try to have others believe they are a WWASP, or, at least, try to “act” like one, are the type that you would refer to as posers, then?”
That makes a lot more sense.
I’m sorry if I’m being over analytical, but I’m very analytical by nature and 2+2 has to equal 4 for me otherwise I’m lost. And sadly, for those who are trying to teach me that 2+2=4, I can sometimes be a slow learner, but my heart is there if they are willing to be patient with me. My apologies to those of you who are suffering through my slow learning process. When something truly is of interest to me, I ask questions until I understand. Because of my eagerness to learn something, I sometimes don’t know when to shut up so that I don’t annoy others.
Thank you for your patience with me, Bumby.
@ Pink One, you are an absolute delight. It is wonderful to see the light go on and know that in some small way you have had a hand in it. The lines have so blurred that it is sometimes easier to let them wash away any real distinctions. It does my heart good to know that there is some continuity in my musings.
Thanks again.
Always, Bumby