After two terms of ill-tempered weather, the sun has emerged -- just in time for 77th annual Green Key Celebrations. All the signs of the impending weekend are visible: bands are flowing into to town, the taps are primed, and FO&M is well under way with their campaign to cover the College with liquid grass (btw, that color is not fooling anyone).
Since its beginning, Green Key represented a time of blissful abandon for the students of Dartmouth -- a break from academics and a celebration of spring, school and study.
However, this year's Green Key will be a far cry from the reckless debauchery of old.
The weekend has been part of Dartmouth life since 1899, when fraternities joined forces and formed "Spring House Party Weekend," a practically pagan celebration of spring, and an excuse to invite women to the College.
The character of the weekend, as we recognize it, started in 1921, when the Green Key Society began organizing official events such as dances, bands on the green and student contests. Despite the new face, the original spirit of the weekend lingers.
For a while at least, chariot races, the 'egging' of newly-elected Student Assembly Representatives, and Greek parties embodied the ideals of campus unity, spring revelry, and a break from studies upon which the weekend was founded.
As the student body grew more diverse through the 70s and 80s, the emphasis on interfraternity competition waned, a transition that was punctuated by this year's exclusion of the Webster Avenue block party.
Although the content and meaning of the weekend has changed, I am confident that students will continue to "celebrate" this almost century-old tradition.
And in your fun, please mind the liquid grass.
