Matriculation

Early in the morning of the Saturday, young folk wearing uniformly in black robes walked briskly on Catte Street and gathered in groups in front of the Sheldonian Theater. Surrounding streets were blocked and police were on duty to guarantee that tourists with cameras toe the line behind the crowd-control barriers.

It was not a 'witch convention', but a special event of Oxford students, which tourists of that day were indeed lucky enough to have witnessed -- Matriculation, a formal ceremony that confers membership of the university on students. It is held on the Saturday of the first week of the Michaelmas term (Fall term). The academic dress we had (see above picture) is called 'Sub fusc', consisting of a black gown, a black velvet ribbon (or a white bow tie for men) , a mortar board, a white collared shirt (with a dark suit over for men), a dark trousers/skirts, dark socks, and black shoes. Sub fusc is required for all formal occasions such as examination and graduation besides matriculation. As far as I know, Oxford is the only university that still upholds such rigorous academic traditions. Interestingly, we are not supposed to put on the mortar board until graduation for it signals the degree. As you can see, Oxford has got lots of its own term such as sub fusc, Michaelmas term, etc. As a non-native speaker of english, it's reassuring that native speakers do not know these words before coming here either.

The official ceremony held in the Sheldonian Theater was brief and conducted in Latin and English. Group photo shooting and a series of social events were then organised by the College. This is an once-in-lifetime event for us, and thus it is celebrated like a festival with continuous drinks and new friends. For me, as well as most freshers, it was our first time to wear the sub fusc. I was excited with a sense of accomplishment and belongingness. I guess the dress means far more than a connection to scholarly tradition. It officially marks the beginning of the studies, infused with my ambition and aspiration, and it also implies the responsibilities. In such a day to remember, I walked around the Oxford campus and took a lot of photos with friends in front of the landmarks including the Redcliffe Camera (Classic!). I was so pleased that the rain predicted by the weather report arrived late in the afternoon so that we had nice sunny weather for photos. I believe everyone on that day has got their own amazing collection of Matriculation photographs.

Although it was tiring and somehow made the whole weekend unproductive, I did enjoy the matriculation day. It was in nature a superficial and traditional academic ritual that most modern universities and colleges have removed given the time, money and human resources needed to put into to organise it. The beauty and uniqueness of Oxford lies, in my view, in its relentless preservation of traditions and in its perfect balance between the binary categories such as modern and ancient, city and rural, diverse and consistent. It is the careful stubbornness in the course of history that gives unique spirit to this city. I feel fortunate to live and study here, to suck the marrow of life from here, and to absorb from rich souls here no matter whether the living or the dead. (LOL...)