User:Lexein/DevPlayWordUsage

In Devil's Playground, throughout the film in intertitles, the word rumspringa is used italicized and uncapitalized except at the beginning of a sentence. It's used in interviews simply, with no hint that it is anything other than a period of activity away from home and church prior to baptism.
 * Usage
 * at 0:02:02-0:02:18 Intertitle: "When Amish children turn 16 they begin a period known in Pennsylvania Dutch as rumspringa. They are released from Amish restrictions and can explore the "english" [sic] world." (next intertitle) "Rumspringa lasts from a few months to several years, until a young person can decide whether or not to join the Amish church."
 * at 0:12:21 subtitle: "During rumspringa, boys will often drive cars and dress "english". [sic] 0:12:33 "Girls typically will not."
 * Again, lowercase, as in "during sleep" or "at work".


 * at 0:15:31 Interview with unidentified man: "Rumspringa, literally translated, means 'running around'. It's a time for the youth to attend their parties and do those kinds of things. 15:46 : This rumspringa is a time during which a person needs to make his individual choice as to whether he will follow Jesus Christ or not, and he cannot make that decision until he is accountable, which is generally accepted as being over the age of 16. He will hopefully of course make that decision positively not only to follow Christ, but also to be baptised and become a member in the old order Amish church."
 * Yes, some non-film sources say "jumping around", but a) this article is about the film and b) the literal translation doesn't materially change the interpretation, nor its representation in the film. As the common theme for each of the teens depicted in the film, it means "young, not at home, not in church, and not yet baptized."


 * at 0:17:21 Intertitle: "Throughout his rumspringa Faron has been using and dealing "crank" - also known as crystal methamphetamine, a highly addictive illegal drug"
 * at 0:22:40 voiceover and interview with Gerald, "Most kids live at home with their mom and dad during their rumspringa. Me, I knew I wanted to move out and get the experience. I moved in around the end of December, beginning of January, been living here ever since. It's February now."
 * at 0:49:48 Intertitle: "The Amish allow a rumspringa tradition known as "bed courtship". At the end of a date, an Amish boy is allowed to share the Amish girl's bed for the night")
 * at 1:12:30 Faron, in voiceover and on camera, says, "I don't know if I'm still rumspringa or... I don't know what I am. I'm not english, I'm not Amish, I'm just me. Sometimes I wish I had gone Amish when I wanted to. I'd have it easy back there.  I'd have a place to live, I'd have a nice job.  That's what I was raised to be. I feel like nothing can change that, because that's God's plan. My brother's joining the church this fall, along with a whole bunch of other kids that I used to hang around with from our church. My mom really wants me to come back and into church. I told her I might someday, I might not.  You know, Jesus didn't get baptized until he was 32."

On the basis of the spoken-word usage of "rumspringa", and its persistent use as a lower-case word in intertitles and subtitles, rather than as a capitalized Concept, I believe the film is not at fault for misunderstandings of the nature of the time period, or activities occurring in it. The film implies nothing official, sanctioned, permitted or prohibited about it. On that basis, I'd like to amend the synopsis to include
 * "... while they are rumspringa, from the Pennsylvania Dutch for "running around."

To me, this puts to rest the entire unfortunate injection of the phrase "rite of passage", which the film never references. --Lexein (talk) 09:51, 3 October 2010 (UTC)