The effect of rituals on social memory as performance i̇n the social gender fiction

In this study, the social reasons underlying the violence caused by the economic, cultural and sexual tyranny that women are subjected to and which are represented with impunity are examined based on the henna night ritual that fulfills its function by marking woman's body. In the first section of the study, the place and importance of the rituals is discussed, and the works of Emile Durkheim who highlighted the social function of rituals are used.The effect of rituals on social memory within cultural systems are discussed based on Jan Assman's book Cultural Memory and the concepts of "culture of remembering" and "collective memory" developed by Maurice Halbwasch. Performance and performance-art are defined, and the henna night ritual is discussed as a performance; it is associated with the concept of performativity, and the relationship between the ritual and art is studied. Examples from artists are provided, and their works are analyzed. The relationship between "performative creation" mentioned in Erika Fisher-Lichte's book Performative Aesthetics and the ritual is discussed. Their similarities and differences are examined based on the bodily co-existence of the actors and the viewers.