Question

What was the rite of passage in Gary Soto's "Oranges"?

Answer 1

It is the male-female relationship

Answer 2

Answer:

The rite of passage is the beginning of a sentimental relationship with someone in the teenage years.

Explanation:

Gary Soto talks very nicely about a boy with only twelve years old who is about to meet up with the girl he likes. It´s winter, it´s cold and they just take a walk through the neighborhood. The boy keeps two oranges in his jacket´s pocket and at the end of the poem Gary sais "I peeled my orange that was so bright against the gray of December that, from some distance, someone might have thought I was making a fire in my hands." This orange represents the intense contrast that hope or excitement could bring to a situation that generates fear or nervousness. In this case, he was nervous about meeting this girl, but the oranges were this glimpse of hope... and everybody noticed that.