<p>what are they anyway? why are they so secret? what goes on in there?</p>
<p>SKULL AND BOOONEEEZZZZ! Heh. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't SO curious about that shizz. Like, what do they do? Dance around a fire and beat a tambourine? (The thought of the Bushes doing that is going to give me nightmares for years.)</p>
<p>The search function is your friend: <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/yale-university/438053-secret-societies.html?highlight=Yale+secret+societies%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/yale-university/438053-secret-societies.html?highlight=Yale+secret+societies</a></p>
<p>As is Wikipedia.</p>
<p>my dad was in a secret society (though he refuses to tell me which one :(...)</p>
<p>he said that they're pretty much secret for traditional reasons and that they were more or less like a frat..</p>
<p>Bones is probably the weirdest of them. Longstanding rumor has it that a big part of its activity consists of members engaging in long, explicit confessions about their sexual histories. Most of the others are, yes, more like frats, except classier, and only a few besides Bones make a big deal of secrecy. (Others have open parties, etc.)</p>
<p>Speaking of the Bushes: One of the not-quite-secret aspects of Bones is that every year the member with the most sexual experience is designated "Magog", and George H.W. Bush was Magog of his Bones class.</p>
<p>The main thing to know about them is that because (a) they are secret, more or less, (b) they induct seniors, and (c) the vast majority of students aren't in one, they don't have very much impact on campus life.</p>
<p>this is interesting. i was told that they were a pretty influential part on yale culture. and yes, i have tried wikipeding and google searching but to no avail... have not found much good info cause everyone is like "OOH ITS SECRET"</p>
<p>because secret things are just oh-so intriguing.</p>
<p>
[quote]
i was told that they were a pretty influential part on yale culture.
[/quote]
Nah. At least not for most people. Although they are a fascinating topic of conversations.</p>
<p>Not influenetial to campus life. About 10% of seniors are tapped. Seniors are busy folks anyways. Not much time for those Tri Partite, rule-the-world conspiracy group meetings, you know... lol</p>
<p>A friend of mine who knows someone in it (yes, they aren't supposed to know but w/e) told me something interesting. The Skull and Bones make new inductees get a little tipsy and spill their ENTIRE life story in 4 HOURS MINIMUM. So everyone who is in it with you basically knows your life story- perhaps for better, possibly for worse, maybe for blackmail.</p>
<p>is that it? just spilling each others secrets with each other?</p>
<p>You may want to read the book</p>
<p>"Secrets of the Tomb: Skull and Bones, The Ivy League and the Hidden Paths of Power. by Alexandra Robbins, a Yale alum and a member of a Yale secret society (Scroll and Key Society).</p>
<p>This book will give you a little bit more complete picture of Yale secret societies, mostly about Skull and Bones. I want to warn you that the book is somewhat boring to read.</p>
<p>i know someone who was in the wesleyan chapter of skull and bones. I believe they were given a different name though...</p>
<p>all he said was that a lot of them did heroin. and a lot of it.</p>
<p>I think it's really just about connections, call that a conspiracy if you wish but I wouldn't.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>I don't think there's a Wesleyan chapter of Skull & Bones. Wesleyan does have similar societies, but they're not related.</p></li>
<li><p>As far as I know, who the members of Bones are (or any other society) has never been secret. Yale yearbooks used to have pictures of each society's members, and tapping used to be done very much in public (read Stover At Yale). Bones has all kinds of secrets, supposedly, but not its membership. When I was at Yale (admittedly, a long time ago), anyone who cared could easily learn who was in Bones or any of them, and Bones men (as they then all were) would freely acknowledge their membership and that of others, if not much more. They also were referred to as "senior societies", not "secret societies".</p></li>
</ol>
<p>yeah, i asked the yale rep about secret societies when i visited their college, and she said everyone knows who's in them.</p>
<p>and then she wouldn't tell us any more because she didn't think we were old enough.</p>
<p>My dad was in Bones. Whenever I ask him what he DID exactly, he just sort of shrugs and says, "Nothing, really."</p>
<p>To say the least, I am not convinced.</p>