Devoted: I chose devoted to describe this society due to the ideologies they uphold. They preform rituals and practices that are seen as the only well to achieve health and well-being. As a society these practices are so upheld that the Nacirema people are very devoted to their cause. This devotion arises from the culture enforcing this belief that these rituals are vital.
Ritualistic: I think the word to describe the people of Nacirema is ritualistic. The reading discusses all of their practices and what they find important within their society. One that got my attention is when they discuss their idea of how the human body is ugly and how it naturally prone to decay and disease. It is also stated that most of the peoples time is devoted to ritualistic activities, further supporting the description.
Elaborate: Certain aspects of the Nacirema culture can be seen as obsessive or elaborate. I often found myself confused by some of their ideals and rituals. I think that when stepping back and looking at a complete overview of the society as a whole, it is very elaborate. Feels like there is disconnect between the society and "the real world".
Passionate: I think the people of Nacirema are very passionate about what they believe and this is shown through their constant commitment to their ideals. When discussing the body rituals preformed it is stated that "Every household has one or more shrines dedicated to this purpose" (Miner). I think this shows their passion as a whole, considering that every household participates.
Patriarchal: When reading about this society I noticed lots of strange statements to describe them. One that really caught my eye is when it describes how female and male clients are treated as they enter the temple. It states that the women in their vulnerability find themselves subject to "manipulation" and "prodding" from the medicine men. This paragraph lead me to choose the adjective patriarchal as a reader I felt this society is driven by status. I often felt while I was reading that the women were not equal to the men.
Part B:
- As an American, I feel like the words used don't all apply to our culture. I feel like I chose pretty good words that if reviewed can apply to our ideals however, the only one I don't think describe at least the culture I have experiences is ritualistic. As an "insider" after reading what an "outsider" is saying I think I should take a step back and look at our culture from their point of view. I often found myself trying to understand the practices explained therefore, I felt like a little bit of an outsider myself.
- I think my words as well as the description I wrote do reveal judgement. In regards to bias I think the words ritualistic and patriarchal reveal bias as I view them as more strongly opinionated. Whereas the words devoted, passionate, and elaborate I feel could be used to express many cultures therefore making them free of bias.
- After reading I did feel shock and disbelief, which I already think is a telling sign that something may not be as it fully states. To avoid falling into the trap of bias, I usually take a step back and think is this "too good to be true" or in this case to shocking to believe. I can avoid inserting bias in my writing by keeping personal opinions to a minimum and ensuring that what I am writing can appeal to everyone.
- In reflection, I think we must be accepting of all cultures and it is important to avoid claims of judgement. In my future I plan to work with children, and I feel like the words I choose to use are so important, therefore this experience has been very eye opening to me to show that I may need some improvement in that area. It is important to describe every culture in an accepting and open way and leave out all personal bias. Especially when communicating to someone who may be unfamiliar with that culture, allowing them to get the information and form their own opinion is vital. I think avoiding personal bias is possible, especially as a Cultural Anthropologist cause just like me if you are passionate about what you are doing, your habits and word choices will change.
Submission scored. I will offer a more extensive review and feedback after your Part B submission.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this, I believe the words that you used to describe the "Nacirema" was somewhat on point in regard to culture as a whole. One thing I will disagree with you on is that our culture is not "ritualistic". As far as I know, our phones within our culture is part of our daily routine which can be seen as ritualistic. We spend time scrolling or texting our loved one everyday. It is practically natural for us. Not even just that, but things like washing our teeth in the mornings, making sure we eat lunch for the day, fixing our hair before going out. All those things I would argue point to our culture being ritualistic. But the other words that you pointed out like passionate, elaborate, and devoted does speak not only for us but for every culture. We are passionate about the things we are interested in, as well as in our culture. Elaborate perfectly describes the differences of each culture and shows us "the real world". Finally, devoted describes each culture ideal that they sometimes hold to their grave. These were great choices of words. We are to look at other cultures with different ideals and habits with respect and with an open mind. This was a great read.
ReplyDeletePart B Feedback: I'm going to include this information for all students and then provide more personalized feedback after that.
ReplyDeleteSo the purpose of this assignment is to put students into the position of feeling what it is like to have an outsider describe and perhaps judge their own culture. But it is also to grasp the dangers of using one person's description of a culture to learn about it.
With regard to your word choices, when you were asked to evaluate (in part B) any bias indicated by your words, two issues should have come to mind:
1. Do your words imply *judgement* of the behaviors describe?
2. Do your words *accurately* describe those actual behaviors.
The first issue is the easier of the two. You probably came into this course expecting to explore the matter of ethnocentrism and cultural anthropologists avoiding their own bias.
The second one is possibly something you didn't consider but is just as important. When you describe a culture, you not only want to be unbiased, but you want to accurately communicate a behavior to others.
So let's start here by exploring what it is Miner is actually describing in this article:
1. Self-care and hygiene at home.
2. Dental care by a professional dentist.
3. Visits to a hospital and medical professional.
There are a few other things that Miner references, but let's start with these three.
So in addition to the issue of bias/judgement, do your word choices *accurately* describe these practices? Can a person reading your words better understand these practices?
Let's work through your Part B responses:
Here are your chosen adjectives:
Devoted
Ritualistic
Elaborate
Passionate
Patriarchal
1. Good, I agree. While I recognize that you seemed to be aware of avoiding negative bias, but part of bias is the issue of *accuracy* and I don't believe your words accurately describe the specific behavioral practices Miner was actually describing, i.e, healthcare and hygiene practices. If a person read your words, would they even be aware you were describing those topics?
2. "I think my words as well as the description I wrote do reveal judgement."
Okay, but again we can go beyond this as anthropologists and ask if our chosen words are even *accurate* for these behaviors. Bias is an issue not just because of negative (or even positive) false impressions but also because of the inaccuracy they create in understanding the things they seek to describe. This is especially important in academics/science when we write descriptions to try to teach and educate others. We want our words to be not only unbiased but also *accurate*.
3. Okay, but there are other steps to take as well. You can also try to find *other* sources besides this one (a quick google search would have revealed the truth!) so you have more than one telling to go by. When doing your own writing, you can adopt this practice by having other people read your work to check for bias. Anthropologists do this by doing peer review of their work before publishing.
4. I agree that it is impossible to entirely avoid bias, but as anthropologists we MUST try to do so. The question is how? While Anthropologists can strive to avoid bias and practice this skill, I suggest it is just as important to be aware that our biases are deeply ingrained in our psyche and are likely impossible to avoid completely. Better to be aware of this and be receptive to those who point it out when it happens. This is one of the reasons anthropologists collaborate with others... so that they can watch out for each other's bias seeping into their work.
An additional question: Is describing a culture as we have done here useful for an anthropologist? Or should our focus instead be on *understanding* a culture and explaining practices instead of just superficially describing?
Thank you for your feedback. In response to your question, I think describing is important but only when the understanding comes first. If we truly understand the culture and their practices we can than describe and explain. I think that understanding a culture is more important for an anthropologist. Following that understanding we can decide what to do next.
DeleteThank you for the response! I agree with your conclusion.
DeleteLooking through your blog I found that our ideas were similar. We also had ritualistic as a common word which we both wrote down things along the lines that were similar
ReplyDelete