Anthropology Analysis of Body Ritual Among the Nacirema...

The author’s purpose in writing this article was not to show the â€Å"Nacirema† as an example of how extreme human behavior can become, but how an outside perspective can affect your perception of an alien culture. If one were to look at the â€Å"Nacirema’s† cultural behaviors regarding physical appearance and health without any insight or knowledge of the specific beliefs or values of that culture, they might seem bizarre and even incomprehensible. By showing behaviors and â€Å"rituals† performed by this unknown tribe, Miner allowed others to see that the way studies were representing distinctive cultures was narrowminded and defective. Without the proper comprehension of the basis of any society, huge cultural misunderstandings could occur. Of†¦show more content†¦Miner’s article presents numerous anthropological concepts including culture, social behaviors, symbols, material culture and holism. While providing us with a synchr onic view of an unexplored culture, Miner tackles the principle mindset that governs the â€Å"Nacirema’s† social customs and â€Å"rituals†, looks at key symbols and material possessions as the focus of the culture, and highlights the importance of studying a culture in its entirety to gain a full and accurate understanding. The psychology of the â€Å"Nacirema† people is one of malcontent. There seems to be a general dissatisfaction with one’s body and this inescapable attitude reaches into almost every aspect of their lives. The psychology of the â€Å"Nacirema† people is one of malcontent. There seems to be a general dissatisfaction with one’s body and this inescapable attitude reaches into almost every aspect of their lives. The â€Å"Nacirema† seem to necessitate unhappiness and even pain. They voluntarily allow â€Å"holy-moth-men† to subject them to torturous practices meant to postpone the inevitable decay of th eir mouths, pay â€Å"herbalists† to provide them with â€Å"potions† and â€Å"charms† expected to improve their health and consent to â€Å"medicine men† poking them with needles and performing life-threatening procedures all in the name of beauty and driven by the fundamental mentality that the body is ugly. Miner uses cultural materialism to explore and explain differentShow MoreRelatedCultural Relativism And Moral Relativism1620 Words   |  7 Pagesprinciples within not only the structure but also the functioning of cultures. Within his seminal article, which goes by the title, Body Ritual among the Nacirema, the author, Miner (1956) defines the aspects that are common within the â€Å"Nacirema† from what can be considered as the etic perspective, which enables the reader to slowly but surely get to know that the Nacirema are actually Americans. It should be noted that it is necessary to review the American culture from the etic perspective so as toRead MoreEtic And Emic Analysis On Suicide Terrorism1662 Words   |  7 PagesEtic and Emic Analysis on Suicide Terrorism Exploring different cultures as well as your own in order to understand the various ways they do things compared to our own can be enlightening as well as challenging. The main challenge comes from being used to your own culture that it is difficult to view a different culture without any personal bias. Being born and raised in a culture and getting used to those norms of everyday life contributes to the bias that one may show, believing that theirRead MoreANTH 1120 Midterm Exam Review2818 Words   |  12 Pageswhich they are found. Relativistic Fallacy: The idea that it is impossible to make moral judgements about the beliefs and behaviours of members of other cultures. Armchair Anthropology: An approach to the study of various societies that dominated anthropology in the late 1800s. It involved the collection, study, and analysis of the writings of missionaries, explorers, and colonists who had sustained contact with non-Western peoples. Armchair anthropologists used these documents to make comparisonsRead MoreProfessional Student4171 Words   |  17 Pagesscience. C. anthropology. D. sociology. Answer: D 2. Sociology A. is the scientific study of social behavior and human groups. B. focuses primarily on how social relationships influence people’s behavior. C. focuses on how societies develop and change. D. all of these Answer: D 3. The awareness that allows people to comprehend the link between their immediate, personal social settings and the remote, impersonal social world is called A. the sociological imagination. B. anthropology. C. a