I have to read the 'Body Ritual Nacirema' in my anthropology class, and wrote a brief summary about the article. Is it okay to compare it with American customs?
Horace Miner
The Nacirema people are Americans. In the article " Body Ritual Among The Nacirema ", By: Horace Miner, he explains how what we do as Americans is different when someone puts it in a way that other people may think seem strange.
It's called "Body Ritual Among the Nacirema" ('Nacirema' being 'America' spelled backwards).
Nacirema is simply American spelled backward.
"Body Ritual among the Nacirema" is a satirical essay that uses exaggerated descriptions of American cultural practices to critique Western ethnocentrism in anthropology. By highlighting the absurdity of the Nacirema's rituals, the essay prompts readers to reflect on their own biases and assumptions when studying other cultures. Reading the essay helps illustrate the importance of cultural relativism and challenges the idea of a universal "normal" in anthropology.
Nacirema is American spelt backwards. "Body rituals of the Nacerima," was written by Anthropologist Horace Miner to show how different cultures can appear strange if they are not understood. This was a satirical work done in the 1950's about the current American society. Everything listed is what American's do everyday.
WikiAnswers will not write your essay for you, but we WILL help you learn how to do it yourself! Click on the Related Questions for even more information. Write sentences the way you speak - just pretend you are telling this to a friend, and write down what you would say. What would you tell them about this topic? Look up some facts about body rituals among the Nacirema! How would you explain these rituals to your friend? What does ritual mean to you? If you just start writing, you will be through with your assignment before you know it!
The Nacirema believe that the human body is inherently flawed and tends to associate it with shame and disgust. They engage in various rituals and practices to cleanse and purify the body from perceived impurities. Physical appearance plays a significant role in their social interactions and self-worth.
Nacirema is "American" spelled backwards. The article is actually about the American culture described in a strange way. The latipso temple is a hospital, medicine men are doctors, laceration of the face is simply shaving, women baking heads in small ovens is simply going to the salon and putting their heads under those thingamajigs...the holy mouth man is a dentist, and so on and so forth. It's really much simpler than you think it is.
The article was to show that the attitude that one carried when studying a people could distort the findings. On the surface the article is yet another 'aren't we so much superior because we don't believe in magic like these primitive people' so common then but the sting in the tail is that Nacirema is American backward and the article is actually applying this dismissive attitude to what was regarded as one of the most technologically advanced cultures on the planet with predictable results.
The body rituals of the Nacirema involve daily practices such as brushing teeth with special powders, undergoing regular treatments with holy-mouth-men to prevent oral disease, and engaging in ceremonies to remove impurities through sweating in a temple-like structure. These rituals emphasize cleanliness, hygiene, and the maintenance of bodily health and appearance.
They are a hearty folk who enjoy staring at the sun and eating pork on the festival of "Ramschula". The often have dark or bright tattoos on their sacred belief that the tattoos will protect them.