Examples of these changes appear in practice/abolition of slavery, voting rights for women, cannibal practices by tribes in the other side of the world and many others. Each human being is different, and the combination of its uniqueness combined with the costumes or practices from his culture/environment will make those differences wider when comparing to other individual with a different life approach and culture. 3. What is the distinction between individual relativism and cultural relativism? Individual relativism is how a person behaves within the society, are his/her actions guided for “good” or “bad” cause; while cultural relativism relates more as how a group of individuals behave, what costumes share, and how do they react to the changes of living in the same environment (society).
As I shall explore, nations built on predominantly ethnic ties are more susceptible to influencing factors which create a superior self-image and in turn an aggressive national mission. Nations that are built on civic nationalism are also prone to the thinking that they represent advanced reasoning and their ‘civic contract’ need be exported to the entire human race (Ignatieff 1999). This is of course not a fundamental characteristic of civic nationalism but rather one that is created by political leaders and the media. While the foundations of nationalism may be civic or ethnic I shall explore how these tie in with factors such as territorial disputes, cultural/religious conflict, national humiliation, globalization, immigration and power to determine whether xenophobia is present under only certain conditions or if it is always inherent. There is also the question of whether only very strong nationalism is xenophobic or whether even the very closely linked ‘patriotism’ is xenophobic.
Examples of Ethnocentrism Ethnocentrism is a major reason for divisions amongst members of different ethnicities, races, and religious groups in society. Ethnocentrism is the belief of superiority is one's personal ethnic group, but it can also develop from racial or religious differences. Ethnocentric individuals believe that they are better than other individuals for reasons based solely on their heritage. Clearly, this practice is related to problems of both racism and prejudice. While many people may recognize the problems, they may not realize that ethnocentrism occurs everywhere and everyday at both the local and political levels.
Cultural relativism Denise Lewis ANT 101: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology (GSF1517D) Instructor: Fae Goodman Date Submitted The comprehension of a different culture practices tends to be difficult when only used in comparison to one’s own culture and practices. It may seem not normal for one’s own standards yet to those of the opposite cultures our own practices may not be considered as normal or logical to them as well. In order to be able to understand any culture, one must really know the meaning of cultural relativism. “Cultural relativism is the idea that the significance of an act is best understood by the standards of the actor’s own culture” (Crapo, 2013). Using this definition will lay the foundation of this paper.
As James Rachels said, “Cultural Relativism might be true, but it might lead to some consequences, such as no longer being able to say that the customs of other societies are morally inferior to ours, or we could decide whether actions are right or wrong just by consulting the standards of our society and even the idea of moral progress would be called into doubt.” Cultural Relativism has some good advantages; it helps us to keep an open mind about other people´s beliefs. On the other hand, Cultural Relativism is not a good system that should be followed by each culture separately because there are some universal rules that should be followed, for instance no murder. Laws should be created under morality, and they might not be perfect, but they are the best rules that we as humans have. Even though societies still have arguments about their beliefs because it is impossible to have complete peace because of our differences. For example, For the Greeks it was believed that it was wrong to eat the dead, whereas the Callatians believed it was right to eat the dead, or the Eskimos saw nothing wrong with infanticide, whereas Americans believed infanticide is immoral.
In most cases, society affects it by the formation of prevailing fashions and cultural characteristics of the times, which are commonly called the custom. This is deeply rooted in the propaganda and education, as well as based on the development of politics and economy. People are exerted a subtle influence on while they may not recognize the fact. One who defy it would be viewed like an ‘alien’ and unable to integrate into society However, it is worthy of further discussion that the way people look, dress and act can represent what the whole society holds and values comprehensively and accurately. When speaking from the personal level, the answer tends to be negative.
The Effect of Ethnocentrism Thesis: Many people, worldwide, favor their own culture’s values, customs, and products as being superior to others. This display of behavior is called ethnocentrism. Consumer ethnocentrism is specific to opinions held by consumers in one country towards products coming from another country. It is the concept that “our” products are better than “yours”. I.
This is demonstrated through the differences in political stability, ethical standards, and gender equality in western and eastern culture. Western culture negatively impacts our views on cultural relativism and changes the way we view other cultural practices. To begin, the concept of cultural relativism is being covered up by the mindset of ethnocentrism, which is believing one's culture is superior to all others[2]. Clearly one's culture is affected by this mindset and it affects the way other cultures are viewed. North America is fond of their political stability and feel like it is more superior and therefore view the African government negatively.
However, if you were raised in Thailand, Japan, or any Asian country, these might seem delightful to you. Ethnocentrism and cultural relativism play a very important role as to why you would react in such way. Ethnocentrism is viewing your own culture as more superior than any other culture, that all other groups are measured in relation to one’s own. Ethnocentrism can lead to cultural misinterpretation and it often distorts communication between human beings. Often, an ethnocentric person may react to said situation as if every other culture is crazy and that only what they eat is completely normal.
Lastly, Cultural Relativists often argue that it is mere arrogance for us to judge the conduct of other societies, and that we should adopt an attitude of tolerance toward the practices of other cultures. Although it may be a display of arrogance to judge the conduct of other societies, it is sometimes necessary to do so and convey disagreement when the situation arises. Given these revised interpretations of the 5 claims commonly made by Cultural Relativists, individuals and cultures ought to be guided by a revised philosophy known as Centralized Cultural Relativism, where societies may have different moral codes, but they all inherit certain properties from a parent code, which is influenced by factors including human biology, physiology, and what is necessary for a society to