Please, answer these 3 discussion questions QUESTION #1. #2 AND #3 in 2 paragraph length each one. PLEASE CHECK YOUR GRAMMAR.
THIS IS THE READING FOR QUESTION #1
How we view the World around us.
Suppose you just met someone from India. You want to make a good impression, so you invite them to lunch. You do the driving and tell your new friend that the choice of a restaurant will be a surprise to them. Wanting them to experience American culture firsthand, you take them to Mickey Dee’s for a shake and a Big Mac. Your friend waits patiently for the food. When it arrives, she unwraps the sandwich and to your horror, she has that look that tells you she is about ready to “hurl.” A fast dash to the restroom saves the day. You consider her behavior odd and strange. It makes no sense to you. Yet in her culture eating a cow would be unthinkable.Similarly, let me ask you a question. How many of you bathe more than once a week? A ridiculous question, right? Yet in most parts of the world people only bathe once a week.Bathtub. What is fascinating about culture are the differences we see in food, clothing, music, religion, and so on. Yet each society has all of these elements in common. For instance, each culture has a family structure with roles and responsibilities. Each society has some form of work. All cultures have burial practices. It has been said that a society develops a set of ideas about what is true or real because….It works for them. Consider the first example. We as Americans may think that the worship of cows is silly and certainly not in the best interest of poor people in Indian. My gosh, those cows could be eaten, and the starving population would be fed. Yet, cows in Indian serve a vital purpose to the survival of the people of that land. One natural resource, which is missing from India, is a good supply of trees. Without wood, people are cold in the winter, and you have to make do with cold cuts instead of hot soup. The cows to the rescue! The cows offer a good supply of buffalo chips both for heating and cooking. Yes, I know it sounds gross, but you have to admit people are using the resources on hand to meet basic needs.Cow. I said a society develops a set of ideas about what is true or real because it works for them. We in America have a love affair with our cars. Everyone should have one (or two) and should be able to drive them whenever and wherever we want to. **********Question #1 : Americans often feel that their way of life is best. And what is best for America is best for the world. What are the pitfalls with this kind of thinking? ************
READ THIS FOR QUESTION #2
The text brings up a concept that influences the way we see our culture in comparison with the rest of the world. As the text points out the Navajo people see themselves as the people. If you talk to someone from France, they usually think of their culture as superior to American. Americans feel the same way. It would be safe to say that most societies are ethnocentric when it comes to their worldview (our culture is best). The book presents this in a rather negative light because this way of thinking can lead to discrimination. But think again about the elements of ethnocentrism. ******Question #2: How can ethnocentrism be a positive force in a society?**********
READ THIS FOR #3 Right to Judge?
Finally, do we have the right to judge another society’s culture? It easy to say no, but then consider the Nazi’s treatment of the Jewish people. Aryan Germans were taught from grade school that the Jews were the lowest form of human life and if allowed to live, would pollute the society the Nazis were trying to build. *****QUESTION #3
Do we have the right to judge another person’s culture? Why or why not?