Cultural Relativism Assignment Guide

There’s a great teaching antidote that I’d like to share with you.  A Professor asked his students to define the Ignorance and Apathy.  One student replied with “I don’t know and I don’t care”.  The point?  We can answer a question quickly (and correctly) –but- is it thorough?  For our work in this course we want to make sure to not only answer the questions in full but to also explore them.  Take the time to make connections, see how the material “fits” with the world around you and to build upon your knowledge base.(Image courtesy of tiverylucky/FreeDigitalPhotos.net)

Assignment:

Cultural Relativism, in a nutshell, says that we need to look at actions in relation to their own culture, not what we think is right or wrong.  For example, in the US we love our pets (puppies and kittens).  In some Eastern cultures puppies are something that is eaten.  While we say, “That’s wrong!” to them, it’s right.   Make sense?

Ethnocentrism, when we break it down, is based off of pride in one’s ethnicity.  Ever go to a fair or carnival and see the shirts that say “Italian Princess” or “100% Irish”?  These are forms of ethnocentrism.  Sometimes people take this further and think there way is right and everyone is wrong (think about religious extremists etc.).  Overall it means that one may see their own culture/social group as superior to others.

I. First Paragraph:  Introduction Paragraph (Define cultural relativism and ethnocentrism. Give an overview of what you’ll talk about in your paper)

II. Second Paragraph: Write a paragraph on what you think about eating the odd foods listed in the directions (ants, frog, puppies, kittens etc.)

III. Third Paragraph: Write why you feel the way you do. For example, you might say that you would never eat puppies of kittens but you were raised to see these as pets….not food.  This would be a good place to include perspective(Symbolic Interactionism, Functionalism and Conflict Theory).

IV: Fourth Paragraph: Apply Cultural Relativism and Ethnocentrism to how we feel about these odd foods.

V. Conclusion:  Summarize your thoughts.

(Remember to expand these out to meet the length requirements)

Using the Perspectives:

Applying the three perspectives can be easy.  Try to view the problem from each perspective by asking the sort of questions a theorist would ask if they were a functionalist, conflict theorist, or symbolic interactionist. In this assignment, you could ask:

1.     What is the function of cuisine and ethics surrounding food within a society? What role do various non-human species play within the culture? (Functionalism)

2.     What conflicts arise over food choices? How would you feel about people who eat puppies and kittens? What about cannibals? How might a Hindu feel about a culture like ours that glorifies the eating of cows? (Conflict Theory)

3.     What does food mean to us? What we eat, how we eat it, and who we eat it with are all fraught with meaning and symbolism. Think about Thanksgiving and other traditional holiday feasts. Also think about how we view other species. Dogs and cats are often family members here, in India cows are sacred and a cow is referred to as one’s “Second Mother” because of the extreme important of the living cow as a producer of food and fuel. (Symbolic Interactionism)

If you need some help on the perspectives, try this link: http://www.mysociologist.com/sociological-theory/social-theory-explained/ – Additional notes are posted on www.MySociologist.com and uploaded to the Doc Sharing tab in the course.

Quiz:

For each quiz, I highly suggest taking some time to review the key terms in your textbook.  If you are using a eBook these often are equipped with useful features such as highlighted or bookmarking so that you can easily study the relevant material. Take your time, don’t succumb to testing anxiety (take a deep breath and relax), and try your best.

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