Ethnocentrism: Culture and Editorial Board Essay

SUBJECTIVE There are many problems that can be attributed to an individual’s cultural morals and how they will relate to one more individuals particular cultural morals and set standards. Sometimes these issues can be small and addressed appropriately, in other instances these cultural differences can be monumental and cause several societies to wage battles against one another. The way that the individual idol judges or interprets other cultures beliefs and standards based upon the guidelines that belongs to them culture is actually sociologist label as ethnocentrism and is what we are going to be looking at in even more detail with this paper.

There are numerous factors that contribute to the continual societal conflicts and disagreements that are permanently occurring over the globe. There is also a great break down that can be sensed in regards to understanding and receiving each individual contemporary society; each you have its own exclusive culture and a lot of individuals are unfit to be viewing a culture distinct from their own with no passing predisposed judgments and ideas that are typically instilled by their very own culture. Ethnocentrism is a term that sociologists use to specify this globally occurring unaccepting set of attitudes and manners.

Ethnocentrism could be attributed to sociable evolution, neighborhood & foreign competition and will also be a result of cooperation using what is considered to be the in-groups and never the out-groups (Axelrod & Hammond, 2003). The main concept of ethnocentrism is usually individuals viewing their certain group or culture as the in-group or perhaps the superior to the other cultures and the individuals who they are composed of. Judging one other culture by standards that belongs to them; it is important to consider that ethnocentrism is totally different from racism (Rodriguez, 2013).

Traditions is a very important factor of ethnocentrism and it is essential to understand what is it; culture is everything that can be associated with a specific group of individuals, it is the way a group of persons or society think and act in a common manner generally a consequence of how they were raised, the way they talk; a common group of ideas and also the making and understanding of emblems special to this group plus the traditions that unify that group of persons by having proven shared ideals, beliefs and customs. Culture includes as well the things that all of us own, the material objects that we consider to be important as well as the social corporations that we benefit, mores and folkways and the technology which can be found and counted on (Editorial Plank, 2012).

Since Americans there are many things being a society and culture that we have become used too; freedom of choice and speech, flexibility to express each of our individuality; the us was founded for the principle the equality for every individual is fundamental which is the reason we now have become more typically referred to as the burning pot. There are numerous various ethnicities that are displayed throughout each of our society and lots of of which are to some degree keeping the characteristics and traditions of their homeland (Editorial Board, 2012).

The fact that America is considered to be a shedding pot and it is the land where international individuals arrive for their probability at the American dream is regarded as a large contributor of ethnocentricity mentality of white People in america. This attitude leads to a sense of power and superiority plus the labeling of other nationalities as unequal or trivial in our nation; in many this may lead to a sense of resentment from both equally sides resulting in assault.

There are many facets of the American culture that individuals consider to be acceptable, the right way of doing items; these actions are particular to our traditions, our best practice rules (Editorial Panel, 2012) and simply as we could possibly be offended through aspects of other cultural best practice rules it is important to keep in mind that the same is true pertaining to other nationalities as well, they may find them to get extreme, unsettling or even unethical. It is important to remember that many cultures view all of us with the same predetermined judgments and perceptions Set by way of a own tradition and that ethnocentrism is not only just how Americans look at other societies and for what reason the physical violence and devastation due to these types of judgmental attitudes is so frequent.

Many of the fundamental concepts and behaviors of the American culture are not thought to be acceptable in other cultures including our principle of freedom and equal rights, these are not common attributes of many communities,  equality and individualism happen to be nonexistent in many; our standard lack of informality both specialist and personal has a tendency to make users of different nationalities uncomfortable and can be punishable by law in some (Rodriquez, 2013). If an American went to a classic Arab culture in the summer a few months wearing each of our traditional summertime attire, shorts, thank best and sandals it would very likely cause a concern; this communities cultural standard requires women to be fully covered via head to bottom and offers very strict rules; I possess no doubt that she would always be harassed by simply local law enforcement and even manufactured remarks to by community civilians, she would be started out at and considered to be incredibly unacceptable because is not really what is considered acceptable within their society.

This assignment essential us to observe a movie that communicated the cultural beliefs and best practice rules of a different culture; just for this I decided to use a tradition that has become a social norm in variations during many societies. This tradition originated in Egypt and was borrowed by many people other ethnicities and converted to fit their own cultural & religious requirements. This traditional ritual I actually still used today in many different ethnicities considering our.

This is not a subject I would generally consider to get a paper nonetheless it certainly did provide me personally with a exclusive cultural experience. The movie We watched was called the cut it is a short documented on the controversial ritual of female circumcision also find out in many ethnicities as feminine genital felure. This documented was around the prevalence of the tradition in Egypt but this is also a common procedure in numerous other ethnicities. This ritual has been performed for over 200, 000 years and is deeply imbedded inside the roots in the Egyptian lifestyle (The Slice, 2013).

FGM is just as common in many nationalities, if not more as the circumcision of infant boys inside the American lifestyle but due to the nature of the procedure has become considered an extremely controversial, undiscussed issue that affects numerous cultures and even more specifically a large number of the female members of these ethnicities. The documentary reported that over 90% of the females in Egypt have been through the procedure and there are similar amounts in other practicing countries.

Various young girls a lot of as youthful as on the lookout for years old are forced to go through this kind of ritual often bound and gagged devoid of regard for the children’s wishes, there are two different types of FGM both unquestionably extreamly painful; the initially type gets rid of only the clitoris while the second type eliminates both the clitoris and the labia; this is done by inserting hooks into the leading and underlying part as well as the central to expand the skin and allow a mid-wife to cut skin. This procedure is done with no inconsiderateness and because it was banned in Egypt 5 years back it is often performed in the child’s house. The outlawing of FGM has become of very little benefit, if anything it has caused more damage.

Disease and death have become more common as many father and mother fear criminal prosecution and do not acquire medical attention when it is necessary resulting to a rise of deaths from the practice. FGM was the main subject of the documentary but it also offered a visual picture of their encircling; the area in which they were filming looked like an entire other community, a dust covered, and dirt street, full of clay-based hut like houses the place that the women were completely covered wearing classic vales.

I had been surprised to find out that many in the men who were filmed jogging down the active shop covered streets were wearing identical dress clothing to that of your American business men, they’d on pricey looking suits some got ties, a lot of did not, and I was likewise surprised that there were several wearing jeans and t shirts. One of the interviews was carried out inside the women’s house that was elaborately furnished with silk sheets and gorgeous gold figurines and material accents. There was clearly also a good behavior difference, in American society various people like and want to land on TV, media and car radio interviews will be conducted every single day on sensitive subjects but this is not the situation for the women on this documentary.

Many of them appeared to be fearful and reluctant due to the fact that their culture considers this unacceptable to schedule an appointment anyone specifically outsiders about camera regarding such a sensitive classic subject (The Cut, 2013). There are many factors that I in person had the response I did to the documentary and even more specifically this issue matter itself, being a females of any culture causes this an questionable tradition or perhaps cultural opinion; this area of the female person is a very private if certainly not sacred area of the body also to forcibly take it off with no respect for the young girls desires is very troubling.

To imagine the pain they can be subjected to plus the lifelong implications it can possess; there have been zero medical benefits associated with the procedure, inside the Egyptian culture there is not a great deal of religious element of the habit either it can be conducted on behalf of the groom’s family and is usually a requirement for marital life. I find it unfathomable these young ladies are forced through this ritual with no ease or discomfort medication during or after to take out the parts of the woman body which might be capable of arousal or perhaps pleasure away of dread they will enjoy this knowledge to make all of them more appealing to be a new bride.

As American’s we are encountered with sex each and every day, TV shows, ads, movies and even the news, American’s are captivated by sex; it is a form of entertainment for us, a type of communication as well as for some even a job and others just a hobby, this kind of just goes to show the level of difference that can be seen between several cultures. In lots of different civilizations sex can be not spoken about ever, within our culture it is difficult to make that through the day without ability to hear a reference to sex. A large number of relationships inside our culture especially one between a man and his wife include a foundation to some degree on physical romantic endeavors and the interconnection that it forms.

In many of such sexual human relationships the ultimate goal is personal pleasure or satisfaction of both people, look at the plethora of his/her personal lubricants, condoms and also other accessories which have been present in the west to ensure and enhance this procedure, there are even herbal treatments and prescription medications to help females achieve climax during intercourse. This is not the situation in Egypt and other ethnicities that practice FGM; this kind of ritual is performed as not just a method of purification but to stop female orgasmic pleasure the soreness is supposed to serve as a reminder that sexual excitement levels and satisfaction is undesirable (The Lower, 2013).

There are numerous complications connected with this routine and has been proven to be more harmful physically and mentally than useful; many of the users of these training cultures find it as a mark of refinement and not a great act of violence. On many occasions of FGM the mother in rules will examine to ensure their son is usually marrying a pure ladies and it is also assume that young women that are not circumcised will be brief, stubby and unattractive. We find it surprising that this practice is still therefore common or perhaps ever is at the first place, many female users of these communities also discover this habit to be distressing and needless.

I feel that various members of your society might find this kind of aspect of the Egyptian lifestyle to be troubling and would certainly cause a great ethnocentrism frame of mind. In our American culture we now have a similar traditions, many consider this to become controversial however the circumcision of infant males is also embedded deep in to our ethnical roots and has been performed for many decades.

In our world the cultural norm is to eliminate the excess skin area while the child is still an infant and the pain will not be recalled; this tradition is a bit religious and slightly attributed to medical benefits just like decrease likelihood of infection someday but was at first used to represent the changeover from young man to person as well as to cleanse the body while the availabilities were believed to be entrances for impure cancerous spirits (Millett, n. d). There are experts and opposers to our tradition as well the two inside and out of our own traditions which can be known as another sort of ethnocentrism.

A large number of associate the two FGM and circumcision of infant young boys to be a kind of hierarchical control by disclosing young children to conform to a hierarchical system and spiritual beliefs and cultural best practice rules that they may well not wish to be linked to (Millett, n. d). It is often very difficult to get members of a society to accept, understand or even conform to their own cultural criteria never mind those of a different tradition; how a person or band of individuals take action or respond in romantic relationship to others, especially a different tradition is what sociologists refer to since social conversation and is critical to understanding and having the capability to understand the thoughts, actions and interactions with other individuals, especially those that are distinct from ourselves (Editorial Board, 2012).

As individuals there is certainly one thing that we get in common, our reluctance to take that which is different, to understand the action more in which we disagree with, these unfavorable attributes of each of our species leads to a great deal of discord and violence which and between both homogenous societies such as Egypt which is primarily comprised of similar culture and dichotomous societies such as America which is made up of multiple different cultures. Homogenous societies generally have significantly less controversy and issues than that of dichotomous due to the fact that most members will be raised and socialized in the same manner and have an identical shared pair of values nevertheless even in these societies right now there can still become conflict that way surrounding the controversial topic of FGM.

A dichotomous society is more likely to possess conflict between the various civilizations present plus the complications it might bring when trying to communicate on an interpersonal level; problems and complications are also huge contributors to ethnocentrism. There are numerous consequences of ethnocentrism and the perceptions associated with that and are a big part of each of our inability since not only a country but throughout the world to deal with lots of the important important issues that often get neglected because of the fear of staying uncomfortable and lack of understanding as well as the hard work necessary to properly work interdependently with other societies and civilizations and the individuals they are composed of too support and aide rather than to judge and salary wars based on our own particular cultural requirements and values.

REFERENCES Editorial Board. (2012). Introduction to Sociology. (1st ed), Prentice Lounge The Lower. (2013). Woman Circumcision is Egypt is definitely Custom, Traditions and Religion. Retrieved about 4/17/2013 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a25S9jrEmKc