work response

Leah Miller                 DB #4  Collapse          

I think that the Narciema article was written as a piece of satire in some sort. It was critiquing cultures that examined "exotic" ways. Miner wrote this in 1965 in a much different format than one would write today. But even though that is the case if we look at the format of cultural anthropology it hasn't changed that much. This paper did a great job of examining American culture. A lot of people think that Narciema was written about a "weird" culture but they were mistaken, given that it is about America.

An example of a cultural practice I discovered that seems strange to me is one from Uganda called Banyankole's potency test. In this practice ones aunt is used to not only advise a new bride but also has sex with the groom as a 'potency test'. The aunt also has to test the brides 'purity' before the bride and groom are allowed to proceed with their marriage. In my opinion this is not normal, nor have I ever heard of this type of arrangement in the United States.

As cultural practice for myself would be labeling myself as a Christian. A lot of people do not understand this belief or they misjudge all Christians for things like being hypocritical. In a lot of cases Christians get judged for things based off of one opinion or statement from an individual. I get questions a lot assuming I believe one thing or another based on assumptions or other individuals.