1. Do you favor ethnocentrism or cultural relativism? Explain your position.
3. Are you a member of any subcultures? Which one(s)? Why do you think that your group is a subculture? What is your group's relationship to the mainstream culture?
Monday, January 28, 2013
Chapter 2: Culture Questions
Please write brief responses to these 2 questions from the end of Ch 2 (p. 59). Please number your responses and reply as 1 comment to this blog post. Your responses should be about 5-7 sentences each. You should respond by 8am on Thursday 1/31. Late posts will lose points.
1. Do you favor ethnocentrism or cultural relativism? Explain your position.
3. Are you a member of any subcultures? Which one(s)? Why do you think that your group is a subculture? What is your group's relationship to the mainstream culture?
1. Do you favor ethnocentrism or cultural relativism? Explain your position.
3. Are you a member of any subcultures? Which one(s)? Why do you think that your group is a subculture? What is your group's relationship to the mainstream culture?
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1. I favor cultural relativism. When I went to Iceland, I saw a stark cultural difference from our own. They are only aloud to name children off of a certain list, they have no surnames, and they eat some very...interesting things. I realized that if I went into this trip, judging them for their apparent differences, they were stuck in the Dark Ages. As I learned more about the culture, I was able to see them more as a culture that wanted to keep their culture alive, they were already cut off from most of the world, they wanted to preserve culture. I have since learned that if I look from their perspective, they were doing a great job.
ReplyDelete2. Yes, I am part of multiple subcultures. One that I am extremely connected to is Irish Dance. We have our own words, moves, music, ways of thinking, Irish culture and even clothing style. As a young dancers we learned different types of music, new moves, and even colloquial words. We grew up with freedom to do what we wanted. I grew up with Irish Dancing idols, famous dancers and teachers. We, as Americans, had much of the same clothing styles as the Irish, radically different than what was popular in America.
1. I try to favor cultural realism, except in certain cases such as personal space or bullfighting, the example in the book. When it comes to personal space, I think our idea of having a lot of space is definitely the right choice. And when in comes to bullfighting, I just find it cruel and inhumane. I cannot respect that part of someone's culture. Other than that, when it comes to how people dress or what they say, I will respect that. They can live how they want to live in their culture, and I'll live in my culture. I try not to judge.
ReplyDelete3. I think being an IHA student counts as being part of a subculture. Obviously most people our age are in school, but at IHA we have our own uniforms, and just a different attitude towards life. Also, I am a vegan, something I think is a subculture. Every person eats, but vegans have a different outlook on what we should be eating: no animals or anything that has to do with animals. Subcultures are ways of life that make us different from everyone else, and I think and being and IHA student and a vegan is different.(in a good way) :)
1. I favor cultural relativism. All cultures have different backgrounds and traditions. Each culture has something different about them compared to any other culture. All cultures participate in different activities that reflect their ethnicity. When I go to Ireland during the summer, the people there take part in different traditions that Americans take part in. For example, people in Ireland have mass at their house through the week. It is a common practice, and all the neighbors come to it. Another example is how Irish people prepare for Easter Sunday. In order to prepare for Easter Sunday they do a "spring cleaning" throughout the house to prepare for their local priest to come and bless their home. I am not judging their morals and actions that have to do with their traditions they perform every day. I learned that many Irish people are very religious and take their traditions seriously. They are all very loyal to one another and are involved with their culture and no one has the right to judge them for their actions.
ReplyDelete2. Yes, I am part of subcultures. One subculture I am a part of is being a student. Being a student is a subculture because we are all apart of the American culture and the student culture. We are connected to the mainstream culture because we are American human beings who are learning academically. We are a subculture because we are a large group of individuals of all different ages who are academically challenged in an academic environment.
1. In a way, I think we all favor both ethnocentrism and cultural relativism. Whenever I visit a new place and experience culture shock, I try to not judge and compare their way's to my own, but it does happen, especially the first few days there. But once you spend more time within a new culture you begin to favor cultural relativism because you become more accepting and understanding to the new culture's components. Once you begin to immerse yourself within the new culture, it is easier to see how all their elements make their culture different from our own, but neither are superior.
ReplyDelete3. One subculture that I belong to is being a teenage American girl. I think this is considered a subculture because we are different from teenage American boys in the way we dress, act, and sometimes in the way we talk. We are also different to some extent from teenage French girls, teenage Chinese girls, and teenage Brazilian girls. We all dress differently from each other, talk differently, enjoy different movies and have different favorite actors, books, foods, etc.
1. I favor cultural relativism. I spent the summer in Europe with my dad, and I needed to embrace the fact that I would be leaving my home to spend my summer half way across the world. In order for me to enjoy myself, my dad told me that I needed to welcome the cultural differences and realize that what they do in Europe is very different from what we as Americans do. As I spent my first week in my grandparents' home country, Greece, I realized the different foods and rituals that were happening all around me. The food was much healthier in Greece than here in the United States and the food that they indulge in is interesting, yet delicious. As soon as I welcomed the Greek culture into my life, I felt more comfortable, and I found to be enjoying my vacation. I was able to keep the Greek rituals flowing through my daily routine, even switching my routine around to compensate with the Greek culture. If I had not been welcoming to the Greek rituals and the food, I would not have enjoyed myself at all. In Greece, everyone is welcoming to one another, whether they are tourists, or townspeople. We all need to be treated equal, with no form of judging.
ReplyDelete2. One subculture that I belong to would be my life as an art student. I attend an art school, and sit in my own desk doing what I love with great people. I am surrounded by students who enjoy the same things that I enjoy doing. The reason why I consider being an art student is being a part of a subculture is because we speak our own 'language'; meaning every stroke has a different name, and the pencils are not just ordinary pencils but they have certain sizes, as well as the paper and paints, and markers and pastels. We wear clothes that are messy so we could just create more of a mess, and most importantly, what separates art students from any other culture is our definition of 'art'. To us, art is our second nature. This is what separates us from society. That is why we are a subculture, because the way that we embrace art is different than any other, and we do things differently and we create pictures that tell a story, not just an ordinary assignment, a picture that means something.
1.I believe that everyone can be ethnocentric at times, however I favor cultural relativism. Experiencing a different culture can be overwhelming and it can be difficult to understand customs that we are not used to. Generally the unfamiliar tends to scare people, but if we do not experience other cultures and see what they are all about, we are missing out on so much. By experiencing new cultures, we can educate ourselves about other parts of the world. As people we need to have an open mind about other cultures because if we do not how can we expect other people to have an open mind about our own. No one wants there culture to be mocked or be told that it is “weird” or “strange”, because our culture is what makes us who we are. If we learn about culture with an open mind we will appreciate and respect it more and maybe even incorporate different aspects of different cultures into our own.
ReplyDelete2.I believe that my family is its own subculture. Each member of my family has similar values and beliefs, as well as traditions that we all take part in. Every thanksgiving my whole family goes to my grandma’s house for dinner. It has been a tradition ever since I was a baby. Also every Christmas Eve my whole family comes to my house and one of my family member’s dresses up as Santa and hands out gifts. Also I have family in Ireland and we send each other letters and call from time to time. I also have cousins from England, who often send me gifts such as my favorite chocolate from there. Without any of these traditions I would not be who I am today.
1. I certainly try to favor cultural relativism. I favor it partially because I support diversity and the breakdown of any discrimination, but also because I have had direct experience with a whole different culture within the US. When I went to a program for college bound hearing impaired students, I had quite a culture shock! I went in speaking virtually no sign language and having had very little experience with the deaf culture and the first day was incredibly difficult because I could barely even communicate with the people I was going to be spending the next week with. It ended up being a truly wonderful experience and though I can only sign marginally better than I could when I started, I learned how to communicate with them (phones or pen and paper are lifesavers)and I made a bunch of friends. If I had stuck with my ethnocetrism, I would have had a horrible time and come out of the experience worse, not better. Opening my eyes and allowing myself to let go of my ethnocetric ideas allowed me to have a great time somewhere that I initially hated.
ReplyDelete2. I am definitely part of subcultures, like IHA. One particular subculture that I am part of is that of the crazy readers. I believe that it is a subculture because it really isn't something that many people do, but when I find someone else who does, we become instant friends and can talk forever about all the books we've both read. We may not have signals or anything, but two readers in a crowded area will almost always find each other and will have inside jokes based on the books we have both read. We are all generally assimilated into mainstream culture, but most of the people I know absolutely hate to read, so while readers do not really have a specific relationship with society, they do have their own culture. From fangirling over Mr. Darcy (Pride and Prejudice) to being captivated by whatever the latest book is by our beds, we are not precisely normal and standard but we wouldn't have it any other way.
1. I favor cultural relativism, because it's enjoying and judging a culture on its own terms as opposed to using one's own background as a basis. When people use their background as a way to experience other cultures they tend to let bias get in the way. Unfortunately this is unavoidable and people will reflect negatively on their own culture or on the culture in question. To be able to study a different culture and accept their ideas, people have to be open-minded and not have that barrier that cultural relativism has. Only then can a culture truly be appreciated.
ReplyDelete3. I am part of many subcultures and each one carries a specific role in my life. For example, I am part of a New Jersey subculture, an IHA subculture, a student subculture, a Hispanic subculture and a teen subculture. I believe that these are subcultures, because each one is unique and has its own way of thinking and that is what adds to my personality and perspective. They also ultimately form part of a greater thing like, a country, school system, and society.
I feel definitely at times everyone experiences thoughts of ethnocentrism. When thing's often don't seem normal or ordinary to us it is hard to accept it. Although at times I do experience thoughts of ethnocentrism I 100% favor cultural relativism. In today's world it's more important than ever before to value others cultures and beliefs especially living in a place like America which is filled with so many unique cultures.
ReplyDeleteI believe that I do belong in a subculture, my dad's family is from the Greek island of Cyprus but overall were not the same as those who are Greek. We eat different foods, our language differs in ways than theirs, and our values are different. Not only with my nationality but also in my everyday life I belong to subcultures. Being from New Jersey and going to IHA are two subcultures in themselves.
I favor cultural relativism completely. To judge someone else's culture based on your own is very biased and, I find, is rarely successful. By judging another person's culture through your own, you cannot fully comprehend why people do what they do and how society has molded them. Cultural relativism allows a person to fully embrace a culture. It allows a person to view a lifestyle or culture through a different set of eyes, instead of viewing it through their own eyes.
ReplyDeleteI am a member of a subculture. There is a subculture within IHA itself. IHA has characteristics that set us apart from other schools and vice versa. On a hereditary level, my grandmother is German. She moved to the United States at very young age, but she held on to many of her cultures and beliefs. During the holiday seasons, she makes it a point to share her culture with her grandchildren in order to instill the same ideas.
I completely favor culture relativism because I think that other cultures are so interesting and I do not think you should judge another culture without learning about it. I personally have taken part in ethnocentrism when my friends tell me about there different customs and I didn't completely understand them. Before i spent time with one of my friends and took part in some of her own families traditions, I thought some of the traditions her family had where so different because it wasn't what I was used to. I am Italian and every Christmas eve I go to my grandma and grandpa's for a huge dinner with my whole family. When I explain to people the things we do at dinner such as having the huge fish dinner, or making a mark in the candle that indicates when we can open our presents, people laugh. I think if more people understand and accept other people's cultures this country would be even more diverse then it already is.
ReplyDeleteI am a member of many subcultures. The subcultures at school, my family and my sport. IHA is most likely the most influential subculture, besides my family, because that is where I spend the most of my time. I don't have siblings so my cousins have a huge impact in my life and I have no idea what I would do without them. I competitively figure skate and I go skating every day after school. I have formed an incredible bond with my skating friends because we go through the same things every day and we all get along so well.
1. I am in favor of cultural relativism because I think that it is difficult to understand a culture other than your own with ethnocentrism. I think that it is important to learn and appreciate different cultures rather than be set in the idea that your culture is superior or right. For example, when I went to Europe, I had a much better appreciation for their way of life when I let go of my set values and beliefs. There were times when I was taken aback by the foods they ate or the way they dressed but I needed to let go of my own culture to accept their culture. I think it is important to understand that one culture is not the "right" culture. Every culture is unique and holds unique standards and values. While we are often set in believing that our culture is the "right" one, just because someone's culture is different, doesn't make theirs "wrong."
ReplyDelete3. I am a part of many subcultures. Being a teenager in New Jersey puts me into a subculture. There are jokes, styles, and common phrases that may seem strange to other countries or even states. This subculture is a part of a bigger American, teenage, or New Jersey culture. Another subculture I am a part of is being a student at IHA. We have different sayings and jokes and a we also have different schedule than other schools. We are different from the larger mainstream cultures of American teenagers and high school students.
1. I favor cultural relativism because I feel it is important to be open minded toward different people and cultures. If everyone thought that their culture was superior it would be difficult to make compromises and share perspectives. I believe having an ethnocentric viewpoint can lead to ignorance, discrimination and prejudice. I think in order to help eliminate these problems we need to practice cultural relativism. Although I have reservations about completely accepting cultures that accept gang-rape, wife-beating, etc., I feel that most of the time racism, discrimination, and prejudice can be avoided by practicing cultural relativism.
ReplyDelete3. I feel I belong to many subcultures including, being a teenager, going to IHA, and being apart of my parish youth group. As a teenager, I act differently, have different interests, and am involved in different activities than the rest of the population adult or youth population. As an IHA student, I have different values, ideals, and expressions. We pride ourselves on hard work, share the similar experience of endless amounts of homework, and understand that having a test in multiple subjects is normal. This is very different from the mainstream culture who would not understand our typical day. I am set apart from the rest of mainstream society as a member of my parish youth group. We have different values, different expressions and jokes some would not understand, and different goals than the rest of society.
1. I would say that I favor cultural relativism opposed to an ethnocentric viewpoint because I like to try and understand a culture on my own. I think it is important to be open to new people and their cultures. There are numerous of cultures in our world today and each of them have different elements to them. Those people that believe their culture is superior is not looking into other people's beliefs. If everyone assumed that they had the best culture then no one would be able to learn from each other. Every person is going to defend their culture because that is what they are used to be doing. Although that does not give anyone the right to criticize or think less about any other cultures.
ReplyDelete3. I think I belong to numerous subcultures including going to IHA and being a member of Bergen Catholic Cheer Team. Being an IHA student has made me have different outlooks, ideas, feelings, and values that I wouldn't have found anywhere else. No one understands the hard work we put into our school work. The close bonds that all the students have with each other at IHA is different compared to any other school. I am apart from society when I am cheer-leading because no one understands what it takes to perfect a routine. Everyone thinks that cheerleaders and useless and just jump around in skirts, but their not. Only the girls on the team would understand the amount of time, effort, and sweat that goes into every practice. This is something outsiders do not see and will never be able to.
1. I favor cultural relativism because I believe that it is important to try to understand a group's culture rather than judge and criticize it. Although it is hard to understand why people do what they do, even though you think it is "weird and out there", it's important to try to be accepting of those people and their culture because they might think what you do is odd. If we don't take the time to understand a different culture when we witness it, we are missing out on a lot. People can learn so much by just being open-minded to a new culture. A person's culture is what makes him/her the person he/she is today. We shouldn't be judging who a person is, rather, we should be trying to learn from them and acknowledge that everyone has their own unique way of life. Because the United States is a melting pot of many cultures, I think cultural relativism is very important.
ReplyDelete3. I think that I am apart of many different subcultures. One subculture that I'm a member of is the IHA community. We have our own uniforms and traditions that make us unique. We also form our own slang and norms that are only apart of our community. This subculture's relationship to the mainstream culture is its values, such as success, individualism, etc. Another subculture I am apart of is my softball team. Though we have many of the same values as the mainstream culture's, we have our own sports lingo, uniforms, and behaviors that make us a separate culture. I also think my family is its own subculture. We have so many traditions that are unique to us and we have formed many of our own beliefs about the world. Without my family, I wouldn't be the person who I am today. Without any of my subcultures, actually, I wouldn't be the person who I am today.
I favor cultural relativism because the world we live in today does not have a "standard" American and we are exposed every day to different cultures. I feel that it is better to accept all the different cultures that surround us every day and learn from them and try to understand them instead of judging different cultures. Sometimes what we don't realize is that other cultures may be looking at us with the same thoughts of whether they should accept our way of life or should they judge us. Favoring cultural relativism allows us to embrace the many different cultures in our world and gives us a diverse way of life.
ReplyDeleteI am definitely a part of many subcultures. Going to IHA, living in Bergen County and being a dancer are a few of the subcultures that I am a part of. Attending IHA, we have our own traditions that are unique to our school, we have a certain appearance because of our uniforms and we have a work ethic that we put forth every day. Living in Bergen County is another subculture. The way we dress, the way we talk, the way we look, what we wear, what cars we drive are all factors that make up with subculture. The dance community is another subculture that I am a part of. The way we dress is very different, how we express ourselves, we have our own slang, and little things that this all contribute to the dance subculture. These few subcultures have shaped my way of life.
I personally favor cultural relativism because i feel that no one has the right to judge someone else's culture. We would be offended if someone came to our country and judged how we did things so why would we do it to other people. It is better to try and understand someone else's culture then to immediately put them off because they do things differently. If you accept them more then it will be easier for other people to accept you more.
ReplyDelete2. I am apart of subculture and it is with my friends. We have different inside jokes, ways we talk, and even different ways on complimenting each other. Many people probably don't understand what were talking about at times only we really understand each other. We all dress alike and we do this because for some reason we just molded into a subculture of our own. To mainstream cultures we are very different in the way we act, some may call it immature or weird but to us its just being normal. We find it hard to sometimes understand other subcultures but we try to realize that just like us they see and do things differently.
1.I can favor cultural relativism because I can definitely relate to this concept. My family and I love to travel around the world and experience the different cultures that countries endure. I enjoy seeing how different other countries’ cultures are in comparison to ours in America because it is a refreshing sight to see how diverse our whole world is. My favorite part about traveling is being able to taste all the different foods of the country. When my family and I went to the Bahamas, we all wanted to try the authentic Bahamian food that was not served in the resort. Our eagerness to try another culture’s food caused us to take a taxi to escape from the tourist units and be brought into the heart of the town where all the residents eat their own Bahamian food. I believe cultural relativism is extremely important because it allows people to be adventurous and explore the diverse cultures that exist in the world. People that are knowledgeable of different cultures can be more accepting when they encounter people with a different culture.
ReplyDelete2.I definitely believe I am a part of two subcultures: being an IHA student and a “fashionista”. Being an IHA student is a subculture because we have different values that people outside of our community do not understand. In other schools, they do not endure the strong sense of community that IHA has between all the grades. As IHA girls, we interact with everyone and do not single people out if they are “not part of our clique”. We are not only a school, but also a family. Being a person that is into fashion, or some call it a “fashionista”, definitely makes me part of a subculture. When I attempt to talk about the certain fashion designers with some of my friends, they tend to say, “I never heard of that designer before”. I remember one day during my study, I was looking at the newest collection of a designer and I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned out that the girl sitting behind me loved fashion and we spent the rest of the study talking about all the new Spring Collections of numerous designers. It was ecstatic to find someone who enjoyed the same interest as me. We now go to each other every single time a designer comes out with a new collection and it is exciting I can finally talk to someone about fashion.
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ReplyDelete1. No matter how hard we try, there are always times when we will judge other cultures due to the fact we feel so comfortable and "used to" our own. For example, I went to Spain one summer. I experienced culture shock from the language barriers to the way that the people acted. Although some parts of the culture seemed quite bizarre, I tried to keep an open mind and I was able to become comfortable with their customs. We are used to being in such a routine culture that sometimes it is hard to dive into another culture.
ReplyDelete3. I do believe that I am apart of a couple subcultures. I am on mock trial, and when I am talking about the case with another member, some of my other friends will be confused with the different law terms. I do believe my group is a subculture, due to the fact that not a lot of people would really know what I would be talking about if I said that a question was leading. They would probably ask who it was leading.
1. I agree with the views of Cultural relativism, however understand how people can at times be ethnocentric. Cultural relativism is the view that all beliefs are equally valid and that truth itself is relative. An individuals traits and values are relevant to the persons cultural values. Cultural relativism believes that all cultures are worthy in their own right and are equal to value. Where as ethnocentrism is the belief in the superiority of one's own ethnic group, cultural relativism tries to avoid the views of ethnocentrism. Therefore cultural relativism strives to avoid judging another culture by the standard's of one's own culture.
ReplyDelete2. Being apart of IHA, I am apart of the subculture that has formed here. In IHA, there are certain values, traits, and beliefs that make this community different from others. The IHA community has certain traditions that make the IHA subculture what it is today. Differences at IHA than other schools may not engage in is wearing uniforms, and using laptops which help to form our own subculture. Branching off of the IHA community I am also apart of a student subculture throughout New Jersey.
1. I think for the most part I favor cultural relativism. Today I am exposed to many different cultures that may behavior or have different traditions than I am used to. I think that it’s better to understand their culture and way of life then judging and thinking that my culture is inferior to their culture. But sometimes I go places or meet people and I may judge their culture or the way they do something by thinking it’s weird or unnatural without realizing that I am. But it is only unnatural to me because it’s not a part of my norms so I think that it’s important that I try to be accepting and learn about other cultures instead of judging it in a negative way.
ReplyDelete3. I am a member of many different subcultures. I think that by being a student at IHA and a member of my youth group at Church, I am a part of subcultures. IHA is an all girl’s school private school, so we wear uniforms and don’t get dressed up as everyone else by doing our hair and makeup as other schools may do. We still learn and have the same classes as any other school would have and we still have to take test and do homework like other school. By being a Catholic, I believe and practice different things then other religious groups. As a member of the youth groups we have discussions about our believes and attended church together. Still however we want to help the needy like other religious groups.
1.) Even though at times I may be ethnocentric, I favor cultural relativism. It seems that everyone is very biased about there own culture and feel that their traditions, language, etc. are what is the best. I am very interested in the various cultures that there are in the world today. Being that we are from the tri-state area and very close to New York there are many multi-cultured people in our area. It is very important to make an attempt to become more educated in other cultures before criticizing or complimenting a different culture. Culture relativism is a very interesting concept and reminds me of the saying " you dont know what someone's life is like until you walk in their shoes".
Delete3. ) Just like most IHA students,I am apart of many different subcultures such as the IHA community and the IHA Class of 2013. Outside of IHA I am part of my family, I have a subculture within my different groups of friends, I used to be a subgroup of my volleyball team and of my softball team, I are of a subculture of a 17 year old teenager and many other groups. Throughout life I may stick with some of the same subcultures and I will definitely leave some and join some. Next year when I go to Arizona State, I will belong to a new subculture and learn new traditions. I feel these groups are subcultures because within each group I share a different bond and different kinds of memories. Many of "subcultures" are pretty normal for the area we live in which is just another subculture! If I lived in Pakistan or even in Louisiana I am sure my subcultures would be different depending on my own personality. I believe that where a person lives has a VERY big impact on how they act, which will impact what kind of groups they are in and what subcultures they are members of.
1. I definitely favor cultural relativism. I think that it's wrong to judge someone's culture, just because it might be different from your own. Actually, recently, I've found myself getting really annoyed when my friends/family make negative comments towards other cultures. For the most part, they are only making these comments for one reason, the culture is different than ours. I think that's wrong. Just because a culture is different from our own, doesn't mean there's anything wrong with it. Our culture isn't perfect, so we shouldn't judge other people's cultures in comparison to our own.
ReplyDelete2. I think that I'm part of many subcultures. Besides IHA, a subculture I feel that I am a part of is that of the Peer Ministers at my church. Our main goal is to plan a Confirmation retreat for the Confirmation candidates. This retreat has many aspects that people outside of Peer Ministry just wouldn't get. For example, people might not understand why we wear giant name tags, scream at the kids when them come in, or why the retreat song is so important. These things are significant things to the peer ministry program, and people outside of the program just can't understand them.
1. Though I can be ethnocentric at times, I favor cultural relativism because it allows us to understand where other people come from and how they live their lives. If we measured every culture by our standards and expected everyone to have the same norms, values, and traditions, our lives would all be the same. Understanding different cultures enables us to expand on our knowledge on a culture and see how they see things through their eyes. We may even be able to fix things in our culture after getting to know theirs. If we accept other's cultures, they might accept ours.
ReplyDelete3. Yes I am part of many subcultures one is IHA. IHA is a subculture because we all have the same values that makes us different from the rest. At IHA we have things that connects us to each other such as our uniforms, alma mater, and teachers. Outside our school, no one would know our alma mater or our teacher's name which is something that connects to each IHA student.To the mainstream culture, we are different because outside of IHA, people have their own ideas of what it's like to go to Catholic school. Many think all of our teachers are nuns, we pray 24/7, and we never go to school. The mainstream culture may not understand what IHA does and is about, but we do.
I favor Cultural relativism because I think that it is extremely important to try and understand other types of cultures. Training yourself to think in a way in which you understand another culture on those cultures own terms, is extremely hard because we have grown up with the idea of ethnocentrism, in which we judge others based on what we believe or know. The culture one follows as a student going to IHA is extremely different than that of someone in a public school, just because of the environment. We should not think that our way is the best way, or our belief is the “right” one, because what is right is completely relative to you. I think that people need to learn to show more cultural relativism and not discriminate and judge people based in their culture.
ReplyDeleteYes I am a member of a subculture. I have grown up in a household with a mixed culture, because my grandparents were born in China, but my parents were both born in Jamaica. A lot of people think that this is an odd mix but I love celebrating parts of both cultures. I believe that this is a subculture because I share the cuisine, language, music and other aspects from both cultures. Most of my immediate and extended family members are also part of this subculture, but we still go along with the mainstream culture. For example with the Superbowl airing this weekend, we are having a Superbowl party, like most people in the current mainstream culture will. This is a part of the mainstream culture that we have integrated into our lives. I think that the best way to explain my group’s relationship with mainstream culture is that we integrate aspects of it into our own existing culture.
1. I like to think that I favor cultural relativism, even though I know that at times I can be ethnocentric. I believe that every culture is unique and deserves to be recognized and explored. Of course, at times I tend to believe that my culture is better than others (whether it is the IHA culture, or the American culture, or the North Jersey culture). But beyond that, I try to give every culture a fair chance, and I try my hardest to keep from discriminating against public schoolers or out of staters. Cultural relativism is important to me, and I am always attempting to live my life that way.
ReplyDelete3. I am definitely a part of many subcultures. IHA, of course, along with living in North Jersey and in America. Most prevalent, though, is my "swim world" subculture. We have our own language... ("Did you have to swim the 1650?!" "No way man, did you?" "Yes, kill me, the officials were making bogus calls, the starter said I false started, and my counter fell on the bottom of the pool!"), our own outfits, our own network of friends, and our own hierarchy of "social swimming status." People a part of the swimming subculture have friends outside of the swim world who can vaguely understand our language and our problems, but it really takes a swimmer to know a swimmer. It an entirely different world.
1. I'd like to say that I try to fully favor cultural relativism, but I know that I sometimes I am ethnocentric. Of course when people travel to new countries they go through a little bit of a culture shock, but I feel like that is apart of the experience. I feel like if people are so ethnocentric then they aren't really experiencing life and are just sticking to the norm. I am teaching my self to be a little more open to new cultures and not just being closed minded because you could learn so much from cultures that you didn't even know existed. All the new things someone could learn from another culture and then incorporate it within the culture you already know could be endless, and then teach it to other people so not everyone is close-minded.
ReplyDelete3. Yes I am apart of a subcultures. The subcultures that I am apart of are IHA and the Hispanic subculture. IHA is its own subculture because the school has its own traditions that make it stand out from any other school and that's what makes it a community and a family. I consider being Hispanic as a subculture because the ethnicity has consists of its own traditions and foods that make it unique from the American subculture.
1) When I went to Italy last summer, I remember how "weird" I thought the way people did certain things was. For example, kissing someone "hello" that you don't even know, or having no ice in your drink. Even though at the moment I was acting very ethnocentric, I now favor cultural relativism. I say this because it is true that no culture is really "right", per se. What they think is totally out of the ordinary for them, we may think is perfectly normal. It's so important to see things not only from our POV, but from others' in order to really understand the beauty of different cultures.
ReplyDelete3) Yes, I am a member of a few subcultures. Firstly, I'm a student of IHA. It's a culture because we have our own traditions and way we do things and only a certain group of people are a part of our culture. I'm also a part of the throwers (track & field) subculture. We have our own language ("I can't even spin and I'm a junior ugh I can only throw like 60 I have no future in disc." or "FRESHMEN HAVE TO RETRIEVE!") and we're like our own little community. We also have traditions like pasta night, Dunkin Donuts at morning meets, and nicknames.
1. I have never been to a foreign country where the culture was drastically different from my own, so I don't have a good perspective of both sides. Even though I haven't experienced it, I do believe in cultural relativism. I believe in fully experiencing and accepting new and different cultures and trying to to snap judge them just because they are different from our own.
ReplyDelete3. I believe that everyone is part of a subculture. Whether it be literally a culture within your home, or just belonging to a place that has rituals and traditions themselves. Any school you belong to is a subculture. Even sports you belong to are subcultures. Within sports teams, you have different traditions. Whether it be praying before a game or a team chant, they are all rituals within your subculture.
1. I favor cultural relativism because i believe that although in our country we are used to doing things a certain way and sometimes we look down on other cultures because we arent used to their customs, we should be accepting because we can learn from them and grow as people. Being open minded when it comes to other cultures and their accepted actions can help you become more of an accepting person in all aspects.
ReplyDelete2. I am a member of multiple subcultures. I am an iha senior which is a group with our own "senior privileges" and we are a specific group in our culture. I am also a part of the posts ( tallest people on the basketball team). This is a subculture because we have certain pre game traditions and our own language when it comes to the basketball team.
1. I would have to say that I favor cultural relativism because I feel that we shouldn’t judge other groups but we should try to understand the other group’s culture. I also believe that sometimes we all express ethnocentrism, not on purpose but just either on the way we are raised or because culture shock. We may not intend on judging another’s culture but it happens sometimes when we feel uncomfortable or don’t fully understand the culture. We need to take the time to learn about other cultures because we live in America which is known as the “melting pot” which means that we are a nation full of all different cultures. Every day we experience something from a different culture and instead of judging it we must try to understand and acknowledge the other cultures.
ReplyDelete3. Yes, I am a part of subcultures. I am a part of the IHA and also the Italian subculture. IHA has a subculture within itself with the way our school runs and the way it differs from others, for example I went to public high school for two years and there is definitely a different culture between the two schools. I see being Italian as a subculture because my family celebrates our culture with all different traditions and foods. Also, I live in a subculture everyday and that is being from New Jersey; the way we talk, act, and the way we all come together in times of need. Especially during Hurricane Sandy our culture came together to help one another through this difficult time.
1. I prefer cultural relativism over ethnocentrism. When i traveled to Europe i saw such a different culture and i thought it was cool. It was so different from what i experience everyday in America, and even New Jersey, the people acted different and the entire culture just seemed so new. i feel like in America we are so used to ethnocentric people that we are more open to cultural relativism.
ReplyDelete2. I think that i am part of a subculture through IHA. Even in IHA i am part of a subculture because i am also part of the bowling team. At IHA we have our own was of living out everyday life and by doing that we go against mainstream culture. When we come into school we do not wear makeup or try to work on our appearance. if we do then others tend to ask us what we are doing or if we are going somewhere.
1. I favor cultural relativism because in my own opinion i believe that we should not judge people by their culture and make assumptions without learning about ones culture and what they believe in. The quote do not judge a book by its cover relates to this very well. Our society has to stop looking on the outside of people and not judge quickly but get to learn and talk to someone instead of judging.
ReplyDelete2. I am part of a subculture. I am part of a subculture of theater people. SRYT ( saddle river youth theater) is my subculture. We are like a family. We have our values and connection.
1. Do you favor ethnocentrism or cultural relativism? Explain your position.
ReplyDelete- I favor cultural relativism because I believe it is more beneficial. Cultural relativism can come from life experiences with other people in other areas of the world.
3. Are you a member of any subcultures? Which one(s)? Why do you think that your group is a subculture? What is your group's relationship to the mainstream culture?
- Within IHA there are many subcultures whether its sport teams, activity groups, or even friends with common interests or hobbies. I am in a subculture because of the basketball team. We do our own thing separate from every other team and have our own activities such as team bonding.
-personally, I favor cultural relativism even though sometimes I may think ethnocentrically. My family and I have traveled to many places together such as Mexico, Jamaica, Italy, Greece, France, Turkey, and Germany and several other places. The first time visiting a country, its normal for a person to go through culture shock, it takes time to get used to other cultures that are not a part of our everyday lives. But by being open to these other cultures, it can teach us a lot and it is extremely interesting watching how other people behave in certain situations.
ReplyDelete-there are many different subcultures that I am a part of. For example, being an iha girl is a subculture. But I think the biggest subculture that I am a part of is being a dancer. I think that my group is a subculture just the same way that any sports player would say about their sport. I feel like it’s something that no one understands unless they are a part of it. I hear a lot that dance is not considered a sport but I know that I put in just as much, if not more time rehearsing and training than some other sport’s teams do and I also compete just as they play games and race in tournaments.
I definitely try to favor cultural relativism. I think it is important for a well rounded individual to be open to other cultures and beliefs. As in regards to ethnocentrism I feel as though we all experience a little bit whether we chose to or not. For example, I don't necessarily look down on cultures that have arranged marriages but I am very grateful that my culture allows me to chose whom I would like to marry. To me I feel as though those other cultures should not force people to marry who they do not want to.
ReplyDeleteWe are all apart of many subcultures. Be apart of IHA is a subculture, and within that subcultures we have others...such as clubs, sports, etc. Being apart of the Catholic Church is also a subculture. But i think i play the biggest role in the subculture of my heritage. Being Italian comes along with many titles, some good, some bad. When you're apart of an Italian family you are constantly surrounded by loud people and great food. We have our own special traditions but we do incorporate the mainstream culture to our everyday life. Futbol is a very big sport in Italy, it is the most watched sport in all of my cousins households; but this doesn't mean that we don't watch American Football which plays a huge role in the mainstream culture. My family watches Football, Baseball and other American sports religiously. Just because I am involved in a major subculture does not necessarily mean i disregard the mainstream.
1. Do you favor ethnocentrism or cultural relativism? Explain your position.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I favor cultural relativism over ethnocentrism because I try to be accepting of other cultures not just my own. I feel that it is very important to follow this because just as I want others to respect me and what i follow and believe in, I most definitely have to do the same to them. It is better not to judge other cultures especially if you don't know why they practice what they do, and to accept them all for who they are and what they believe.
3. Are you a member of any subcultures? Which one(s)? Why do you think that your group is a subculture? What is your group's relationship to the mainstream culture?
I believe I am a member of a few subcultures. I am a member of the IHA community, for one. This is a subculture because we're not exactly like everyone else, we as a community believe in certain things and choose to follow a personal set of morals that some people and groups don't have. The majority of us support and follow a catholic faith and life style, we also devout a major portion of our IHA careers to service and helping others. We are different from other subcultures such as public schools because they do not follow either of these things the way that us IHA girls do. We strive for excellence. most of society wouldn't find these attributes necessary for a high school girl but we do not change who we are to support other mainstream cultures. we march to the beat of our own drum.