Ethnography is typically defined as research designed to explore cultural phenomenon that take place in another part of society or even the world. This requires a researcher to analyze similarities and differences between cultures through a perspective that is not judgmental, but more so open to new concepts that aren’t necessarily normal to their own culture. For my research, I decided to interview a friend of mine who is culturally different when compared to myself. Before beginning my interview I created a hypothesis, which I hoped to prove through my findings. Initially, I believed that most children, who are raised within a specific’s culture influence, tend to absorb the lifestyle and mindsets of their parents. Almost similar to the quote “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.” By growing up within a specific culture’s influence, a child will grasp what they learned from their parents and apply it to their own lives. My good friend Ben is a young man who was born in Washington D.C. His parents, both Conservative Jews from Israel, immediately began raising him in a strict religious environment. Many aspects of his life were influenced by his family’s religious views without him even knowing it. One aspect of his youth that he grew particularly fond of was the food that his parents fed him. After much confusion about what Jews typically eat, he explained to me the concept of “Kashrut.” Within the culture, it is known as the body of Jewish law that deals with what foods they can and cannot eat and how those foods must be prepared and eaten. "Kashrut" comes from the Hebrew root “Kaf-Shin-Reish”, which means proper or correct, but is more commonly known as "kosher." It generally describes foods that meet specific standard... ... middle of paper ... ...ion to details.” Unfortunately, I’ve come to find the downside of this as well, as it has made me a perfectionist and forces me to take much longer than others when it comes to my work. On the other hand, I’ve also found that my work is of a much greater quality because of it. Convincingly enough, my interview with Ben showed me that in this case, my hypothesis was proven. Although our parents reside from much different backgrounds, we both have values instilled within us that we continuously live our lives by. Ben’s parents have influenced his life in a very religious way while my mother imposed her German ideals that strongly revolved around education and law. With this, I’ve come to find that it does not matter how similar or dissimilar two cultures may be, when it all boils down, we do not only inherit traits from our parents physically, but culturally as well.
In Essentials of Cultural Anthropology, the book defines ethnography as “a written account of how a single human population lives” (Bailey & Peoples, 2014, p. 8). It seems to be such a simple definition to the multiple levels needed to make a successful ethnography as shown by Douglas Raybeck in Mad Dogs, Englishmen, and the Errant Anthropologist. These multiple levels of ethnographic methods include problems that often arise, the assimilation into a culture, and the many different ways of perceiving culture. This method of study is particularly unique to the social sciences because of the extensive amount of assimilation one does in order to interpret a society's culture. There is the need for a year-long period--occasionally even longer--
According to the broadest definition, there are approximately 9 million Jewish adults in America. Of those, 5.3 million are Jewish because they practice the Jewish religion or who have a Jewish parent and consider themselves Jewish. Non-hispanic blacks make up 2% of that population. (A Portrait of Jewish Americans) Blacks constitute such a small percentage of the Jewish population that they are often considered to be obviously “not Jewish”. This was the experience of Rabbi Shlomo ben Levy.In an article entitled, “Who are we? Where did we come from? How many of us are there?”, Rabbi Levy describes his feelings of marginalization triggered by an advertisement for Levy’s Jewish Rye. The advertisement features a black boy eating a sandwich and the caption “You don’t have to be Jewish to love Levy’s”. The idea was to present a child who was clearly not Jewish enjoying Jewish bread but for Rabbi Levy who is both black and Jewish it was yet another message that denied his existence. (Who are we?)
One Day, after my teacher had taken us to Mount Allison to see Fiddler On The Roof, I sat at the supper table and calmly announced my intention to covert to Judaism. I caught the glance that passed between my parents and was perceptive enough to understand what it meant. "Yeah, right." But my parents are supportive and told me that it was my decision and that they had never forced any particular beliefs onto us and they were not going to start now. So I marched to my room and got out the dictionary. Kosher (ko’shc r), adj. 1. Judaism 2. Fit or allowed to be eaten or used, according to the dietary or ceremonial laws.
Primarily, the restrictions placed on the consumption of certain types of meat, a limitation that continues in rules for maintaining a Jewish kosher home, relates directly to what is viewed as the rules for the holy people of God. The people of God, then, are expected to recognize that “God is to be obeyed, concluding that circumcision and the prescriptions of Mosaic law are still obligatory” (1).
I attended a Sunday Morning service at Old Westbury Hebrew Congregation. The Rabbi mostly spoke about Purim, popularly known as the "Jewish Mardi Gras". Purim is a holiday that celebrates a time when the Jews were saved from extermination in where. (insert story) For my research, I examine two religious specialists and the Jewish mindset and embodied values. I then applied the research of to further interpret my data. My data was gathered from observation, interviews and postings from the Rabbi 's blog "Getting Real with the Rabbi".
Ethnography is a research method used to explore different cultures from a personal view. Many anthropologists have sought to use ethnography as their main study method because of its specificity and opportunity to get hands on. Those that participate in ethnographies are expected to accurately record detailed accounts of the society in which they are staying, but at the same time maintain a critical distance.
“At a time when people are seeking to become more culturally aware it is important to note distinctions which make cultures different and unique from one another” (Giger, 2013, p. 163). “Culture involves much more than race, ethnic background, and language” (Smith, 2013, p. 32). Culture is a combination of learned behaviors, beliefs, and values that are reinforced through exposure to social interactions within one’s immediate social group or surrounding society. A personal interview was conducted with Andrea Sinkler, is an African-American female, whose culture influence is mainly attributed from her association with family and social interactions.
“Ethnocentrism, the notion that the beliefs, values, norms, and practices of one’s own culture are superior to those of others” accompanied with the aforementioned expectation creates a recipe for disaster when faced with interacting with different cultures (Lustig & Koester, p. 150,????). Recognizing that there exist differences among cultures and that no one way is the only way provides an opportunity to understand the problem before you and how to rectify
Not only this, but anthropologists will also employ Ethnography, writing down a description and analysis, based upon the fieldwork. This helps keep a record of what was learned, while also keeping the culture being studied under its own viewpoint. These factors help impact the analysis of a culture, while still being observed under a cultural relativism outlook.
I was born and raised in Tallahassee, Florida. My mother was born in Taiwan and moved to the United States to continue her education when she was in her mid- twenties. My father is from Fort Walton Beach, Florida. My parents have different cultures, and as a result they have completely different backgrounds. When I was growing up, I had a hard time reconciling these different cultures. It was difficult for me and my sister to know what to do in many social situations because our primary schema (our parents) would act completely different in similar social situations. When I would ask my parents for advice, they would give me contrasting suggestions. As I grew older, I started to realize that both my parents were right, even if they acted like opposites.
James P. Spradley (1979) described the insider approach to understanding culture as "a quiet revolution" among the social sciences (p. iii). Cultural anthropologists, however, have long emphasized the importance of the ethnographic method, an approach to understanding a different culture through participation, observation, the use of key informants, and interviews. Cultural anthropologists have employed the ethnographic method in an attempt to surmount several formidable cultural questions: How can one understand another's culture? How can culture be qualitatively and quantitatively assessed? What aspects of a culture make it unique and which connect it to other cultures? If ethnographies can provide answers to these difficult questions, then Spradley has correctly identified this method as revolutionary.
“Certainly, the world without the Jews would have been a radically different place. Humanity might have eventually stumbled upon all the Jewish insights. But we cannot be sure. All the great conceptual discoveries of the human intellect seem obvious and inescapable once they had been revealed, but it requires a special genius to formulate them for the first time. The Jews had this gift. To them we owe the idea of equality before the law, both divine and human; of the sanctity of life and the dignity of human person; of the individual conscience and so a personal redemption; of collective conscience and so of social responsibility; of peace as an abstract ideal and love as the foundation of justice, and many other items which constitute the basic moral furniture of the human mind. Without Jews it might have been a much emptier place” (Paul Johnson).
It analyzes similarities and differences in various cultures and societies. Culture is learned and affects our perception of the world throughout our life. Overtime, a sense of cultural superiority is formed amongst individuals who are constantly exposed to their own culture. Anthropology can help eliminate culturally based biases, also known as ethnocentrism. It is a common practice we all in engage in when evaluating other cultures, however, by practicing anthropology this allows us to learn about other cultures by placing themselves into the cultural environment allows us to learn the traditions and customs by experience. Marjorie Shostak`s study of the !Kung people revealed that they organized themselves differently than Western cultures, which included solving conflicts with discussion, communal behavior, and basic living traditions. Moreover, by interviewing and living in this cultural environment, Shostak was able to empathize with the !Kung people and she also considered that all humans share an emotional life, which is important when studying the history of our human
When one encounters a culture that has little in common with own, one may experience culture shock. This is a sense of confusion, anxiety, stress and loss one may experience. One of the barriers in effective intercultural communication is ethnocentrism. It stems from a conviction that one’s own cultural traditions and assumptions are superior to those of others. It leads to a tendency to look the world primarily from the perspective of one's own culture. It is one of the fastest ways to create a barrier that inhibits, rather than enhances communication (Jandt, 2012).
Ethnocentrism and cultural relativism are two contrasting terms that are displayed by different people all over the world. Simply put, ethnocentrism is defined as “judging other groups from the perspective of one’s own cultural point of view.” Cultural relativism, on the other hand, is defined as “the view that all beliefs are equally valid and that truth itself is relative, depending on the situation, environment, and individual.” Each of these ideas has found its way into the minds of people worldwide. The difficult part is attempting to understand why an individual portrays one or the other. It is a question that anthropologists have been asking themselves for years.