Jenna Schiffman Reading Response 1 Anthro 104 The Nacirema s way of life is very intriguing to me They rituals seem a little strange to me because I have never participated in anything like it before I would love to go and learn more about it though I want to know their way of life because I think it is super amazing how different it is form ours I also thought it was interesting how each person s time in the shrine is very secret and personal I have read about different cultures where it is more of a family activity instead of so individual so that was interesting to me I thought the charm box was remarkably interesting They never get rid of any of the charms they put them in the charm box in the family shrine when they have served their purpose The charm box is either full or overflowing a lot of the time because they believe they will all protect the worshipper I also thought it was interesting how everyday each family member had to bring in holy water and mingle it in the font written on the box I found their fascination with the mouth intriguing I was wondering where they go their ideals from because it seems to have such an impact on their culture and community I think Miner wrote this article to show us this different culture and how it works A lot of people just dismiss other cultures because they are strange or different and they place themselves above these people in the different cultures Miner wanted to show us how these people lived to show us yes they live differently but it is their way of life and it works for them To them our way of life is totally strange You can t place yourself above others because you think your way of life is the right one Everyone has their own beliefs and own way of doing things We get the same stuff done they just take a different path in getting there and I believe that is what Miner was trying to show us If an anthropologist wrote this article today I feel like there would be more comparisons to our modern day technology and they might question these people s culture a little more I think as an anthropologist they would try to understand the culture more but I think there would be more comparisons to our culture Their beliefs are so vastly different from most peoples so I feel like people would be less likely to try and understand them and be quicker to judge People today might place themselves above the Nacirema more quickly even though I believe the anthropologist would try to understand rather than judge I think this article connected to some of the ideals discussed in chapter three of the textbook One of chapter three s main focuses was ethnography Ethnography is analyzing how different human societies work Miner really took a dive into the Nacirema society and analyzed how it worked and how the people within it interacted with their culture and each other To me ethnography is studying these different cultures with an open mind The textbook talked about this and how just because a culture is different from our own doesn t mean it is wrong Miner did this very well because instead of judging the different culture he was fascinated by it Chapter three in the textbook talked a lot about how there are so many different cultures in the world that anthropologists get to explore with an open mind One big part of my individual culture is agriculture I strongly believe it is part of our duty on this planet to give back A lot of people take agriculture for granted because they do not realize the impacts it has on their life every day Part of my daily routine is to go to my friend s dairy farm and feed the calves and milk the cows It may not be a huge dairy but in a small way I am giving back to my community I also believe it is important to help others I try to volunteer whenever I can at the local and state fairs Here I am able to teach people about the importance of agriculture and how it impacts them My culture is agriculture