Revisiting the Nacirema

Name: Scott Gallagher

Instructor: Suzannah Moran

Course: ANT 201-01

Date: January 14, 2017

Revisiting the Nacirema

        When I was a child, I was fascinated by Horace Miner’s work in trying to uncover the day to day rituals of a group of people living in North America, called the Nacirema. In his book, “Body Ritual among the Nacirema” Mr. Miner a leading anthropologist in the field gave us a remarkable look at this unique group of people, at the mid-point of the twentieth century. However, now that we are well into twenty-first century I strongly feel that this exotic group of people needs to be revisited, in order to see how their society has progressed. In particular, I plan to focus on the Nacireman society’s then burgeoning dependence on technology and assess how it has grown. By exploring how the Nacirema people have used their rapid advancement in technology to cope with the challenges of a new century we can form a fairly accurate picture of the future for this fascinating group of people.

        The most interesting change is the proliferation of small rectangular devices that seem to be attached in a permanent way to every man, woman, and child of the Nacireman people. This phenomenon is so pronounced that actual psychological treatment is necessary for those Naciremans who experience withdraw from being separated from their device. In addition, the most telling effect that these devices produce is that very rarely do Naciremans physically communicate through actual speech to one another. For example, during my research I observed on numerous occasions how a room full of Naciremans were able to spend hours together in complete silence, except of course for the chatter of key strokes and prompts from their devices. Furthermore, this adaptation of the Naciremans has become so ingrained that in many cases the bond between Nacireman and device has proven to be fatal. Thankfully, I observed awareness of this danger through another of their innovations, one that reproduces images and sounds, which warned Naciremans of engaging their devices and of operating a vehicle, simultaneously.

        In conclusion, the role of anthropology is not to pass judgment on the Nacireman’s decision to enhance their lives through technology, at the cost of isolating themselves from one another. We should only use the example of this truly unique people as a means of bettering our own society. By gathering an informed understanding of how the Nacireman people decided to solve the problems of this new century we have the opportunity to become aware of what our future could be. Finally, one can only hope that the Nacireman people can weather their age of technology, so that one day in the future another anthropologist can report that their unusual society does still exist and that it is thriving.

Nacirema Assignment

After reading Chapter 1 in your textbook, review the essay The Nacirema adapted from Horace Miner’s Body Ritual among the Nacirema.  The Nacirema essay describes American culture (of the mid-twentieth century) from the perspective of an observant outsider.  Familiar beliefs and practices related to the bathroom, dentist and hospital as well as disease, decay and death are described in a way that makes them seem strange and alien.

Now write your own brief original essay in the style of Miner’s Nacirema essay. As with Miner's original essay, you should write from the perspective of an outsider who is observing and attempting to record some of the beliefs and cultural practices of the American population. You CAN make unconventional interpretations of the culture as long as you can support them - the way Miner supports his discussion of our obsession with healing charms and holy-mouth-men.

Post your approximately 200-word Nacirema style essay on Moodle by clicking on the green speech bubble with the plus sign associated with this assignment and then replying to the prompt that appears. After posting your essay, (and after the 15-minute editing period has expired) you will be able to read the Nacirema essays of your classmates. Post constructive feedback on at least two of your classmates' Nacirema essays. (You will not be able to see your classmates’ essays prior to posting your own essay and waiting 15 minutes).

Replies:

Youth gods

Middle aged women can be strange creatures as they age.  Many women have a match with destiny when it comes to pursuing their youthfulness.  They worship “Youth gods” that they have studied and watched from their televisions and papers that are circulated in different stores.  They will go to extremes to make their looks appealing to others.  The routines become longer and more complex with age.  Every six weeks they will go and have their scalp doused with chemicals that smell like a pet store and their faces poked and prodded with sharp tools that pluck at their skin, just to enhance their beauty.   Some will even have their own oven at home, where they can crawl in and lock the door to bake their skin for a healthy glow.  It even has a timer on it to tell them when they are done!  Their teeth resemble pearls from all the heavy paste and chemicals that were applied.  These are thought of as maintenance regimens that are needed and practiced by most.  Many of the women believe that in doing these practices, their youth is recaptured and brought to life again.  They have even believed that without having these rituals in practice, they would turn into a witch and be banned from their families and communities forever.  So from this point on, women continue to paint their faces with all kinds of colorful mediums and embrace the many office visits to pull at their scalp, rip at their nails and paint their skin; all in the name of their “Youth gods.”