Nacirema (what does it spell backwards??)

11/10/09

http://oak.cats.ohiou.edu/~thompsoc/Body.html

Meyrwoitz once again, SPOTTED!!!
I read this article back in my junior year of High School. The assignment was to read the article and respond to the society being described. During my initial reading of the article I remember being completely clueless to the message. My reaction was one of horror. I could not understand the twisted society that the people of Nacirema lived in. We were not given any hints about the article (like I give in the title of this blog), but in case the title does not help, I will give you another clue, the society being described is one that we all know very well. The article stuck with me all these years. Well two years isn't that many, but the fact that I remembered it, when I have trouble remembering what I ate for breakfast, shows how interesting the article was and still is to me. It reminds me of Meyrowitz’s idea, borrowed from Erving Goffman, that each social situation has a set of specific rules for our behavior. This includes limits placed on individuals by society, much like the Nacirema article describes the process of women getting breast reductions or implants to meet the society’s standard of beauty. I find it interesting that when one begins to think about the amount of restrictions society places upon individuals, it becomes overwhelming. How many women pause and reflect that society controls how we look? We follow the latest fashions, no matter how uncomfortable they are! Men should try walking an entire day in the city with high heels on! Also our society places an unwritten rule of keeping itself reserved. In other societies, such as in England, sex is discussed openly, but in America it is kept hush hush. However, because we live in the American society, we do not view our customs as restraining. But we do acknowledge other restricting religious sects, such as when women are separated from men in temples. We point at those religions and are quick to distinguish its flaws, but fail to recognize our society’s social regulations