Spotlight on Students: Cultural Relativism/Ethnocentrism Assignment

This is the triumphant return of the Spotlight on Students series.  This edition features the work of my summer session students as they learn about the differences of cultural relativism and ethnocentrism.  They were given a scenario where a bride opted to wear a red, not white, wedding dress to her wedding held in an American venue, and they were to discuss the culturally relativistic and ethnocentric reactions to that situation.  This is some of their exemplary work:

By: Julian Emme

Cultural relativism and ethnocentrism are two different viewpoints in the world of anthropology. Ethnocentrism is the practice of viewing another culture based on what you know about your own culture and comparing the two. Ethnocentrism is not necessarily a bad thing but can lead to discrimination. Cultural Relativism is the idea that cultural practices make sense in their own culture and should not be viewed in the terms of any other culture but their own. They are similar, but cultural relativism is much more about a respect of all cultures (Fluehr-Labbon).

In the passage it is supposed that I attend a wedding, presumably in America. The bride is seen wearing a red dress. The parents of the groom are heard speaking about it. One parent is shocked she would go against American tradition and not wear white; the other explains that where she is from white is a color of sadness and this is a happy day for her so she wears another color. An ethnocentric response to seeing the bride in a red dress is what the first parent said: "In America the bride always wears white!" This is ethnocentric because instead of respecting the bride’s culture and trying to understand it he or she puts the bride’s actions in context of his or her own culture. When looked at in terms of American culture the bride’s actions may seem disrespectful to tradition and this may make the onlooker prejudiced towards the bride’s culture. This is why ethnocentrism is a dangerous viewpoint.

A culturally relativistic response to what the bride chose to wear is precisely what parent number two interjected. Explaining that in the bride’s culture white is a color that represents sadness and mourning so the bride choses red, a color that most likely represents happiness, because this is not a day of mourning for her. Understanding the bride’s actions based on who she is and where she comes from is a culturally relativistic viewpoint, which is one that spreads respect and understanding for the bride’s culture instead of disdain.

The difference between the two terms may seem slight, but in the grand scheme of things it is quite major. An ethnocentric view of things in small doses may seem harmless, but it promotes hateful thinking and makes people think their race or culture is superior to others. The ethnocentric view as aforementioned makes it seem like the brides beliefs are less valuable or important than traditional American beliefs, which is dangerous because it will cause people who are exposed to it to believe that American culture in general is superior. In history anytime one culture puts itself before another things end catastrophically. (Chapter 05) My reactions to the story are immediately and unfortunately somewhat ethnocentric. I thought: “Do brides usually wear white?” I am not thinking it is a bad thing she is in red but just that it is different. Upon finding out she is from a culture where white is a color of mourning I completely and totally understand and no longer think it is odd. I believe to those not educated in anthropology ethnocentrism is kind of a knee-jerk reaction, but through education and unity we can spread cultural relativism to be a more prominent way of thinking. 

Citations

"Chapter 05- Culture." . Paul Cheney, 1 Jan. 2009. Web. 3 June 2014. <http://freebooks.uvu.edu/SOC1010/index.php/05.html>.

Fluehr-Lobban, Carolyn. "Anthropologists, Cultural Relativism, and Universal Rights." . The Chronicle of Higher Education, 9 June 1995. Web. 3 June 2014. <http://home.sandiego.edu/~baber/gender/culturalrelativism.html>.


 By: Monica Kalmen

In this essay, I will be discussing how different cultures can be viewed from two different perspectives. Culture is a culmination of a society's beliefs, values, and customs that are expressed through religion, art, and the group's way of life. Ethnocentrism is a perspective of viewing differences among people from one's own standpoint and culture, whereas cultural relativism is a perspective of viewing differences among people with a different culture from a standpoint of understanding, realizing that those differences deserve respect (Gezon, Kottak 30). A bride wearing a red dress can be viewed by an observer in an ethnocentric way or with a viewpoint of cultural relativism.

From an ethnocentric view, a bride wearing a red dress might be thought of as racy, offensive, and defiant. Because American brides wear white to signify virginity, an observer who judges a bride by these standards will view a bride wearing a red dress as impure and unfit. The bride may be a virgin, but because she is being judged according to traditional American culture, she will not be thought of as a pure. An observer with an ethnocentric point of view makes false assumptions about others who practice different customs. Judging someone from one's own cultural standards can lead to false assumptions and the disrespect of other people's cultural norms. Observers with ethnocentric views believe their culture is superior to other cultures (Gezon, Kottak 30). Observers with these views will not consider to think that a red-dress-wearing bride will have a reasonable reason for going against American tradition. At best she will be viewed as careless, and, at worst, savage. According to Gezon and Kottak, people with an ethnocentric view see their culture as "right, proper, and moral," and will consequently see other cultures as wrong (30). A bride wearing a red dress is wrong, even if wearing a red dress in the bride's culture is the same as wearing a white wedding dress in American culture. Those with ethnocentric views do not care what the bride's reasons are because it is their own culture's customs that matter to them and are seen as right and correct.

People with cultural relativistic views are likely to understand that a bride from a different culture wearing a red dress to her wedding has reasons for doing so that are valuable to her, and her decision should be respected. Cultural relativism is a viewpoint that behavior from one culture is not to be "judged by the standards of another culture" (Gezon, Kottak 30). People with this viewpoint will not automatically assume the bride is not a virgin because she is not wearing a white wedding dress. They are also not likely to be offended by the behavior because they are not judging it by their own standards. According to Gezon and Kottak, people with cultural relativistic views do not see their culture as superior to any other culture (30). They recognize that the bride has a valid reason for wearing a red dress and is to be treated like any other bride. Someone observing the red-dress-wearing bride with cultural relativism is open to the idea that perhaps the bride is wearing a red dress because it is a happy event, or because she is in love, or because brides in her culture traditionally wear red. Whatever the case may be, cultural relativism respects differences among cultures and considers them equal.

Personally, if I saw a bride wearing a red dress at a wedding, my automatic first thought would be that of confusion. Because red is so different than white, I would be a little shocked upon seeing something so different than what I am use to seeing. Upon reflection, I would try to gather information to explain the reason behind the bride wearing a red dress. If I were to come to the conclusion that the bride is not from American culture, then I would start to understand that she may have a reason for wearing a red dress on her wedding day. I would then understand that she is not merely shrugging off American tradition, but practicing her own culture, which is just as valid as mine.

Works Cited

Gezon, Lisa, and Conrad Kottak. Cultural Anthropolgy. Reno: McGraw-Hill Education, 2014. Print.

By: Samantha Noose

The United States has several traditions that belong to the American culture. For American weddings, in particular, the cultural traditions include a wedding cake with many tiers, a first kiss and dance as husband and wife, a special friend or family member chosen to represent the bride and one for the groom, and the bride being clothed in a fancy white dress to symbolize purity. The United States is known for its immigration and variety of ethnicities among its citizens, so despite its American traditions, this country is home to many different cultural values and traditions. For example, a bride whom was raised in another culture, different from typical American culture, may wear a red dress because in her culture red may represent happiness and purity, whereas white may symbolize something entirely different, such as in this particular scenario. For the mother to place judgment on the bride based on her own life experience in her American culture is very ethnocentric of her, and she is a good example of a person who needs to expand their outlook on life by learning more about other cultures and their reasoning for their own traditions before the judges them.

            Ethnocentrism is defined as “the tendency to view one’s own culture as best and to judge the behavior and beliefs of culturally different people by one’s own standards” (Gezon and Kottak, 30). On the other hand, the definition of cultural relativism is “the position that the values and standards of cultures differ and deserve respect” (Gezon and Kottak, 30). The difference between these two different views is that ethnocentrism would most likely be the view of someone who has either been raised to strongly believe that their traditions and cultural values are the only right ones in the world, or maybe by someone who has had little to no exposure to other cultures and how they go about their everyday lives. Cultural relativism is something that people can feel in order to try to relate to or understand another culture, even if they believe that that particular culture’s traditions are strange and are completely unlike their own. For example, in the textbook, Culture, a scenario is given where a certain culture eats grasshoppers. As Americans, we may find this to be strange, think that people who eat grasshoppers are repulsive, and not give a second thought to it. This would be an ethnocentric view. On the other hand, if an American were to view this photo and think that it may be a good source of food for another culture because they may not have the same meats that we do then that would be a culturally relativistic view (Gezon and Kottak, 30).

            In this particular scenario of the bride wearing red at her wedding rather than white, an ethnocentric view would be that of the mother in the situation. She believes that it is a bad thing for the bride to be wearing red; she should be wearing white, regardless of her culture, because she is living in the United States. Many other people raised in the typical American culture may think the same type of thing about this situation. They may believe that the American groom should not marry this woman of a different culture because she is disrespecting the culture of the country that she is living in, that she needs to change her beliefs and customs in order to fit with the norms of the United States, or go back to the country where she or her family came from where she learned that wearing red as a bride is best. Many Americans may also believe that this woman must not be “pure” since the symbolism behind the white dress in America is typically “purity.” There are several different stereotypes or false accusations that someone with an ethnocentric view that does not have a good understanding of the bride’s culture could place upon her.

            Someone with a more culturally relativistic view on the bride’s actions, however, may think that it is good that she is keeping up with the traditions of her culture, especially if that person tries to understand her culture’s own symbolism of the red dress worn by brides at their weddings. To the bride, red rather than white may be the symbol of happiness and purity. So to her, wearing white would symbolize something entirely different, and she may feel like it could bring bad luck to her marriage or it may make her unhappy. The more culturally relativistic view may focus on the fact that her culture is one of many that resides in the United States and that those traditions deserve equal respect to any other culture.

            Personally, I felt a bit of ethnocentrism and cultural relativism when I first read over this scenario. I was ethnocentric in that I would personally have chosen a white wedding dress over a red one because of the culture that I have been raised in, and at first I did not understand why the bride would be wearing a red one. The cultural relativism came into play when I learned the symbolism for the red dress, and then I understood her reasoning. I would not place judgment on the bride for her actions. After all, it is her wedding, and the only other person whose view really matters is her soon-to-be-husband’s, as he is the one who would be marrying her. Clearly, if he is still willing to go through with the wedding without problems, then he has already taken a more culturally relativistic view by accepting her culture and marrying her, even if her traditions are not the same as the ones he has been raised with.

            Overall, it is a perfectly natural reaction for a person to take an ethnocentric view on a situation that is outside the culture that he or she belongs to. It would be beneficial for many people, however, especially in America, to try to look past those views and try to understand people of other cultures as this helps not only with travel but in everyday life. The United States is home to many different cultures, not just American culture. Each one deserves respect, and just because a person does not agree with a certain tradition does not mean that he or she cannot respect it. Learning cultural relativism and cultural awareness can help to expand a person’s worldview and be beneficial to any individual, regardless of their own beliefs.

Works Cited

Gezon, Lisa L., and Conrad Phillip. Kottak. Culture. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, 2014.  Print.