The Sensitivity of Culture and Ethnicity

“What would it be like to have not only color vision but culture vision, the ability to see the multiple worlds of others?” Bateson( 1995, P.53)

 

To understand different cultures, one must get out of their judgmental lens and examine the world through unbiased lens. Culture is drawn from a number of human possibilities. It is dynamic and like a human being has its own personality. An anthropologist by the name of Benedict, disputes the norm of racial purity comparing the notion of Western culture being “superior” to other cultures as similar to that of the native American view of themselves in comparison to others.

 

The best culture according to her is one that unites its people recognizing different values which may develop into a different culture. Culture is fashioned through daily living, mating, worshipping and even warring. According to Benjamin, custom is shaped by behavior as opposed to custom shaping our behavior.

 

A person’s cultural background refers to one’s ethnicity but is also profoundly influenced by social class, religion, migration, geography, gender oppression, racism, sexual orientation and family dynamics.These factors influence people’s social location in various societies.

 

The same factors also affect people’s access to resources, their inclusion in dominant definitions of “belonging” and the extent to which they will be privileged or oppressed within the larger society. The same factors also influence how family members relate to their cultural heritage, to others of their cultural heritage, to others of their cultural group and to preserving cultural traditions.

Read more: http://socyberty.com/ethnicity/the-sensitivity-of-culture-and-ethnicity/#ixzz11q7a3BK6