Ethnocentricsm - The paper analyzes why ethnocentrism persists in the world PDF

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The paper analyzes why ethnocentrism persists in the world...

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Running head: OVERCOMING ETHNOCENTRISM THROUGH ANTHROPOLOGY

Overcoming Ethnocentrism through Anthropology Student’s Name Institutional Affiliation

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OVERCOMING ETHNOCENTRISM THROUGH ANTHOPOLOGY

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Overcoming Ethnocentrism through Anthropology

Introduction

All human beings are ethnocentric, how could they not be? Wagner et al (2017) observe that most people think highly of themselves and have over-inflated pride. It becomes easy to notice and point out the weaknesses of others and quickly forget one’s own shortcomings. In essence with or without knowing, human beings practice ethnocentrism often as it is part and parcel of the psycho-sociological construct that shapes their existence (Wagner et al., 2017). The term and ideology of ethnocentrism was the brainchild of one William Graham Summer in 1906 who used it as reference to when a person or a group of people viewed themselves as the center of everything and hence everyone else is measured or scaled against them (Chakraborty, 2017) The implication was that the ethnocentric people view their culture, ways, traditions, nations, education, and even language superior to people’s.

Chakraborty (2017) point out that Ethnocentrism has been largely interpreted in negative context as it seeks to divide people into broad categories of ‘us’ against ‘them.’ It promotes rivalry and fills the perceiver with a false sense of pride and superiority complex and as a result of some societal negative vices such as racism, negative ethnicity, religious intolerance, and even numerous human rights violation. The dilemma for many scholars and leaders is how to deal with ethnocentrism and consequently reduce its negative impact in the society ("Cultural Relativism and the Savage: Find articles, e-books in one search," n.d.). One of the most proposed methods of ethnocentrism is through the study of anthropology. Using three examples, this essay will examine how anthropology can counter ethnocentrism ideologies in a bid to reconcile the humanity and equality.

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Anthropology can be defined as the study of human culture, behavior, and patterns across the world. In a brief overview, anthropology will cover human adaptation to his environment, evolution, biological features, and social aspects of the culture, linguistics, and even religion (Fish, 2000). Anthropology will seek to connect human beings and their societies and also study the factors that differentiate them. Fish (2000) states that anthropology explores the various disciplines of science, history, sociology, and challenges to better understand the human race. The very same aspects that ethnocentrism impact negatively on, anthropology makes a deep interrogation and come up with critical answers that can help the society understand them. The term ethnocentrism birthed other associated ideologies of superiority such as Eurocentrism, Anglocentrism, and Americentrism. These respective terms elevated the western nations’ culture and status and judged the other nations from their lenses. Anthropology uses cultural relativism to respond and refute western-centrism. According to Jarvie (2015), cultural relativism supports and acknowledge the diversity of beliefs, values, and systems of different cultures. No particular culture is superior to another and therefore people are to be judged according to their cultural context and not subjected to another’s culture’s evaluative criteria (Jarvie, 2015). Historical events like colonization and the modern economic powers of some western nations led many to believe in the superiority of the western culture as opposed to their own. The perception of the superiority of western cultures has attracted many immigrants to these nations as they seek for what they deem as ‘better life.’ Through cultural relativism in most areas, people can be able to understand and accept their own cultural worth.

The second ethnocentrism ideology is that of racism which is deeply rooted in the society and promotes the idea that other races are superior to others. Racism has often been exploited by many people to propagate injustice and social inequalities to those they perceive inferior to them.

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The white supremacists in America justified the segregation laws and minority ill treatments (Fish, 2012). They relied on pseudoscientific theories and scientific racism studies to convince others that white race was superior and was to rule over other races. Hitler used the same concept to rank the German people as the most superior race while the Jews were referred to as “predominantly apes.” Though major positive steps have been taken to improve racial interactions, racism is still highly institutionalized across the world.

Anthropology takes an interesting approach to racism which can be helpful in solving racial prejudice with regards to ethnocentrism. Wagner et al (2017) point out that anthropologists are divided on the subject of races. The ‘squatters’ deny the biological significance of race, the ‘shifters’ acknowledge the social reality of race but deny its biological significance and finally, the “straddlers acknowledge the biological relevance of race and its sociocultural concepts. Mukhopadhyay et al (2013) point out that the argument of the biological reality of race is not important in this case. The focus is that the history of human race is complex due to the mixtures of the human gene pool as a result of evolution and hence there is no pure race. Just like everything else, races are evolutionary hence not permanent. Mukhopadhyay et al (2013) note that race should not be a part of human biology but rather it’s a part of human culture which makes people be able to change it, redefine it, and eradicate it all together. If the arguments of the anthropologists are taken into serious consideration, there would be good chances of rooting out racism and minimizing racial inequalities in the society.

Another ethnocentric inspired concept which can be resolved through the lens of anthropology is religious superiority. While religion is applauded for its positive impact on humanity such as the moralistic shaping of behavior and characters, it is also dreaded for its venture into extremism.

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Banton (2013) observes that religious intolerance and extremism is bred by the conviction that all other religions are false except one’s religion. This intolerance has been witnessed in the society across different historical periods. In the Reformation period, the papal system and the Catholic Church was faulted for the deaths of millions of non-Catholics (Protestants, Jews, Muslims, scientists). The modern global terrorism and terrorist activities since 9/11 have put Islam extremism and religious intolerance in the spotlight.

If religions were hence filtered through the lenses of anthropology, there would be no need for religious intolerance. According to Banton (2013), anthropology does not concern itself with which religion is true and which is not. The universal theory of religion by Geertz presented religion as a cultural system that helps people make sense out of life and guide their behavior. The focus of religious anthropology is to examine how different religious leaders (shamans, priests, prophets, and spirits) can carry out rituals that unite people in the face of crisis. In light of anthropology, no single religion is wrong or right, they all serve a unified purpose of shaping the societal morals and allow people express their cosmology. If different religions subscribed to this perspective, religion and religious people would champion the course of peaceful coexistence and tolerance.

On the flip side, Christopher & Hickinbottom (2008) observe the positive aspect of ethnocentrism from a functionalist perspective with regards to performance and competition. During the segregation period in the US, the racial ethnocentrism enabled competition and performance among students of different races who attended the same school. As expected, students took the challenge seriously and did not want their race to be portrayed as the weaker or inferior (Christopher & Hickinbottom, 2008). From the outlook, the practice looked racial in

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nature but in reality, individual student’s performance improved as a result of not wanting to lose.

Conclusion

Anthropology allows for an in-depth exploration of human existence and hence is able to judge things from an objective person. On the other hand, ethnocentrism is considered shallow, presumptive, and not factual. It is therefore understandable that anthropology is ideal to counter ethnocentrism ideologies.

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References

Fish, J. M. (2000). What anthropology can do for psychology: Facing physics envy, ethnocentrism,

and a belief in" race". American Anthropologist, 102(3), 552-563.

Wagner, J. K., Yu, J. H., Ifekwunigwe, J. O., Harrell, T. M., Bamshad, M. J., & Royal, C. D. (2017). Anthropologists' views on race, ancestry, and genetics. American journal of physical anthropology, 162(2), 318-327.

Mukhopadhyay, C. C., Henze, R., & Moses, Y. T. (2013). How real is race?: a sourcebook on race,

culture,

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biology.

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Littlefield.

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http://eds.a.ebscohost.com/eds/detail/detail?vid=0&sid=69118663-0291-47b3-ba03befedbf8e8a6%40sessionmgr4010&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmU%3d#AN=edsjsr. 20440455&db=edsjsr

Cultural Relativism and the Savage.: Find articles, e-books in one search. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://eds.a.ebscohost.com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=1&sid=c45e7a52-6655-4dbf98e9-016b6aca4cc5%40sessionmgr4010

Jarvie, I. C. (2015). Rationality and relativism: In search of a philosophy and history of anthropology. Routledge.

Christopher, J. C., & Hickinbottom, S. (2008). Positive psychology, ethnocentrism, and the disguised ideology of individualism. Theory & psychology, 18(5), 563-589.

Banton, M. (2013). Anthropological approaches to the study of religion. Routledge.

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Defination of Ethnocentricsm Pg 58 Chakraborty, R. (2017). A Short note on Accent–bias, Social Identity and Ethnocentrism. Advances in Language and Literary Studies, 8(4), 57-64....