American Culture

Read the additional articles for the chapter—especially the Nacirema example—before attempting this assignment. You may also find it helpful to revisit the excerpt in your textbook, “Cultural Diversity in the US – Culture Shock: The Arrival of the Hmong.” The Nacirema article can be found online at:
Body Ritual among the Nacirema 

Take an aspect of our culture and detail it much like the Nacirema example given in this week’s additional reading assignments. You may find it helpful to read the article on Key American Values to help you better understand which values and activities are unique to the US. Please note: You may find it helpful to pretend that you are a sociologist who has just stepped off a plane and into a new and exotic culture. Look at the cultural practices or traditions with a critical eye, as though you are seeing them for the first time. In the Nacirema example, Miner doesn’t say that people brush their teeth – he writes about a “ mouth rite” that “consists of inserting a small bundle of hog hairs into the mouth, along with certain magical powders, and then moving the bundle in a highly formalized series of “gestures.” Please have some fun with this! This should almost feel like a creative writing exercise.

This should be at least two full pages, double-spaced on paper with 1-inch margins and size 12 Times New Roman font.

Focus very specifically on one act that Americans do or one location that we use:
1. Examine anything and everything about the place or the action – what is involved?
2. Why do People do this?
3. Remember to use the type of technical terms that we often see in our text books. Talk about rituals, gestures, symbols, etc.
4. At the very end of your paper, provide a one sentence explanation of what you are talking about!