Assignment task: Read the article "Body Rituals among the Nacirema" by Horace Miner (1956)
Answer the questions:
a) Who are the Nacirema?
b) What is the message of this satirical text? How is it connected to the concepts of "Ethnocentrism" and "Cultural Relativism"?
c) Miner's satirical piece is a good example of what Peter Berger calls "debunking." He debunks the ordinary, everyday cultural practices of Americans. Identify a different cultural practice and write ? paragraph in a similar fashion - as if you were looking at this practice as a complete outsider.
[One simple option is to choose a very ordinary, "normal" practice in your culture. Then detail the practice in "dry," technical manner and interpret it as an "exotic" ritual. This is just a suggestion. You may use your creativity here and do it in a different style/way].