An Effective Method Of Expanding Your World View

Stearns, Peter N. et al. World Civilizations: The Global Experience, Third Edition. New York: Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers, Inc., Longman, 2003.

For you and I this type of adventure could sound scary and intimidating, however, through Chagnons writing we quickly are able to understand his groundwork and excitement when preparing to study another lifestyle and culture. Yet, we quickly learn that there is no amount of preparation that can prepare someone for the ‘culture shock’ they are about to embark. He discusses

According to studies performed by Puncky Heppner, a professor at the University of Missouri, learning about other cultures positively affects communication with others. Although it is important for one to understand his or her own culture, it is equally as important for one to stay informed about other cultures. In the speech “Language and Literature from a Pueblo Indian Perspective,” Silko compares and contrasts the cultures of the Pueblo Indians to the cultures of those in the audience. In this reminiscently informative speech, Silkoś credibility, examples, and diction help her to introduce the way of life of the Pueblos to an audience who is not familiar with their traditions.

Going outside of one’s own culture can be very eye-opening to a person. Although it is sometimes difficult to see through the perspective of someone else, it is vital in being able to communicate with people around the world. I have taken two mission trips to Kenya, Africa during the summer with my church group. Because of this trip, I became more aware of the differences there were in culture and just how many cultures I was missing out on. I believe that all cultures should become more aware of at least one other culture to compare and contrast the two because each culture could learn something from another. I have found the most important characteristics of this culture and would like to share the interests that this culture has brought to my attention.

1.To improve my understanding of different cultures I could study them on the Internet or in person through experience such as travel and I can also engage in events and local groups that celebrate different cultures such as multicultural gatherings and festivals.

At first one, Point of View, I learned some beliefs and customs of different cultures. For example, although we believe that the earth revolves around the sun, some cultures believe that the sun revolves around the earth. They have actual facts to back up these beliefs, and it is easy to see that both points are valid. The next exhibit was called ?Health?. Here I played a genetics game that told me that some of my own physical characteristics are very common among people and how some of them are unique only to me. Next I visited ?One Race.? Here I learned how little of a person?s genetic makeup actually decides skin color. I found it interesting how just a little something on the inside makes such a great change on the outside. The last exhibit of the gallery was called ?Prejudices.? Here I saw a model of a slave ship and I was able to stand inside a box the same size as that of which slaves traveled in on boats. It was a very unusual experience for me.

Unfortunately, many Americans don’t have that many opportunities for international travel—to quote J. Douglas Jr., “whatever evil war brings in its train, it has value in teaching us [Americans] geography.” (Douglas.) As a consequence, pop culture and media are the only real exposure to other cultures and places that some people have. Generally, these sources embellish and deemphasize certain features to the point where one’s experience living in the country might be completely different from the perception given. However, geography is—or, at the very least, should—inform on other countries from a completely factual and objective standpoint, which allows one to increase her worldview. Few will dispute the importance of understanding other cultures and expanding one’s

Moreover, we are all deemed to live in a fast-pace and constantly advancing world, which bring the idea of global study to the front of spotlight. On my path of exploring Japan and Rome through studying Japanese

By the time I started the first grade of school, my interest of our past had already sprouted enough to be easily cultivated by teachers and docents on school field trips to museums and local historical sites. These enthusiastic journeys were shaping my personality to learn more about different cultures.

Many Anthropologists explore the idea of becoming culturally conscious by discussing possible ways to view other cultures. For Ruth Benedict, viewing a culture is seeing the world through a lense. For Carol Delaney, it is seeing that there is a commonality between cultures, in this sense it is the idea of initiation rituals. For Susan Harding, being able to view a culture revolves around being open to being affected by culture. From these Anthropologist’s works, I found ways and examples in which I have noticed differences or similarities between cultures, and how I have become more culturally conscious based on their ideas of how one becomes culturally conscious.

The word “culture” can often be mistaken as geographical ways of living such as food, clothing, etc. However, culture is not only ways of living in different places, it is valuable practices that are passed on for years and years in a civilization. Language, government, morals, knowledge, religion, and food are all different components of one’s culture. Different cultures can be found in places ranging from large communities, to families, to the inner self of a person. In One World: A Global Anthology of Short Stories, many of the short stories, including “Among Strangers”, “Growing My Hair Again” and “The Third and Final Continent” exemplify the importance of culture.

I enjoyed reading your post. You wrote: “Our worldview opens up ways of seeing, and it points our attention toward certain things; our worldview also blinds us and limits our understanding and appreciation of certain things.” I like your use of “blinds us and limits our understanding...”, I did not think about that when I first read the text, but agree with you that our worldview can constrain views as well.

Peter Alfandary: The myth of globalization, in his video, Peter presents a case as to why there is a need to learn about other cultures. He notes that there is a tendency for people to assume because they share a common language or live in the same part of the world that they understand each other’s cultures. However, he illustrates how misplaced this belief is by proving that people may live

The Immersion experience I chose to attend was a cultural seminar located at the family resource center on campus. Right off the bat, I was disappointed with the seminar. I was disappointed because the ad for the event said there would three to five speakers who would discuss their culture from their country of origin and when I showed up there was only two speakers present. Also, I was under the impression that the presentation style was going to be an interactive discussion between the speakers but it was more of a slideshow presentation. Despite the immediate disappointment, I was still eager to hear what the two speakers had to say about their countries and cultures, one of the speakers being from Russia and the other from Saudi Arabia. I learned some interesting facts that I was unaware of before attending the seminar such as on the Saudi Arabian flag they have the “Shahada” transcribed on it in their native language, which is a very symbolic text for the religion of Islam. I also learned that in Saudi Arabia, many of the people practice Islam and in doing so they participate in Ramadan, which is a fasting period during the last month of the year to bring them closer to their god. During this month of Ramadan, nobody who practices Islam is allowed to eat or drink anything during the hours where the sun is up. From the Russian speaker I learned that there is nearly ten million more women than there are men. I also learned that Russia has the most land of any country in

In the past few decades, people are starting to shift towards learning cultural anthropology to explore human variations. In fact, it has come to be a bit of a fascination. “There is cultural intermingling and each country is learning more about other cultures.” For example, studying abroad for college students has greatly increased in recent years. Students realize that living and learning in another country will give them a broader knowledge of the culture and gain a deeper understanding of their own identity.