Cultural Reality Essay

These Grandfathers presented Black Elk with gifts to help him on his journey. A wooden cup, a bow and arrows, a white wing of cleansing, an herb to heal, a sacred pipe a flowering stick and the power to make live and to destroy were the tools that were given to him. Then, the Grandfathers showed Black Elk what was to become of his people. He was shown a holy tree which once had been flowering and was now gone. The people he was supposed to lead were thin and starving, and Black Elk cried as he saw the fate of his people.

Trees and plants represent life in the novel which ties into the overarching theme of the dehumanization that comes from slavery. Many of the characters in Beloved have been subjected to awful events causing them to feel as if they were worse than animals. Because of this, many characters look to the beauty of nature and trees in particular, to help them heal from their time in slavery. For example, Baby Suggs decided to preach in a place called The Clearing, which is surrounded by tall trees. "In the Clearing, Sethe found Baby's old preaching rock and remembered the smell of leaves simmering in the sun, thunderous feet and the shouts that ripped pods off the limbs of chestnuts. With Baby Suggs' heart in charge, the people let go." (Morrison 94) Another example of trees bringing healing to the characters in the novel is the arrival of Beloved. “A fully dressed woman walked out of the water. She barely gained the dry bank of the stream before she sat down and leaned against a mulberry tree.”(Morrison 60) This tree represents a chance at a new life for Beloved and also offers Sethe a chance to heal. Ever since killing her child, Sethe has been haunted over her decision and she is finally able to confront her past with the appearance of

there are other people that did the same Ceremony and were not able to be healed. Though Tayo

Many different forms of medicine are currently practiced in the world. In fact, as our text states, “in all cultures, some people have become recognized as having special abilities to treat and diagnose health problems.” (Miller 107) Without argument, phytomedicinal and supernatural healers are two forms of medical treatment that have been around for longer than any other, regardless of culture. It has been estimated that shamanism has been practiced for over ten thousand years (Tyson 3). Native American and Celtic healers are often known as shamans.

In addition, doctors can learn how to establish a trustful relationship with Haitians by observing healing ceremonies preformed by Voodoo priests. Through this learning process, western doctors will begin to understand the importance of non-western methods for the treatment of Haitian’s illnesses. According to McCabe (2007), the acknowledgement and acceptance of non-western interpretations and techniques is paramount to the process of treating ethnic minority clients. Since traditional healers are acknowledged in their community as being a trusted spiritual healer it is critical for healthcare practitioners to understand the role of the traditional healers in counseling, health promotion and education.

This case in particular is a clash between two cultures; the modern medicine culture of Linda Gorman and the traditional cure lu Mien culture of Mrs. Saeto. Before casting judgment on who is right and who is wrong with regards to Marie, it is important to decode these two particular cultures so we can distinguish the differences between the American culture and the lu Mien culture; considering upon reading about the burns, most if not all Americans would agree that this curing practice is barbaric and abusive. Every culture comes with stories, symbols and world views; and often times they are in disagreement. For instance, at the heart of the lu Mien culture is the theory of animism, “the view that the world is inhabited by spirits that

Cultural accommodation-In certain cultures families, they may believe in a spiritual healer, witch doctor and believe in a combination of prayer, herbs, and other rituals to treat illness and the sick. This practice is allowed as long as it does not contraindicate

There was corn, tomatoes, and beats, and the person that had yelled was lying on the ground happy but terrified at the same time. She said, “I took this drum hoping I could trade it for food and then I struck it”. Ahana was amazed to find out that the drum had powers and gathered the whole village to show them. When all the villagers eventually gathered Ahana told all of them to watch him use the drum. He quickly then hit the drum asking for it to rain. Almost immediately the sky turned grey and it started to pour down rain. All of the people rejoiced in this newfound drum and Ahana. They all wanted to use the drum immediately for their own personal gain but then the chief of the group named Alicar stepped in telling everyone to stop. He said that the drum must be used for only the benefit of the village, as its powers could be too powerful. Alicar quickly confiscated the drum and set in action of rules for how it would be used. He soon decided that it would be best for only the oldest and wisest of men to use this drum. Another rule would be that if more then two thirds of the village agreed to use it then the drum must be used for that agreed purpose. The people of Ohenie flourished with great power, but with great power comes great responsibility. Many other groups said they feared them while some said that they were great

This concept, termed the ‘shamanistic complex,’ thus indicates that for treatment to be efficacious in a particular cultural setting it requires: the belief of the sick person, the community and the healer. This concept is linked to the placebo effect today.

Despite the fact that spirituality has been a long-time key component of healing throughout history, modern medicine refrains from it- instead choosing to embrace a more mechanistic view of the body- whereas, in contrast, Native American healing practices embrace spirituality. In fact indigenous practices consider the spirit an inseparable element of healing, placing importance on the spirit of the patient, healer, patient’s family, community, environment, and even the medicine itself. More specifically, the healing must take in account the dynamics between all of these spiritual forces as a part of the universal spirit. In contrast to Western medical view’s that focus on fixing unique body parts in distinct individuals that are separate from each other and their environment, Native Americans believe that we are all part of a whole that is greater than the sum of parts, and therefore, healing must be considered within this context (Johnston 131). This sense of connection can be observed by the concluding phrase of healing prayers with the words mitakuyo oyasin, or “all my

Art and Religion are utilized by Haitian culture for healing and survive in the Caribbean communities (Davis, Paravisini-Gebert, & Fernandez Olmos, 2004). “Healing Cultures is more self-consciously pan-Caribbean in scope, sensitive not only to the region's historical intersections, but also taking into account the ways in which cultures rely on each other and are reinterpreted across borders” (Davis et al., 2004, p. 1). The term “Healing Arts” is used to explain the cures utilized by Haitian culture for healing of illness that are physical, psychological and even spiritual (Davis et al., 2004). For instance the use vodou practices. Haitian vodou functions in the following way: “offers a cultural construction of illness, provides elements

As you can see, definitions of culture vary according to the focus of interest, the unit of analysis and the disciplinary approach (psychology, anthropology, sociology, geography etc.)

The movie begins with a very physical and ruthless tree climbing competition. It consisted of a large group of man competing to climb to the top of the tree as they pushed, kicked and pulled each other down in order to achieve their goal and be the one to reach the top. It was obvious the clear that they were anxious and were very competitive against each other as this race was very meaningful. Many were willing to risk their lives and were badly hurt, as some of them will not get up afterwards. This competition was the first opening ritual for their festival of Ong-Bak. Celebrated only every 24 years in this small Thai village and which was of great importance to all its habitants. It consisted of different rituals, celebrations and worships in representation of a Buddha statue that contained a scar in its face. This village was fairly small and was located to the outsides of the city. As everyone was preparing for this festival, Don a criminal from Bangkok that worked for Komtuan, travelled to the

Culture can be defined in many ways due to the fact that everyone can have their own distinct and traditional beliefs and values. “ Culture is fluid, it is not a static entity which one takes out of the box on occasion. It is with us daily” (Cultural Handout). Someone’s culture is set as the characteristics of the group practices in language, religion, types of food, social traits and habits, and the distinct arts and music. There are a variety of different cultures for example, Western Culture, Eastern Culture, Latin Culture, Middle Eastern Culture, and African Culture. All of these different cultures have their own ideas, values, and individualism, laws that are implied, civil rights, and even technology. In our, “ Culture Handout” culture is defined as the tool of the mind, “ it is an individual’s way seeing and interacting within the world. It encompasses one’s values systems, beliefs, and perceptions of the world around them. Race, socio-economic class gender, sexual orientation, ability, geographic location, age, religion language, etc. all impact the formation of culture, but these various context are not culture” (Cultural Handout).

Kroeber and Kluckhohn (1962) identify over 150 scientific definitions of the concept of culture. Indeed, many authors have tried to define culture and this is why there are so many definitions and that a unique one is hard to find. First of all, Kroeber and Kluckholn (1952) assume that culture is a suite of patterns, implicit and explicit, “of and for behaviour acquired and transmitted by symbols, constituting the distinctive achievements of human groups, including their embodiments in artefacts” (p.47). Later, Hofstede adds that culture is “the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one category of people from another” (Hofstede, 1991, p.51). This definition is the most widely accepted one amongst practitioners. For Winthrop (1991), culture is the distinctive models of thoughts, actions and values that composed members of a society or a social group. In other words,