Just as a Buddhist reaches Nirvana by travelling the Noble Eightfold Path, or a Sufi reaches oneness with God by giving up all material possessions and entering a state of spiritual poverty, a person can liberate their mind by studying ethnic-philosophy. This paper will argue that ethnic-philosophy is practical for the purpose of creating mindful frameworks that allow individuals to question current structures and contribute to a prosperous society. Furthermore, individuals can measure the utility contributed by ethnic-philosophy through analyzing basic societal factors, such as poverty levels or access to basic goods. To begin, a proper distinction between philosophy and ethnic-philosophy must be made. Philosophy alone is a broad subject that could include a number of different ideas or views such as, what is the meaning of life or is life even real? The purpose of philosophy is then to understand fundamental truths, which differs from ethnic-philosophy which has a focus on ideas created by or done by indigenous people. Additionally, it examines the individuality of the philosophy from what could be considered “traditional” European philosophy, and moreover, examines relationship with colonialism, mixed identities, and various cultural frameworks. As stated previously, ethnic-philosophy focuses a great …show more content…
It is a statement that accepts a hierarchical mindset, and one that ignores the benefits ethnic-philosophy produces for society, such as equality or equity. Powerful thinkers such as Jose-Antonio Orosco or Marcelo Dascal, speak to the importance of decolonizing the mind and introducing new cultural frameworks into society. Ethnic-philosophy can liberate the minds of those who act and live within a framework of categories created to divide and ascribe value to them. There is nothing more useful or responsive than improving other people’s lives and our
Thesis: one’s personal culture and sense of tradition will always be a strong part of the self, regardless of external factors which can have a profound influence on one’s life.
During this unit of human geography, I have learned so much about religions, ethnicities, and even culture. For example, I learned about the religion Islam and how it is a religion of peace just like the Hindu religion and as well as the Buddhist religion and much more others. These religions and some others have much in common whether they accept it , these religions and some more are all peaceful religions and all teach good morals and principles to the followers, everyone following footsteps of good people and their good actions and/or deeds. When I was reading chapter 7 ( ethnicity) I learned that ethnicity also has to do with culture and that the chapter before that one, we were reading about ( folk culture) and how it much ties in with
The connection between language and identity are our expressions, how we are able to show our ideas and feeling which parts of our ethnicity are. For example, in the reading “Aria: Memoir of a Bilingual Childhood,” the language was an important resource for the kids to communicate with their Spanish culture, show affects to their parents and have communication with their families. Nevertheless,
In attempting to reach a higher position in the social hierarchy, nepatleras can become complicit in each others oppression. In order to reach one’s goal, even someone who sees themselves as oppressed has the potential to oppress others that they see as “others.” This definition of other is constantly changing. For instance, two Latinas may think of themselves as “us” when they’re considering race, but become “otras” if one of them is queer. Unlike the old mestiza, which was based on a hierarchy determined by racial purity, Anzaldua suggests that mestiza consciousness can lead to the creation of a New Mestiza, which instead aims to dismantle this hierarchy. The impulse to hurt another individual comes from one’s shadow self, which draws boundaries around race, nationality, gender, and other categories. According to Anzaldua, these fences can offer protection to a group by isolating them from other possibly conflicting groups, but this isolation also takes away the opportunity to look into the lives of these other groups, and gain conocimiento, or knowledge, and empathize with their struggles. Anzaldua states that often, this perceived otherness that we build fences around can be deceptive, and by separating ourselves, we make ourselves weaker by having fewer connections within our ecosystem. In order to become nosotras, which in Anzaldua’s mind
Throughout history western and eastern philosophies have developed a vast segregation from one another. The geographical and cultural distance between eastern and western civilization determined massive differences between the two. On the other hand, the works of ancient Greek philosophers like Socrates, and some eastern philosophies like Taoism have many of the same or common ideas and concepts. Both eastern and western philosophies regardless of having similarities have distinctive differences when examining the view of the conception of the good. In this rgard, each philosophy is noticed to have beliefs that strive for followers to improve their lives and to be on a path of self-purification. This essay will primarily focus on
Ending of this Introduction to Ethnic course I will discuss of two key learning moments that will stay with me upon my departure from this course. I also will discuss of learning tools that help guided me through this course. In addition, I will discuss of what I had gained fromthe two moments of learning. Lastly, I will share how I can continue to learn and discuss about ethnic-studies related issues.
Blanco crafted his work in such a way that maneuvering from the inside out reflects the clearest picture of what I believe he was trying to say. We are all “one”: we can create subgroups and caste
This quote is attached the theme of cultural identity, a term that pertains to the “feeling of belonging to a group.” It is part of a person's
Some may ask what it means to be a part of a specific culture. It may be believed that it merely means to share the same qualities of race, language, and social beliefs. What is not really known are the rise of expectations to fill, repressed wants and needs, or even the binding religious beliefs. A person must begin to recognize the holdings a culture may have on them and how it affects their free will as an individual.
The title, Battling Illegitimacy, Sarris chose for his writings, captures the question we all internalize and struggle, for some, a lifetime. We toil our whole life to discover who we are little by little, revealing and exposing where we came from. With these answers, we work to delineate who we are and who we will become. Ethnicity plays a part in this self-framing, I believe; however, is it our blood, culture, or upbringing that we have dug up and reflected upon, that ‘explains’ the ethnic answers we find or are still seeking, or that others use in categorizing us?
Concepts like culture cannot be easily separated from race, especially considering the fact that race would be such a loose reality without it. Also, as we see in history, items that we now list in the cultural realm have been intrinsically tied to race in the past, for instance the treatment of Jews in medieval Spain as having “tainted blood” that can pass through generations and lead to undesirable traits (Wade, 2005, p. 33). Therefore, I do not try to make a distinction between race and ethnicity in the paper, and define both as having aspects visible in the physical characteristics of a person, their known ancestry and the cultural practices that they follow. This is a position that Wade also takes in his introduction, expressing that “race is always about ‘nature’ (or biology’) and ‘culture,’” and that those studying race should not obscure that fact (p.
In today’s society race is more than an individual’s genetic make-up. To people around the world, race can mean more than where their ancestors are from and more to do with cultural changes. Human beings always want to create a division between one another. Olson discusses how “the most perverse dimensions of ethnic thinking is the realization of culture the tendency to think of other people as not
Religious identity can come in two forms, one from a nation of people all believing in the same values and another from the personal view of each individual or family within that nation. In a family or local community sense, it ties the smaller community together against its neighbouring ethnicities. It provides a feeling of togetherness and strength for the society. It is the basis for 'ethnic honour: the excellence of one's own customs and the inferiority of alien ones' (Weber, cited in Bruce 1996, p. 96). Religious identity brings great pride and hope to the citizens of any particular society and lends itself towards social cohesion (Browne 2005).
Examining the ideas and beliefs within ones own cultural context is central to the study of Anthropology. Issues of Race and Ethnicity dominate the academic discourses of various disciplines including the field of Anthropology. Race and Ethnicity are controversial terms that are defined and used by people in many different ways. This essay shall explore the ways in which Anthropologists make a distinction between race and ethnicity and how these distinctions serve as frames for cross-cultural comparison and analysis. It is important to accurately define these coined terms before one is able to make accurate comparisons and distinctions between them, and their relation to the concept of
Many circumstances oblige people to move from their native country to a foreign one. From this movement of migration have emerged many ethnic groups. An ethnic group is a restraint number of persons living in a larger society and sharing the same distinct cultural heritage. Some people tend to bury their habits and accommodate to the new way of life. However others hold on to their identity and try to identify their race and maintain it. This enriches societies and makes them multi-racial. Therefore, every ethnic group is essential to complete the mosaic. Although they are sometimes threatened, minorities must fight to preserve their principles. Why must they fight? Because racial identification has many positive impacts on the members.