Final Project: Critique a text we studied incorporating a cross-cultural analysis. Study Tutor's Comments:
Excellent! You did a wonderful job of parody--pointing out the foibles of both the culture being studied and the discipline studying it! You grasped what the author was saying on several levels and then took him further. The humor is appreciated, too! Paper:
Final Project: Religious Basis for Nacirema Body Ritual
by Deirdre Dowd
Horace Miner, in his work Body Ritual Among the Nacirema, discussed the elaborate rituals performed by a little known or understood culture, the Nacirema. While fascinating in its descriptions of the strange rituals and odd obsessions that permeate Nacireman culture, there is little explanation offered for their behavior. Miner offers only that, "the fundamental belief underlying the whole system appears to be that the human body is ugly and that its natural tendency is to debility and disease." While this view of the body seems to explain some of the rituals of the Nacirema, it is a rather simplistic and underdeveloped explanation for the behavior of a complex and highly diverse culture.
A deeper analysis of the Nacirema, particularly their religious beliefs, leads us to a clearer understanding of their apparent fixation with body ritual. In fact in my study among the Nacirema, I found a culture steeped in religious taboo, rife with contradictions, and awash in a cultural identity crisis. The Nacirema are a diverse people, with settlers from different parts of the continent and the world blending together to form a distinct culture. This unique feature of the Nacirema, a culture made up of other cultures, accounts for much of the conflict that exists within their society. While espousing the right of the individual to his or her own beliefs, their civil and government institutions are compelled to remain free of all religious influences. This is done to ensure that no one religion is deemed superior to another, and to ensure the rights of individuals within the society who choose no religion at all. For the most part though, the vast majority of Naciremas belong to an established religious sect. Although the vast majority of these sects are founded on the same beliefs and worship the same God, there is no one Nacireman religion. There are dozens of sects with the same god and basic tenants yet each is separate. Many of the differences among the various religious sects of the Nacirema are subtle to the outsider. They appear almost superficial, yet to the Nacirema these differences are as important as the similarities. When one considers the lack of uniform religious practices and beliefs and the high degree of separation between religious and civil institutions, one can begin to understand the strange fixation with body rituals: they serve as a substitute or even a metaphor for religious ritual. When viewed within the context of Nacirema culture, including its varied religious beliefs, the strange rituals clearly have a source and serve a function.
In my field work, I had the opportunity to speak with a high ranking individual within one of the stricter religious sects. He (all positions of prestige within this sect, as in almost all the Nacireman sects, are held by males) was very candid, and insisted his name not be used for fear of upsetting his peers. I shall call him Pohsib. Pohsib explained that the Nacireman god was a vengeful yet loving being. In the religious myths of the Nacirema we see this paradoxical image of their god. As with most cultures, the creation myth reveals much about the culture.
The myth tells of a powerful supreme being forming the universe: heaven and earth, day and night, water and land, grass and trees, the sun and the moon, fowl and fish, cattle and serpent, and finally man and woman. Pohsib explained man was created in the image of god and granted superiority over all other creatures. Man was created from the dust of the earth itself and woman was created from the rib of man in order that the man would have a helpmate. A beautiful garden was created for the man and woman to live in and bear offspring. It is here where the tale takes a horrific and tragic turn. The man and woman are advised to enjoy the garden and all the wonderful fruits of god's labor but for one. A large apple tree in the center of the garden was not to be touched by the man or the woman. The two agreed and lived contentedly in the garden until one day a serpent approached the woman. He enticed her to eat an apple from the forbidden tree. The serpent convinces her if she indulges in it she will possess the wisdom of the gods and know good from evil. The woman succumbs to the temptation and eats an apple from the tree. She persuades the man to also eat the fruit and in the words of the sacred text, "... the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew they were naked..." When god discovers they have eaten from the forbidden tree he is enraged and throws them out of the garden. In addition to exiling them he curses them to a lifetime of sorrow and suffering. The woman is condemned to suffer greatly in childbirth and sentenced to eternal servitude to her husband (or man.) Man is condemned to a life of toil and struggle for sustenance from the earth.
That is the beginning of mankind for the Nacirema. In this story we can see the root of their obsession with the body. For it is the recognition of their naked bodies that condemn the man and woman, but it is not that the body itself is ugly. As Pohsib explained to me, the body of man was created in the image of god therefore it cannot be ugly. There is something more complex than revulsion for the body as the cause for such careful and elaborate ritual as practiced by the Nacirema. Pohsib explained how the body is actually viewed as something sacred and holy and therefore something to be ministered to as the vessel that holds the soul of the individual. The utmost care is given to the preservation of the body. There are references to the body as a temple in the sacred writings of the Nacirema and that would explain the shrines and ceremonies that occur within them. An important rite of passage among Pohsib's sect involves the pouring of holy water over the head of an infant by a holy man to initiate the child into the sect. A similar display is acted out by the Nacirema on a daily basis. A popular adage among the Nacirema is cleanliness is next to godliness. They clearly treasure their bodies and go to great lengths to ensure its proper upkeep.
Miner cites the oral rites of the Nacirema as examples of their magic beliefs but we can see the link between what, according to Miner, is the belief "...that a strong relationship exists between oral and moral characteristics" and religious belief by looking again to the creation myth. For it is orally, through the biting of the forbidden fruit, that man and woman are exiled from the garden and a life of ease. A religious ritual practiced by many of the sects also helps explain the apparent fixation with the mouth.
Pohsib described the ritual celebrations of his sect that are practiced on a regular basis. Many of the other sects practice this same ritual with only slight variations. The people gather together and, led by a holy man, offer verbal praise and subjugation to their god. The rite culminates when the holy man, through incantation, transforms simple sustenance (bread and wine) into the body and blood of their god. After the transformation the people ceremoniously partake of the now sacred victuals. The Nacirema actually eat the body of their god and drink his blood. While this may sound horrific to the uninitiated, the Nacirema see this is a great sacrifice their god makes for them: his own body offered as nourishment for them--spiritually and literally. It is no wonder they take great pains to ensure the hygiene of their mouth and oral cavities when they partake in such revered repasts.
The body rituals are but an extension of their religious rituals. It is important that the Nacirema practice these rituals because of the uniqueness of their secular side of society. We know that religion plays a vital role in culture: establishing appropriate and acceptable modes of behavior, offering explanations for natural phenomenon, promoting social stability and advancing education. As mentioned earlier, The Nacirema pride themselves on their diversity of beliefs. However this diversity can erode cultural identity. In the interest of fairness to all sects, the Nacirema have strict prohibitions regarding religious ritual. Religion must be kept entirely separate from any government institutions and many social ones. Education is often separated into religious and secular schooling. Each having its own rituals and rites of passage. Excluding religious beliefs from many facets of society can lead to anxiety among the members of that society. This helps to explain the Nacirema's obsession with body rituals as an extension of religious rituals which are not uniformly accepted in their culture. The body rituals act as a substitute for the religious rituals that vary among the different sects. The rituals described by Miner are practiced by virtually all Nacirema regardless of their particular religious sect or economic status, and thus serve to bind the society together.
I was struck by how affected this society was by religious beliefs. Another contradiction within the culture. Just as their primary god is a contradictory figure of wrath and mercy of vengeance and forgiveness, their view of society is a contradiction. Their secular stance is at odds with their cultural reality. As we see from the creation myth, many of the Nacirema's beliefs are rooted in religious taboo. For instance we know the Nacirema have an aversion to the naked body being displayed. They are always covered regardless of atmospheric conditions or other necessities. This is surely somewhat attributable to the creation myth where man and woman are thrown out of the garden after they gain knowledge and realize they are naked. Also as the body is held to be sacred, clothing it may be seen as a way of protecting it.
If we examine the role of women in Nacireman society we can also see the influence of the creation myth and religion in general. The woman is responsible for the man eating from the forbidden tree. She is responsible for their downfall and is guilty of enticing the man to commits sin. She is punished by being sentenced to a life of obedience to man's wishes and to bear offspring in great sorrow and suffering. On further examination of various Nacirema religious myths we see gods portrayed always in the masculine as well as many of the great holy persons depicted in the various sacred texts. Women, in all of the Nacirema religions play a subordinate role as they do throughout the culture. While they are revered for their role as childbearers, that is often the extent of their perceived importance to society.
Despite their claims to be a largely secular society where each individual is free to pursue his or her own beliefs, and religion is a strictly private affair, their culture is in fact greatly influenced by religious beliefs. This conflict of ideals is consistent with the conflict of their religious beliefs. On the one hand a god who exacts vengeance: demanding a life of servitude and suffering because he was disobeyed, ordering a man of faith to mutilate his son, wiping out almost the entire population because of man's indiscretions. On the other the all forgiving god: promising a lifetime of prosperity, protecting even the undeserving, offering eternal life by sacrificing to himself.
The Nacirema god is as contradictory as the culture itself. My informant, Pohsib, explained to me that many of his people felt alienated by a society that officially understated the importance of religious beliefs on its civil institutions. They were confused by the different sects, most with the same fundamental creeds, yet each claiming to be the true religion. This confusion and anxiety has led to some revitalization movements and extremes of standard religious rituals. There are some sects that virtually compel an individual to withdraw from society and from their family. Several of these sects promote communal living as an alternative to the standard Nacirema tribal residence. Many of these sects seek to provide the benefits of the extended family that is lacking in the mostly nuclear family structure of the Nacirema. However, many see these factions as undermining Nacireman society. Often these sects are intolerant of others views and tolerance of other's beliefs is the most fundamental of Nacireman beliefs. In seeking to use religion as the sole basis for their organizations, these sects isolate their members from other aspects of the society, leading to even greater alienation.
Despite the turmoil many Nacirema find themselves in, they have actually been very successful as a culture. They have proven to be highly adaptive and willing to incorporate aspects of other cultures into their own as new members join their society. Their economy, while occasionally suffering severe setbacks, has generally proved adequate for most, and actually provided great wealth for others. Their health is above average, with a fairly long average life span. Over the last quarter century though, their culture appears to be in decline. Their infant mortality rates rival those of much less developed civilizations and violence among them has grown to epic proportions. My source, Pohsib, felt much of this decline has to do with a general demoralization in the society as religious beliefs are further and further removed from societal institutions.
While not dismissing religion, the Nacirema seek to minimize its impact on society, its laws, its rules of behavior and its social bonding. These are, of course, some of the most important functions religion serves in a culture. The Nacirema have used a variety of alternatives to take the place of religion in their society. Advances in medicine have led to a plethora of medicinal specialists for every part of the human anatomy from the mouth to the heart to the subconscious. When one considers the diversity of Nacireman beliefs, one can understand how and why the body rituals are so consistent throughout the the culture. They seek to bind the society together. They are uniformly practiced regardless of religious denomination, social class or geographic location. They offer continuity in a diverse and rapidly changing culture that does not allow religion to fill this role completely. Perhaps the Nacirema need to find a balance between their religious and secular aspects of their culture. They are not a godless people and their social and government institutions are not, despite their stated intentions, free from religious influences. Perhaps all that is needed is for the Nacirema to acknowledge that religion, whatever the denomination, affects their culture, and to recognize that is not necessarily a bad thing, to enable them to address the problems of alienation and loss of cultural identity. It is the rare culture that is able to observe itself so objectively. Instead we find phenomenon such as the Nacirema's body rituals become embedded within a society. When we look at just one aspect of the Nacireman culture, such as religion, we realize how little understood human behavior is--even among ourselves.
Bibliography
Haviland, William A. Cultural Anthropology. Sixth edition. Orlando Florida.: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Inc., 1990.
Miner, Horace. " Body Ritual Among the Nacirema." Reading, Empire State College, 1993
Ballou, Robert O. The Portable World Bible. New York, New York: Viking Penguin, a division of Penguin Books USA Inc., 1944.
