For the Nacirema essay, you will choose a cultural behavior or practice that you are familiar with. The activities above (from “Body Ritual Among the Nacirema”) are good examples of topics to write about. You can talk about a grooming or cosmetic activity (plastic surgery, wearing makeup, working out, getting dental work done), a sporting activity, an eating activity, a music activity, or something else. Once you have chosen an activity:
1. Pretend that you are a foreign anthropologist observing this activity for the first time, and give a brief (1-2 paragraph) descriiption of the activity using the etic (outsider) perspective.
2. Afterwards, answer all three of the following reflection questions:
⦁ After writing about this activity from the etic perspective, what new insights did you gain that you never noticed before? What are some strengths of the etic perspective?
⦁ What do you think are the limitations of the etic perspective?
⦁ Why do you think it is important to include both the emic and etic perspective in anthropological writing?
The full essay should be only about 500-1000 words long.
Good luck working on your Nacirema essay, and let me know if you have any questions along the way!
