!Kung San culture

Environment:

 The !Kung San people live in the areas of Botswana, Angola, and Namibia in Africa. These areas have some trees but are mostly composed of grass covered hills and flat spaces. The Kung define 4 regions that they live in: 1) Dunes- fixed by Mongongo tree vegetation. 2) Flats- plains between dunes and malapo. 3) Melapo- dry river beds, smaller, acacia trees. 4) Hardpan- bare rock/sand, baobab tree. They also recognize 5 seasons:  !Huma (spring rains) October-November, Bara (Summer Rains) December-March, Tobe (Autumn) April-May, !Gum (Winter) May-August, and !Gaa (Spring Dry) August- October 1st. The hottest time of year being October- February with temperatures of 86-104 degrees F and the coolest times of year being June-July with temperatures 75-80 degrees F. The Kung people live in a rural setting mostly in the desert, away from other groups of people. They are hunters and gatherers and have a wide variety of flora and fauna to choose from. There are 50 mammal species such as kudu, wildebeest, roan antelope, and giraffe along with 90 bird species such as ostrich (eggs), guinea fowl, quail, and ducks. There are also various reptiles/ amphibians and insects. Some of the available flora includes: Mongogo (nuts), Baobab, Marula, edible gum (sap), roots and bulbs, and melons. The most important environmental stress that affects the Kung people is the availability of water. Since it is hot, their living areas are only semi-permanent and they move in order to stay near a water source. This is a cultural adaptation that they developed in order to survive. They have also adapted their eating and hunting habits in order to include what is in their surroundings in order to survive. Due to the availability of resources such as water and food, they have developed housing depending on how long they intend to stay in an area. One physical adaptation that they have developed is a dark skin color as a response to the heat and sun exposure.

Subsistence:

Since the !Kung are hunter gatherers, they adapt to their environment by gathering roots, berries, fruits, and nuts and eating meat that is hunted. Meat is sometimes sparse and sometimes great distances have to be traveled in order to find game to hunt. When the game is killed every part of the animal is used, including hide for blankets, bones for marrow, etc. In general, it is the men that go out and hunt and it is the women that go out and forage and gather. However, they are not opposed to the roles reversing and a woman hunting or a man gathering. Once an animal is killed there are rules that govern the distribution of the meat to everybody in the group, so the kill is not owned by the hunter. Also, since they are not able to preserve the meat, they will spread the word to nearby villages if the kill is too large to carry or there is a surplus of meat so that they can collect some for themselves.

Economic systems:
If there is a surplus of food items, like previously mentioned, they give it away to others because they believe in the betterment of other tribes. They operated on a gift economy, based on giving each other gifts on a regular basis rather than trading or purchasing goods and services.

Language:
The !Kung language is also known as !Xun or Ju. Together with the Hoan language, it forms the Kx'a language family. It is also a dialect continuum which means that the language varies slightly depending on the physical area that the people reside in.What makes their language distinct is the clicking aspect of the language. Of all of the languages in the world, !Kung has the largest number of different kinds of sounds.  Some of the sounds used in the language are:

n  / = dental click (as in “tsk, tsk”)

n  ≠ = alveolar click (tongue on sides of teeth)

n  ! = alveopalatal click (tongue on roof of mouth)

n  // = lateral click (as in urging on a horse)

From what I could find, there is not a written version of this language amongst the Kung. They use the method of verbal communication and storytelling much more often than written recording of language and history.

Marriage:

Marriage was generally between a man in his twenties and a girl in her teens, and the first marriage was arranged by the parents. Newlyweds lived in the same village as the wife's family so that she had family support. The wife might even reside with her parent's until she was comfortable with her husband, during which time he would hunt for the bridewealth. If the couple did not become comfortable with each other, divorce was acceptable and could be initiated by either the husband or wife. If they became comfortable and wanted to stay married, they could reside with either family. Though extramarital sex was not condoned, it was somewhat acceptable for either spouse. They also observed the incest taboo so the wife was not allowed to marry any of her immediate family and she may not marry a first or second cousin, or a boy with her father's or brother's names.

Kinship:

The !Kung kinship pattern is comparable to the eskimo kinship system, with some variations in the naming rules. They classify everyone who bears the same name as close kinsmen as if they were relatives. They believe that all names are descended from the same namesake ancestor, and they treat the status of namesake as a genealogical position like mother, father, brother, sister. For example, if a man's sister is Kxaru, then all women named Kxaru are his "sisters". The man may not marry his sisters or tell sexual jokes in their presence.

Social/Political Organization:

Though they are not without leadership, they are not dependent on that position. Within small groups it is possible to have a chieftain or headman in a position of power over other members, however most of the time it is not necessarily a position that gives them more power over others, it just gives them the same social status as those members of "aged years". It is more of a name and responsibility that somebody gives to themself. It could involve responsibilities such as diving up the meat from a hunt, but it does not mean that they are entitled to any more meat than any other member in the village. Though there are some struggles within the villages, they are a generally very peaceful people.

Religion:

The majority of !Kung are traditional tribal religionists. They believe in celestial bodies like the sun, moon, morning star as  symbols of divinity. They believe that the praying mantis is a divine messenger and when one is seen, they try to determine the current message. Legends play an important role in their lives. They are each stories that explain the person's interpretation and perception of the divine. There is no one story of creation or origin. Some stories tell of one god and some with two or more gods. These beliefs are so entwined in their everyday life that there is no structured religion that they practice, it is more of a constant connection. One aspect that is affected by this is their healing process. Since they believe that all things in life are interconnected, they have rituals and dance that help them reach out to the spirits in order to ask for help during times of bad health.

Art:

Though they do have cave paintings in which they portrayed pictures from everyday life, such as hunting, the main form of art would be storytelling. This allows them to pass on their history and entertain. They also sing and dance for entertainment along with their spiritual connections.

A changing world:

Since they have been exposed to other cultures, some changes have been made. Though a large part of the culture is their tribal spirituality, approximately 10% of the !Kung people nowadays have embraced Christianity. They have also been exposed to ways of life that are more controlled, which has moved some people to permanent residences and farming. Cows have affected them in a negative way, contaminating water sources that they might have drank from and gotten sick, and eating vegetation that they might have collected for themselves previously. In general, since the culture is very independent, I think that the world has had more influence on changing their habits then they have at affecting change on others.

Sources:

employees.oneonta.edu/.../Introducing%20the%20!Kung%20San.ppt

   http://www.ucc.uconn.edu/~epsadm03/kung.html

   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/!Kung_language

^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/!Kung_people}

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bushmen

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C7%83Kung_people#Gender_Roles_and_Regulations

.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/!Kung_people

. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bushmen

http://orvillejenkins.com/profiles/kung.html

http://www.webnb.btinternet.co.uk/newpage25.htm

http://korea.gnu.org/people/chsong/cb/homesteading/kung_healing.html

Blood Revenge

1. Rules or laws against killing are essentially a cultural universal, meaning all cultures have rules regarding the killing other people and the punishments for breaking these rules. How do the Yanomamo rules regarding killing and the consequences for breaking these rules differ from the rules in Western cultures in general? (5 pts)
Revenge killing seems to be an accepted retaliation for death in the Yanomamo.  For our culture, killing is punishable by law and a trial is set out to see what the circumstances are before a punishment is made. Amongst the Yanomamo, it seems that there are general ways of behaving, but it can mostly be decided by the individual or the group how to act. There is no system of law and punishment set up.


2. Describe the process of revenge killings as it is expressed in Yanomamo populations. (5 pts)
The notion of bereavement in their language and culture is synonymous with an anger that leans towards violence. They perform killing raids on villages in which a member has killed one of their members. Most of the fights initially begin due to women.


3. Revenge killings are a dangerous for those who take part. What are the benefits of obtaining the status of unokais? How do they compare to the benefits of being a non-unokais? Why would a man choose to become an unokais instead of being a non-unokais? (10 pts) Unokais are those who have killed. Those who back out of raids or have no killed eventually acquire a status as a coward. The non-unokais wives become targeted by other males as receiving more attention. Therefore, there is a certain amount of status that is associated with those males who have killed others.

4. Identify and describe the relationship between revenge killings and these aspects of the Yanomamo culture. How do they influence and affect each other?

a. Political structure (5 pts), c. Kinship (5 pts)b. Social Status/Social Organization (5 pts),d. Marriage & Reproduction (5 pts

The leaders of the group come from the family with the largest descent group. They usually have the most kin amongst the group. The headmen usually have up to a dozen or more different wives. They either appeal to these wives as being better mates because they have killed, or they could have been acquired forcefully or through an agreement. They also have many children, expanding the amount of kin they have. Because the groups are organized by kinship, it is an obligation to protect the tribe and kin by violence. This becomes a part of the politics because  the tribe is built on kin. Though the groups seem to be arranged by groups of kin, sometimes they split when there are disagreements. Some close kin can actually be separated due to marriage ties. If there is killing of their kin in another village by someone in their village, it does not necessarily mean they will side with the village that they reside in. That is why groups of kin are easier to group that actual physical villages when studying the behavior and motive of revenge killing.



5. Behaviors that are usually labeled as “anti-social”, such as killing other people, are generally thought to be a bad thing to do under most circumstances, other than defense. Why do we need laws against something that no one should want to do? Use your reading of the article to help you explain your answer. (10 pts)

We need laws in place as a standard of what is acceptable and not acceptable by the general population. By holding people accountable to these standards and setting up some method of punishment, it acts a deterrent for those that may be thinking of doing something wrong and know the consequences that will arise from those actions. In the Yanomamo, there are no sets of laws governing their rules against killing others. Therefore, when the benefits of killing and bringing that attention of themselves outweigh the costs of possibly being targeted by others, they go ahead with the killing raid, which seems to happen very often.

Kinship conclusion

4. Conclude your post from your own perspective. (20 pts)

 Do you know the relatives on both your mother and father’s side of the family well?

I know a lot more relatives on my moms side of my family than on my dads. The grandparents on my mothers side lived longer into my life so I was able to meet older generations. Also, my aunt traced back family history, so we know more about her side of the family as far as lineage.
I will probably go back and do this with my father also through because it would be interesting to see what he knows and doesn't know about his family. He does not easily share information unless directly asked so I don't know much about his side of the family, and what I do know I obtained in pieces.

 Do you socialize equally with them? Why or why not?
Any remaining members of my fathers family live in Colorado, so I do not socialize with them very often, only through facebook occasionally. It is with my family members that my mom does get along with and those that live in our area that we have family dinners and get togethers with, so we know each other better in person. However, I am closer in age and feel more comfortable interacting with one of my male cousins out in Colorado, since my cousins on my moms side are younger than me.

 Which members of your family have the most influence in decisions made in the family? Explore why this is the case.  Are their different attitudes towards family members based upon gender? Describe.

In my mothers case, it is the females that definitely run the show. The main coordination happens between my mom, grandma, and aunt as far as when everybody will get together and how things will happen. It's interesting to note also that I'm included in this communication since I live apart from them and have my son. The males seem to get communicated with by word of mouth mostly. Since my parents are divorced and have been since I was little, there is a huge difference in the gender attitudes in my family. My fathers side is not male oriented, but is more individualistic. Since he does not have many remaining family members (only 2 half brothers and some nieces and nephews), everybody stands alone in their communication with the other members of the family and whether they keep in touch.
As far as the decisions made in my own "family" consisting of myself and my son, I consult both of my parents equally but for different matters and understanding their different attitudes, so they both greatly contribute to my decisions more than my siblings or grandparents.

 Are family members who marry into the family treated differently than members born into the family?

The females in my moms side of the family are not accepted the same way as the ones that are born into the family. I kind of understand it, because growing up with a brother I understand that the girlfriends he was with were not permanent.  However, they are included as much as possible and come to think of it, it seems to be the females that still communicate with each other even if it is the male that is born into the family. So there is still a connection between the females, just not to same degree.



 What insights have you learned about your family through this exercise?
It was interesting to learn about my moms pattern of interaction with her family.  I guess you can tell who was most important to a person because they will remember the most and elaborate more on the certain parts of their family. I did learn more about her dads side of the family than I already knew. Since it is her mothers side that I mostly had interactions with growing up, I got to hear offhand about different parts of her family. With her fathers side, especially since he spent a lot of the last 10 years before he died unable to communicate because of strokes, it was new information for me. It was more of something that I wrote down on paper than I was able to associate a face or a person to with her dads side.
And I already knew that her side of the family was female-centered, I just didn't know it extended to her cousins and grandparents also.

Kinship

1. Introduce your interviewee to your reader. Explain their relationship to your, where they were born and describe some of their background in terms of their social, cultural and ethnic background. (10 pts)

The person that I interviewed for my kinship interview was my mom. She was born in Orange County along with her older sister and younger brother, and most of her family is split up between Southern California and Oregon.  Her great grandparents on her Moms side came over from Germany to New York and it was in her Maternal grandparents generation that they moved out to California. She did not know much about her fathers background past his parents. Her closest interactions occurred with the females in her family (her mother, grandmothers, cousins), but she has no reservations about communicating with the rest, she just stated they were more like her. As a child she spent holidays with her fathers side of the family, which was largely in california because her mothers side was in oregon. However, it is interesting to note that now she communicates more in general with some from both sides of her family, but mostly with those that have Facebook or email.

2. Briefly summarize your interviewing methods. Include your own thoughts and feelings as the anthropologist. Were you comfortable throughout the interview or were there times when you experienced awkwardness or discomfort with the subject matter? Do you think this affected the thoroughness of your interview? How would this be different interviewing someone unrelated to you? (10 pts)

I sat across the table from her at her dinner table with my piece of paper and pen and tried to interview her objectively. I tried to be objective at least. I had a hard time keeping my mouth shut when she couldn't remember one of my cousins names. I also felt awkward asking her to name her relatives (grandma, brother, cousin) and whether they were alive when I knew the answer to most of it.  I gathered a lot of information, but I believe that it might be easier interviewing somebody unrelated because you can start from scratch and build up their story of their family. However, you also wouldn't know whether they had gaps in their memory.

3. Describe the kinship pattern of your family and explore any patterns you see, such as differences in closeness, socialization levels, and commonalities. Is there an emphasis on maternal or paternal lines? What are the attitudes toward older and younger individuals in your family? Is there a trend toward large or small families? Are there ethnic differences in different areas of your family that have a social impact on family relationships or affect social interactions? (20 pts)

When it came to socialization patterns, she had more closeness and contact with the females on her mothers side of the family, in general. She "felt" the closest to them because they were the most like her. This is contrary to what I would think because she spent her childhood holidays around her fathers side of the family. It is interesting to note that there was a pattern of early independence in most of the children, moving out or to another state at 18 or so. I don't know if this is just more common with the time, or just common with her generation of her family.
I don't think the family size could be considered large. Maybe average or smaller side. Each person had about 2-3 kids. There were more kids per parent as the generations moved back towards her grandparents and great grandparents but she did not know much about them.
There were not many ethnic differences in her family, and if there were any, it didn't seem to inpact the relationships or interactions.

Subsistence and Economy

Part 1: Discuss and compare the costs and benefits of the two different subsistence patterns of hunter gatherers and agriculture, addressing the following questions in full:

1. Identify the benefits of both subsistence patterns. (10 pts)
Hunter gatherers benefits- ample and banalanced diets by being able to rome the land,leisure time, food sharing
Agriculture benefits-build more permanent dwellings, make storage containers, more control over types of food made available

2. Identify the costs (or disadvantages) of both subsistence patterns. (10 pts)
Hunter gatherer disadvantages- limited materials, living by the essentials, must stay near water, small group size to ensure the carrying capacity of land
Agriculture disadvantages-requires more work, more monotonous, less secure, more easily ruined by unexpected weather or disaster

3. Which subsistence pattern provides a healthier diet? Explain. (5 pts)

I think that they would both be able to provide a fairly balanced diet. Hunter gatherers are able to hunt for their protein by following and killing animals needed. They are able to gather grains and vegetables and fruits that they are able to find off the land. Agricultural societies are able to grow crops of their own food and domesticate animals for slaughter and consumption.
I suppose if I had to choose one I would say the hunter gatherers have a healthier diet if only because they have more variety in what they eat dependent on what is available.

4. Discuss why you think some human populations made the transition into agriculture? (5 pts)

I believe it is just a matter of reward. People would move from place to place looking for a bountiful harvest. So when a certain area of land provided them what they needed more consistently than other places, they stayed there longer periods of time and got more comfortable with that way of life, developing it into a permanent place to live by learning how to control the environment.

Part 2: Economics and Trade:

1. There is a direct relationship between the availability of surplus and the ability to trade. Explain the meaning of this statement. (5 pts)
What this statement means is that a certain amount of goods are produced in order to cover the amount needed by the person or group producing it, and the surplus gives them the  ability, the currency, to exchange for other goods.

2. Identify and describe two (2) social benefits of trade. (5 pts)
One social benefit of trade is that it connects two different people or groups by mutual understanding and need of the others goods. So it develops a certain amount of trust in order to exchange goods.
Another benefit is the connection between two differing societies. It can teach people about others and make them appreciate the differences between them.

3. Identify and describe two (2) negative social results of the development of trade. (5 pts)
It could harbor the development of resentment or anger towards somebody else, in an unfair trade or in the attempt to manipulate the other side.
It could amplify the difference between the poor and the rich. The more surplus one person has, the more of others goods they would be able to accumulate, accentuating the differences between what they have and what somebody who has less possesses.

4. Given your answer in the question #1, explain the relationship between the development of agriculture and the development of trade. (5 pts)

With the development of agriculture, people were able to control the production of their food. If they had the resources, they were able to produce more goods or a certain good than was needed. With the differences in skills and food developed, they were able to see that others could produce different goods which created a mutual need and developed the need for trade.

Language Experiment

Part 1: You were asked to engage in a conversation for 15 minutes where you were not allowed to use any version of a symbolic language (no speaking, writing, or ASL).

 Did you find this experiment difficult or easy? Explain. (5 pts)

I found this part of it more frustrating than difficult. Eventually I was able to get most of my point across, but it was frustrating and inefficient when I could have just said something and communicated more directly and effectively. To be honest my 6 year old son was the only person I could do the experiment with, and though we did end up just making faces at each other at one point, I did learn a lot about how difficult and frustrating it can be to communicate effectively without symbolic language.

 What were the impressions of partners in the conversation? Did they alter their way of communicating with you because of your absence of symbolic communication? Describe. (5 pts)

There was a lot more guesswork involved. He would try to guess what I meant when I was trying to describe something and most of the time he got very close. However, since he knows my pattern of language so well, it would have been easier to guess my train of thought. I can't imagine how difficult it would have been if we were strangers, and even moreso, strangers with nothing in common, nothing to make comparisons of our non-verbal communication against.

 Imagine that you and your partners in the conversation represent two different cultures meeting for the first time. Which culture has the advantage in communicating complex ideas? What attitudes might the speaking culture have toward the culture that does not use symbolic language? Identify individuals in our culture that have difficulty communicating with spoken language and explore how that affects how those who do speak interact with those individuals. (5 pts)

The culture with the symbolic language has the advantage of being able to communicate complex ideas amongst themselves. Symbolic language allows us to communicate a much more diverse and complex amount of information and respond much quicker to questions when we speak the same language. An attitude that one might adopt when dealling with another culture that is unable to communicate is that they are just not as smart or developed. The deaf community might fall under this generalization, but they are able to communicate massive amounts of information with ASL, so it would be wrong to assume this.

Part 2: You were asked to spend 15 minutes communicating without any physical embellishments, i.e., no hand signals, not vocal intonation, not head, facial, or body movements.

 Were you able to last for the full 15 minutes of using only speech for communicating? What made this experiment difficult for you? (5 pts)

I was not able to last the entire 15 minutes with this portion of it. Though it was easier than the first part, being able to say words to your partner, there was a general seriousness and boring quality to the conversation that could not hold attention. I found it difficult not to laugh, or bring inflection to my tone when I wanted to get excited about something. The physical part was not that hard, but the actual monotonous tone of the conversation was very difficult to maintain.

 How were your partners in this part of the experiment affected by your communication limitations? Explain. (5 pts)

Since I am usually very sarcastic, and I like to joke around, especially with my son, I think he got confused as to whether I was serious or not when it all sounded the same. It was hard to be serious when sounding and acting so monotonous though, so a lot of what I said to him was joking around with him but with a very neutral tone. He was just unable to determine whether I was exaggerating something or if I was actually serious because there was no cue to give him an idea.

 What does this experiment say about our use of "signs" in our language, i.e., how important is non-speech language techniques in our ability to communicate effectively? (5 pts)

I believe that non-speech language techniques are extremely important. Body language, tone, inflection, etc. share just as much about what we are saying as the words themselves. It takes sight as well as sound in order to gain an impression of somebody, so by observing non-verbal cues you can learn a lot about what goes unsaid or implied.

 Are there people who have difficulty reading body language? Describe the adaptive benefit to possessing the ability to read body language. Can you describe environmental conditions where there might be a benefit to not reading body language? (5 pts)

There probably are people that have difficulty reading boy language or they just outright ignore it. Being able to read body language is almost like when two animals come across each other and can tell whether they are challenging each other to a fight. Perhaps it is an adaptive benefit to avoid harm and confrontation by being able to read certain signals that tell us something is wrong (a threat).
The only environmental conditions where not reading body language might be an advantage is if we are in a condition where there is no threat and want to focus on keeping an open mind to strictly what somebody would say, not what we think they mean.

Part 3: There is a third component of language which we did not test in this experiment, and that is the importance of written language.

 Do you think your experiment in Part 1 would have been easier if you had been permitted to use written language? Why or why not? Explain. (5 pts)

In small bits it would have been helpful just for clarification of certain specific words, and then the ideas could have been acted out. I believe that written language is definitely much more effective as a form of communication than just acting things out, but it would still take time and the gestures and other movements add depth to the words.

 What advantage does written language provide to the culture that develops and uses it? (5 pts)

Written language allows a culture to not only develop its language, it helps to record it so that later on, it can be compared and the development is able to be seen through the change in words. This allows the language of the culture to be studied and documented. 

 What impact has written language had on "globalization", or the spread of ideas around the world?

Written language has allowed many ideas to spread throughout the word. It allows people that can write the same  language to communicate with each other across vast distances. Facilitated by the use of the internet, these days, an idea can spread around the world overnight if it was popular enough.

 (5 pts)

Nacerima

1. (5 pts) As an American, how do you feel about your choice of descriptive words in Part A? (If you are from another country, you can still comment on your choices based upon your first hand experience with American culture but include the fact that you are from another culture.)

I feel that the words that I chose are all relatively accurate. I have traveled to a few different countries and seen some other cultures and returning back to America is a shocking experience. I think that we are a dramatic group of people in which too much emphasis is placed on appearance and the things and money that we all have. And I think prude is an accurate word to use also. Whereas in other countries the average amount of time a woman will spend breatfeeding her baby is 1-2 years, in America it is only a couple of months. It is taboo and shocking to see somebody doing something like that in public here in America.

2. (5 pts) Do any of your choices exhibit ethnocentrism on your part? In other words, do any of your descriptive words reveal a judgment of the Nacerima rooted in your own cultural bias? Are any of your words free of bias? Identify the words you feel are biased and unbiased and explain your reasoning.

Perhaps the words Pessimistic, Prude, and Exaggerated are a bit more judgemental and biased than Holistic and Devout. The first three would then be biased based on my own opinions and what I've experienced myself. Which is not the most scientific way to go about describing another culture, but is difficult to change because the words are coming from my own experience and the worldview that I have set up as a guide.

3. (5 pts) For any of the words that are biased, can you provide alternate words that are free of bias but communicate the same explanatory information and intent of your original word?

It would be difficult to come up with a synonym for pessimistic. The opposite of it is optimistic and the rituals are based on the pessimistic attitude towards aging. Pushing it back as far as possible, and hoping that we can keep our bodies from the decay of age. Prude could probably be changed, since it is used to classify behavior as being excessive, that would be more a judgemental word. Maybe modest or discriminating would be less biased when describing the behavior regarding nudity and sex. Exaggerated is also difficult to replace. When looking up synonyms the closest one I could find was eccentric, but that is even more biased than the one originally chosen. It is very difficult to find neutral words to explain something without comparing it to your own frame of reference.

4. (5 pts) From this experience, reflect on the importance of avoiding ethnocentric judgments when describing other cultures. Why is it important to describe another culture in a manner as free from personal cultural bias as possible? Do you think it is possible to completely avoid personal cultural bias as a Cultural Anthropologist?

I don't believe it is possible to completely avoid personal cultural bias. Humans do not know everything and when we learn new things we compare them to the things that we already know in order to make comparisons and connections. I think that it would take a lot of experience and awareness in order to be able to recognize when you are applying your own personal cultural bias to a situation or choice (such as choosing words). It's easier to see now though how important it is to try to describe without bias or judgement. People are already biased by their own experiences, so when educating others about cultures that they will most likely never see, it is important to be neutral in order to relay information but not sway people's judgements.

Easier said than done!

Pessimistic- I would use this word to describe this culture in reference to the creation of their rituals and when they use them. The philosophy behind the rituals is to prevent the inevitable horror that is the decay of the human body. Instead of working towards something positive, like good health, they are moving away from something negative, like debility and disease. “the human body is ugly and that its natural tendency is to debility and disease. Incarcerated in such a body, man's only hope is to avert these characteristics through the use of ritual and ceremony.” It is negative reinforcement that continues these rituals and the pessimistic view on the body and aging that brought about these rituals.

Exaggerated- Though the rituals that these people perform may be extreme, it is only an exaggeration of things that people in our culture do in one way or another. “the ritual consists of inserting a small bundle of hog hairs into the mouth, along with certain magical powders, and then moving the bundle in a highly formalized series of gestures” could be viewed as just brushing your teeth in a different way. A witch doctor involved in the act where “The patient simply tells the "listener" all his troubles and fears, beginning with the earliest difficulties he can remember.” sounds a lot like a psychologist to me.

Devout- As the rituals that are carried out in this culture seem to be labor-intensive and painful to some extent, the people involved in this culture would have to be devout and faithful in the supposed outcomes in order to carry out these rituals. “One has but to watch the gleam in the eye of a holy-mouth-man, as he jabs an awl into an exposed nerve, to suspect that a certain amount of sadism is involved.”

Holistic- I was trying to find the right word to describe the thing about the culture that interested me the most, the connection that they make between the rituals and effects, which are mainly physical, to the spiritual and social aspects of people’s lives. The word that I would choose to describe this is holistic in the sense that they make different connections of cause and effect between the health of their mouth and other seemingly unrelated aspects of their lives. ” Were it not for the rituals of the mouth, they believe that their teeth would fall out, their gums bleed, their jaws shrink, their friends desert them, and their lovers reject them. They also believe that a strong relationship exists between oral and moral characteristics. For example, there is a ritual ablution of the mouth for children which is supposed to improve their moral fiber.”

Prude- Much of the cultural rituals are about the body and care, which seems to involve hiding the body and avoiding nudity and the body’s natural functions at all costs.” Natural reproductive functions are similarly distorted. Intercourse is taboo as a topic and scheduled as an act. Efforts are made to avoid pregnancy by the use of magical materials or by limiting intercourse to certain phases of the moon. Conception is actually very infrequent. When pregnant, women dress so as to hide their condition.”