ETHNOCENTRISM
Now it’s your turn to be ethnocentric. Our perspective all depends
on which glasses we put on.
Remember: It’s a habitual disposition to judge other cultures by the
standards and practices of one’s own culture….often finding the other
culture inferior.
You have to step into the shoes and put on the glasses of a white
explorer in 1650. You were probably Christian – and very strict at
that. All you’d ever known was the white Puritanical European
culture you left behind. In your mind, run through the 7 culture
markers – what is your perspective?
You don’t really want to leave the security of your homeland but you
have strong religious and economic reasons to do so. Besides you know
that these people are “savages” and need your help.
Your task is to create a speech for your countrymen.
Use the document packet to prove to the folks at home just how
“uncivilized” these native Africans are.
Again, anchor every statement with 3 pieces of concrete
information from the sources.
Use the 7 culture markers to guide you. You will share portions of
your speech.
Hear Ye, hear ye. Fellow friends and countrymen gather round and hear
what I have to say. I have been to a strange and wonderful land and
have so much to share. The natives of this land do not worship God –
indeed, they do not even acknowledge the true church…………instead
they live under the misguided understanding that their loved ones are
not with the Lord in heaven but instead are somehow all around them in
the natural world. They have a poem that states……..