Reference no: EM133742864
Assignment:
Please read the following related to cultural relativism:
"When in Rome, Do as the Romans do."
Who Said It: St. Ambrose
When: 387 A.D.
The Story behind It: When St. Augustine arrived in Milan, he observed that the Church did not fast on Saturday as did the Church at Rome. He consulted St. Ambrose, bishop of Milan, who replied: "When I am at Rome, I fast on a Saturday; when I am at Milan, I do not. Follow the custom of the Church where you are." The comment was changed to "When they are at Rome, they do there as they see done" by Robert Burton in his Anatomy of Melancholy. Eventually it became "When in Rome, do as the Romans do."
© 1975 - 1981 by David Wallechinsky & Irving Wallace
Reproduced with permission from "The People's Almanac" series of books
Very recently, President Nicolas Sarkozy of France said the burqa (enveloping outer garment) was not welcome in his country--that there was no place for it in his society. Though there is still discussion on whether the full-body covering will officially be banned, Muslim women are forbidden to wear headscarves in public institutions, and all other visible religious symbols in public are prohibited as well.
On a news program recently, a French woman expressing the fear she feels when walking down the sidewalk and seeing nothing but the eyes, hands and shoes of another woman--the rest is shroud in black.
On the contrary, Muslim men in the home countries of these shrouded women voiced anger at what they perceived as disrespect and insensitivity towards the religion and lifestyle their female counterparts had chosen; they believed their sisters, mothers and daughters had been dishonored.
When traveling in the more conservative Muslim countries (and this could hold true for lots of non-Muslim countries as well), women with low-cut blouses, bare shoulders, shorts or short skirts will be given a lot of negative attention: from jeers on the street, to sexual advances, threats and being laughed at.
Assignment Guidelines:
1. Briefly define or explain Cultural Relativism
2. How does this theory relate to the age-old saying "When in Rome, do as the Romans do?"
3. Discuss your position on burqas being forbidden in France
- Who is right?
- Which side do you agree with? Why?
- Does the country/dominant culture of France have the moral right to prohibit a Muslim woman from wearing a burqa? Or, should the Muslim population respect the cultural norms of France while living/working in France? Who is right? Why?
4. Identify and clearly explain three examples of cultural relativism in the United States
- State whether your example is one of the "majority" or a subculture "minority"
- What is the behavior?
- How do those "outside" this culture generally view this norm?
5. Lastly, weigh in on Cultural Relativism as a "moral theory?" agree/disagree? Are there limits to the agreement?