Nacirema Culture Analysis

Many of the practices Miner mentions in the article aren’t really strange to the Nacirema culture. But an outsider views the practices as odd. For example, Miner mentions about a shrine box, which translate to a medicine cabinet being strange to the outsider. The charms and magical potions in the shrine box being the medicine needed cure the ills and maladies of an individual. Medicine had a purpose of curing those maladies for many with similar ills. But the outsider views pulling out these magical packets is not something done in their culture or rather not seen as necessary. These charms and magical potions are given to the people by the medicine men, or rather doctors, psychiatrists, and pharmacists. Another strange practice to the outsider is the belief in the
But when an outsider sees in these practices may appear more harmful than helpful, there forth the mouth-rites are strange to them and do not appeal to them. Even the distinct part of a men only ritual is strange. Such as the rite that involves the scraping of the surface along the face with a sharp blade. In which case is just a normal shaving for the people of Nacirema. To continue, another practice viewed upon an outsider as strange is the medicine men’s temple or latipso. The truth of the matter is that Miner is talking about hospitals, but without an h and spelled backwards. He then mentions that these latipso’s are in every community of any size and perform ceremonies on very ill patients. To an outsider, these latipso’s are “a place you go to die”, just as Miner states in his article. Strongly, because an outsider may not have enough riches to give these guardians (doctors, nurses, etc.) of the temple. And there forth are less likely of a better chance to survive the ceremonies to cure the sick patient. However, even when the medicine men’s cure may kill a few people it does not decrease any faith people hold for the medicine