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ethnocentrism |
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ethnocentrism, the feeling that one's group has a mode of living, values, and patterns of adaptation that are superior to those of other groups. It is coupled with a generalized contempt for members of other groups. Ethnocentrism may manifest itself in attitudes of superiority or sometimes hostility. Violence, discrimination, proselytizing, and verbal aggressiveness are other means whereby ethnocentrism may be expressed. ethnocentrismTendency to interpret or evaluate other cultures in terms of one's own. Generally considered a human universal, it is evident in the widespread practice of labeling outsiders as “savages” or “barbarians” simply because their societies differ from those of the dominant culture. Early anthropologists often reflected this tendency, as did Sir John Lubbock, who characterized all nonliterate peoples as being without religion, and Lucien Lévy-Bruhl, who found them to have a “prelogical mentality” because their worldview was unlike that of western Europe. The opposite of ethnocentrism is cultural relativism, the understanding of cultural phenomena within the context in which they occur. How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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First, they must realize that it is the epitome of ethnocentrism to expect Arabs to comprehend and convert to an Americanized version of Christianity. prejudice and stereotyping, semantic slanting and emotional appeal, ethnocentrism and national chauvinism, authoritarianism, special interests, special pleading, and patterns of political polemics. It is presumptuous to contend that a two-week stay in a country is long enough to provide one with adequate understanding of that country's culture, however, the downside of not visiting that country at all leaves a vacuum that may sometimes be filled by ignorance, doubt, conjecture, and perhaps ethnocentrism. |
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