Body Rituals Among the Nacirema

　　In “Body Rituals Among the Nacirema”, an article by Horace Miner, he describes a culture that appears to be almost uncivilized. At first, I found myself to be ethnocentric when I read the article, believing that Nacirema was a barbaric and crude society. However, after reading the article several times, I began to identify with the rituals and found that I perform many of them myself. The article uses metaphors to describe the rituals of Nacirema that initially leads one to believe they are a crude and masochistic society. When one delves deeper into the meaning of the rituals, we will realize that the rituals of Nacirema, which is American spelled backwards, is not only similar to our culture, it is our culture.

　　Miner’s article describes the people of Nacirema as a society that pays special attention to economy, wealth, health and personal appearance rituals that are performed to keep one looking aesthetically pleasing, which is not unlike the American society. Many of the Nacirema rituals are those that many Americans practice. These rituals tend to focus toward the human body. “They believe it is ugly and its natural tendency is to debility and disease.” (Miner, 1956) Miner tells us that each home has at least one or more shrine, and when translated, it is in reference to a bathroom. As with Nacirema, many of our rituals performed in the bathroom, where we also have a “chest in the wall”, known to us as a medicine cabinet, is where we go to take care of our body and mouth in private (Miner, 1956). This is also where many keep their “curative potions”, or as we call them, prescriptions, that are given to us by “medicine men” or doctors (Miner, 1956)

　　Miner goes on to describe the Nacirema ritual of a daily mouth-rite that is performed by inserting “a small bundle of hog hairs into the mouth, along with certain magical powders” (Miner, 1956). When I first read this, I felt disgust, until I realized they were brushing their teeth.

The Nacirema also seek out a “holy-mouth-man” once or twice a year to help prevent or stop decay of the mouth, even though it may cause pain (Miner, 1956). Miner uses this as a comparison to our visits with a dentist and the trepidation that many feel when going.

The article goes on to tell us that there are temples, known as latipso, where people go when they are sick. Many of the ceremonies performed at these temples involve extreme discomfort and pain. A person will be denied treatment though, unless they have a gift to pay for services. This description is a comparison to our hospitals, which provide treatment for those who are ill. Although the treatments provided to heal patients can be painful, such as surgeries or certain