Cannibalism

We could infer from the paragraph that different cultures have various burial customs. Not all civilizations will esteem and tolerate the values and customs of other cultures. For instance, eating the dead would be considered cannibalism in certain societies, and despite how awful it may seem, it is unacceptable to criticize their cultural traditions because no society has a higher moral code than another. The act of humans eating the internal organs of other humans is known as cannibalism. Despite the disagreement on the authenticity and prevalence of cannibalism in various societies, this activity is vehemently opposed in many cultures. These same cultures may condemn people who engage in vendetta since they would term it as an act of murder. Ethically, it would be unjust to label such cultural practices as wrong due to no universal standards explaining what is right from wrong. Consequently, some cultural practices like cannibalism and recognition of vendetta are just wrong and unjust so it would be hypocritical to accept such cultures regardless of them being embedded in the moral fiber of some cultures. It therefore begs the question of whether we can universally agree on an acceptable moral code.

Some cultures have a long history of women oppression and due to respect of other cultures, it has been difficult to intervene and stop the prolonged treatment of women as second class citizens. Patriarchy has been practiced since time immemorial. It comes in different forms such as overexploitation, sexual division of labor, domination/absence of rights, violence and other forms of physical abuse. Cultural chauvinism is continuously practiced and accepted in different cultures. Cherished by right-wing extremists, such cultures emphasize on the idea that separate is equal (Vogel & Ferguson, 2013).

Besides, gender equality activists have been unable to penetrate some of these cultures due to absence of a universal moral code. They will explain that male species is more superior to the female species and therefore entitled to power. This claim remains disputable on the grounds that no gender or race is coded as superior to another and they would be contradicting the moral ethics of equality and zero prejudice. Women oppression is therefore unacceptable in all cultures since it goes against equality (Vogel & Ferguson, 2013).

Also known as ethnocentrism, judging another culture by its sole values and standards is not only overt but it is also considered a natural proclivity. People born into certain cultures grow up absorbing standards and behaviors. If people then experience other cultures, they find the thought patterns of other people to be inappropriate or far from the norm. Examples of ethnocentrism include religioccentric, cultural and other social constructs.

In understanding other people’s cultures, self-reflection is critical. Self-reflection starts with absorbing knowledge about the extents of different cultures and applying such well-versed generalizations to our own culture. Thereafter, we cultivate a baseline which makes us make effective comparisons on cultural differences. This can be integrated into a pattern of learned beliefs that can be shared among different style of communicating.

To conclude, judging something as right or wrong is only attached to certain standards. Different cultures have different standards depending on their level of belief. We should not criticize the practices of other cultures as this is simply taking standards intrinsic to our very own practices. More so, it is disrespectful and intolerant because no group of people have the right to impose morality on another culture.

References

Vogel, L., & Ferguson, S. (2013). Marxism and the oppression of women: Toward a unitary theory. Leiden: Brill.