Essay Homework #2 - 21st Century

I think there's every reason this 21st century will be much happier. 

-Dalai Lama

As we move into the 21st century, there's what the Bible calls a 'quickening of the spirit.'

-Neale Donald Walsch

It is now 2013. Not a few more years and a decade had humanity celebrated its two thousandth year of existance. Another beginning of the century has brought great motivation for humanity to develope itself. Possessing a constantly curious and progressive nature, humans created expectations to themselves of more accomplishments. And as the century moved on, there showed much more indications and allusions of new changes.



One of the major changes which happened in the 21st century was the advance in daily technology. Merely fifty years ago, people didn't imagine more than 80 percent of us would use something called computers and cell phones. Nowadays, computer companies plan to create touch-laptops and artificially intelligent computers which can be easily used by the handicapped. Televisions are now almost all colored and contain much more channels with the development of satellites. Robots which resemble limbs now support the dismembered or carry out dangerous works in factories. As such, technology is now progessing to the fullest, and thus will achieve facilities in the society while providing greater qualities of life.



Meanwhile, there were greater advance in scientific and medical field of technology. In 1999, NASA reported that by 2020, humans will have advanced enough to make 'real space travels', by 2025, create technology which enables humanity to be able to survive in another planet, and by 2050, people could go to outer space for a honeymoon. Moreover, an American science magazine, the Popular Science, stated that the extensive meical research such as stem cell research will significantly increase the human longevity up to 150 years only by 2040. With this speed, the human population will be able to spread elsewhere in space while also increasing in lifespan.



Finally, the enhancements in technology has brought a society which is dependent upon the internet and the cyber space. One of the significant difference is the economic use of the internet. Online payments occur regularly, and people are able to freely shop inside their homes while their orders are delivered by the internet. Moreover, SNS such as Facebook and Twitter allows the whole world to be connected by a single media source. Furthermore, superficial surgeries and medical information are planned to be provided by the net so that citizens do not have to wait desperately in an emergency. Other services such as food delivery or music are already in use. The significance of this cyber society is that everything has become fast. New and improvised services are provided in a very short time, while the quality of life enhances even more with the development of technology. However, nobody can predict the future. There is likely to be objects, systems, or materials that will later be invented, created, discovered in the future. It is only the beginning of the 21st century, and yet humans have advanced in an amazing pace. Like such, the rest of the century is a mysteriously bright ray of light to humanity.

Nacirema?? - Perception

Perception

"...The Nacirema have 'private-mouth-rite(s)' which involve putting hog hairs into their mouths...revolting..."



"....Nacirema men appear to cause hurt to their faces daily."



"...Nacirema women have been observed to 'bake their heads in small ovens', 'four times during each lunar month'..."

Strange rituals, right? You might believe these people may be crazy to practice such weird ceremonies. However, you should examine the descriptions extremely well. What the previous statements actually mean are brushing teeth, shaving, and getting the hair done. Moreover, 'Nacirema' actually means 'American', but only spelled backwards! But don't worry; more than ninety percent of people would also think of some uncivilized people making strange, ridiculous rituals when first reading this article.

When I first read this writing, I was also interested by the somewhat strange culture of some weird tribe. It only seemed like an uncivilized culture of some native American community. I thought the article truly represented the culture and rituals of a totally different group of people, separated from the modern world.




However, I was absolutely amazed and shocked by the fact that I saw such simple things human do in real life as something revolting from a different point of view. It was very interesting, that so many people would delude themselves just because of the writing style. Actually, it was such a simple thing that it made me feel stupid. (But Mr. Menard told us that it was very normal of us to feel so.) However, the use of rhetoric is ever so brilliant that a lot of people are simply fooled.

Meanwhile, it made me think deeply about how the way we perceive things in the world can make something simple look so different. Never did I imagine that 'perspective' took such a big part of how we take in the world. It made me think, 'perhaps, we all are looking through this translucent glass'. Perhaps, we all have a certain type of 'translucent glass' that makes us take a look at objects with certain perspectives. That would be the cause of discriminations and prejudices which happen in the world.

For instance, Koreans - they eat dogs. (Of course, as the years passed, Koreans started to think of it less a culture, but it is still practiced in many regions and causes issues) And what do other countries think about it? They consider it rather disgusting and uncivilized. However, for Koreans, the way they eat dogs is just the same as eating chickens, cows, or pigs; they consider them domestic animals. Moreover, in Switzerland, it is considered okay to spit in the streets, while in Korea, it is considered very rude to do so.

As such, it seems that Horace Miner wanted to reflect how people and nations had certain views, or perspectives in other matters, and how it made them see things differently. Personally, I hope the readers who had read the 'Nacirema' text would try to change the way they observe other nations and understand the cultural differences.