Anthropology Assignment
This assignment is inspired by Horace Miner’s (1955) fieldwork among the Nacirema people.
• Objective: To understand the discursive and imaginative practices related to the relative ease of exoticizing or “othering” groups of people.
• Outcome: An imaginative and creative essay that directly engages the kinds of practices that anthropologists seek to avoid.
For your essay, pick a group, subculture, or a specific cultural practice that seems very “normal” to you in in everyday Nacirema/American life. This should be
something that you do, or a group you are a member of, or an activity that you are familiar with. It can be a fraternity, coffee shop, shopping, classroom, Miami U,
gamers, jocks, eating at the Bell Tower, whatever. Almost anything.
Write a description of this group or practice, making it seem very exotic or strange. You may upload an image if you like (this could even help you out and be a fun
part of the activity). Make sure to think about your writing strategies that highlight “Othering” in your work. Use language that makes these practices seem less and
less familiar (i.e. “potions” for the contents of a medicine cabinet, or analyzing witchcraft among baseball players).
Appx. 1 page (500 words) single spaced. It may be best to copy & paste from a word processing app.
As with all “Activities” in this course, you will be evaluated on a 10-point scale. See the Activity Rubric for details. Generally for Activities, points will be
allocated in the following categories:
1. Anthropological Perspectives (2)
2. Course Concepts (2)
3. Examples (2)
4. Effort & Follows Instructions (2)
5. Writing, Style, & Organization (2)
