Post on 21-Dec-2015
Taboos Across Culture
By Matthew Lubaszka
Norms
• Folkways- socially acceptable customs
• Mores- norms associated with morality
• Laws- formal rules
Definition
• The dictionary defines a taboo as something that is forbidden by culture or tradition
• Sociological definition is “something that is absolutely forbidden
Taboos in America
• Asking someone how much they earn
• Not tipping at a restaurant
• Child abuse
• Murder
• Cannibalism
• Incest
Taboos in America
• Asking someone how much they earn
• Not tipping at a restaurant
• Child abuse
• Murder
• Cannibalism
• Incest
Incest Taboo
• Reason of its existence
• Shrinking in the United States
• China’s loophole
Universal Gestures
• No Such Thing
Globalization
• Dangers of misinterpretation
• Mixture of cultures
Pictures (in order from left to right)
• The Sign is in the Air, and The Air is Everywhere by DiaTM
• Thumbs Up!!! By pie4dan• Taboo by Mercuriain• Chinese flag by Rose Davies • Cake by saucy_pan • Under The Eiffel : Unspoken (Part 2) By jay-chill• Breaking the law, Breaking the law by bitzclet
Works Cited • Cohen, Yehudi. “The Disappearance of the IncestTaboo” 27
September 2009 <http://www.ndnu.edu/aboutus/mission_diversity/documents/Cohen-DisappearanceoftheIncestTaboo>
• CliffsNotes.com. Cultural Norms. 27 September 2009 <http://www.cliffsnotes.com/WileyCDA/CliffsReviewTopic/topicArticleId-26957,articleId26853.html>
• Brooks, Amir “A Clear Guide to Islam” 26 September 2009 <http://www.bahagia.btinternet.co.uk/customs.htm#hand>
• Wolf, Arthur P. “Adopt a daughter-in-law, Marry a Sister, A Chinese Solution to the Problem of the Incest Taboo” American Anthropologist, New Series, Vol. 70, No. 5 (Oct., 1968), pp. 864-874. Blackwell Publishing < http://www.jstor.org/stable/669753>
• Banutu-Gomez, Michael. Africa: we owe it to our ancestors, our children, and ourselves. Pg 71-72 Lanham, MD : Hamilton Books. 2006