NACIREMA

What is your initial impression of Nacirema?

• It’s really a messed up place, especially when women bake heads for about an hour.

• My initial impression is that they are all mentally ill sadists.

• The people…and rituals…are quite disturbing. I think what they do is 100% wrong.

• Quite odd. It’s not things we do here.• They sound very primitive.• The Nacirema culture consists of extreme

dissatisfaction of imperfection and an unnecessary fear of natural functions. Overall they seem ridiculously obsessed with correcting minute imperfections, even if the risks are much worse.

What is your initial impression of Nacirema?

• The Nacirema people are very harsh to one another and put their bodies through extreme circumstances just based upon their beliefs.

• It is an ancient tribe stuck in today’s modern world.

• The Nacirema people were brutes and inhuman because of their rituals.

• I think it is extremely odd and unusual because it is completely different from our morals.

• They are mean. They keep to themselves. Think that they are better.

• It is crazy, absurd, and uncivilized.• My initial impression of the Nacirema is why would

anyone want to live like that?

Would you want to live in Nacirema?

• No…I couldn’t get accustomed to that way of life.• Absolutely not. Women are degraded and their

rituals are absurd.• I would NOT want to live in Nacirema because it

sounds like a very painful, sad life.• No, I feel safer in a country like the USA.• No, because in our society we have easier ways to

stay in good health and appearance, and we are not deathly afraid of being imperfect.

• No…because they have a lot of rules and rituals and some of their rituals and treatment don’t seem safe or humane.

Would you want to live in Nacirema?

• No because they have strange rituals and beliefs that I do not believe in.

• No…they have a lot of strange cultural rituals that virtually have zero purpose. It doesn’t make any sense why they thought up all these things.

• No, they don’t seem to have as much freedom and their activities are more painful.

• No, I would not want to live with the Nacirema because I would not want to have holes put into my teeth, which are perfectly fine as they are.

• No because they think that humans are ugly but yes because they are rich.

• Yeah, their beliefs about magic and all that are so cool.

NACIREMA

AMERICAN

American Values

How am I American,

y’all?

Achievement & Success

Individualism

Activity & Work

Efficiency & Practicality

Science & Technology

Progress

Material Comfort

Humanitarianism

Freedom

Democracy

Equality

Education

Religiosity

Romantic Love

Emerging Values

Leisure

Physical Fitness

Self-Fulfillment

Concern for the Environment