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Horace Miner's Article 'Body Ritual Among The Nacirema'

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Summary of Miner's Article on Nacirema In Horace Miner’s article "Body Ritual among the Nacirema," he describes the peculiar customs of a North American group known as the Nacirema. This group exhibits unique behaviors centered around the human body, which they believe is inherently ugly and prone to disease. They employ various rituals and ceremonies to maintain health and beauty, many of which seem strange to outsiders. Peculiar and unusual customs The Nacirema have a highly developed market economy, but a significant portion of their time is devoted to ritual activities focusing on the body. Each household has shrines dedicated to these rituals. The wealthier members have more elaborate shrines, often decorated with pottery plaques. Within these shrines, a charm box is kept, filled with magical potions and charms prescribed by medicine men. The …show more content…

The holy water is obtained from the community’s Water Temple, where priests purify it through elaborate ceremonies. The Nacirema also have specialists called "holy-mouth men" who perform rituals to maintain oral health, which they believe is crucial for social relationships. These rituals involve inserting hog hairs and magical powders into the mouth, which can appear revolting to outsiders. More severe rituals are performed in a temple known as the latipso, where medicine men and vestal maidens conduct harsh treatments on the sick. Despite the discomfort and pain, the Nacirema people continue to seek these treatments, demonstrating their deep faith in the rituals. Miner’s Definition of Culture Miner defines culture through the lens of rituals and customs. He focuses on how these practices reveal the underlying beliefs and values of the Nacirema. The emphasis is on the body's appearance and health, illustrating a unique cultural ethos that sees the body as inherently flawed and in need of constant

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These “boxes or chest” contains “many charms or magical potions” which mean medicine, prescribed by the “medicine men” or the doctors in an “ancient and secret language” or the fuzzy penmanship of the doctors which is understood only by the medicine men. The temple of these “medicine men” is called the “lapisto” or hostpital where wealthy sick natives come for treatment. Under these boxes is a “small font” or the faucet and the sink which every member of the family “bows his head before it and splashes holy water” which is purified by the “priests”. Rituals such as “mouth rites” where Naciremans “insert a small bundle of hog hairs in their mouths” also symbolize the brushing of teeth every American does. Once or twice a year, because of the Nacirema’s great care for mouth care, they seek a “holy-mouth-man” or a dentist to “exercise the evils of the mouth” or remove tooth

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Originally published in 1956, Body Ritual of the Nacirema is an article written by world renowned anthropologist Horace Miner. In this article, Miner tells of his encounters with a Native American Tribe located between Canada and Mexico. This tribe is a culture obsessed with rituals that rely heavily on the image of their body and how it is judged by other individuals. The Nacirema believe that the body is ugly, and only through daily rituals can one find happiness and prosperity. In the article, Miner describes the “rituals” that all of the members must attend in order to be accepted by society and the different superstitious habits that the members take part in.

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