Did I go overboard?

I have to do a paper for my Sociology class on a group of people known as the Machuaginga... We had to do it using Ethnocentrism (judging another culture by your own standards and norms), but I think I may have taken it a little too far. It's very difficult for me to think ethnocentrically, let alone write that way... So I had to be very sarcastic... Just wondering what you guys thought. ((Keep in mind that this paper is not inteded to be taken seriously))

Let me just start off by saying, what kind of name is Machuaginga, anyways?! If it means “The People,” then why don’t they just call themselves people? I understand that not everyone speaks English, although they should, but c’mon, Machuaginga? That really is a mouthful! I really could write a whole page on why Machuaginga (*chuckle*) is just a dumb name for a people to use, but I need to cover the other idiocies I have witnessed while watching a documentary on them. I’m all for freedom of expression, but put some clothes on your kids over there! Not only is it unsanitary to be running around nekkid, but I just don’t want to see it. I don’t really care how hot or humid it is, they really should be wearing some sort of garment, just so I don’t have to see such things when I watch the documentaries! Let’s go on to other parts of their home life, shall we? The Machuaginga (*chuckle*) live in extended families out in the middle of nowhere. Judging from the fact that they have trouble always having enough food for their whole group, it seems wrong that they would live in extended families. Why let everyone starve when a smaller group could sustain themselves without trouble? Next, we see how they have all sorts of animals running around their… home… I guess.. If you could call it that… An open-air, straw-roofed structure is what they live in… Anyways, I digress. They have all sorts of animals running about the area, eating whatever, and interacting with the people. I’m fine with animals like dogs and cats; those are normal, right? But these people have huge Tapirs running around inside their… homes… And being really close to the nekkid children. I know I wouldn’t want my kids anywhere near one of those dangerous creatures (especially not nekkid)! Oh, and get this; they believe the Tapirs are their dead ancestors reincarnate! Wow… Unbelievable. Not only do they believe this, but they also hunt these things, not just tame them! So they could actually be hunting Grandma… ew. ‘C’mon kids, Grandma’s almost done… Just a few more minutes over the fire.’ Again, I digress… These people take care of the baby animals of any mother animals they kill. So, if they go and kill Grandma.. err… A Tapir… They will take care of that particular Tapir’s offspring until they are old enough to go on their own. That’s just a wee bit more of a waste of their precious food, dontcha think? Speaking of food, they have the oddest tastes, if I may say so. They will go out and hunt monkeys all day long, sometimes traveling more than twenty-five miles in a day just to find a monkey. … A monkey! Seems like it would be rather stringy meat, to me. More often than not, they will actually come home empty handed! They also eat these enormous grub thingies that they extract from felled trees… ew. The Elders of their families are the wise ones, as they say. We get to see some of their Shamans, one of which is busy shooting ground tobacco up his nose. Very wise, huh? They believe that they can use plants to gain access to other “planes” of existence. In other words, they believe that getting stoned is a good thing. Herbalism isn’t entirely bad, the Machuaginga (*chuckle*) have discovered well over 300 medicinal plants that we are just beginning to examine. They just like to use some of them to get high. Granted, so do many Americans, but that’s really not the point. Anyways, I thought it was a waste of time looking at, and writing a paper about, some backwards people that live thousands of miles away that I’ll never have to meet… But that’s just my opinion, I could be wrong.



Comments?

[Chris B]

and now write a conradiction of your own "essay", mate.

Done, and, done.

The Machuaginga people of South America were a very interesting culture to study. In watching a documentary on them, I learned quite a bit about their culture. One of the first things we learned was that the name Machuaginga actually means “the people” in their native tongue. These people live in extended families in the middle of the rainforest, and are more than able to sustain themselves. They usually live with many animals that they take care of, the most notable of which is the large, almost elephant like, Tapir. The Machuaginga believe that when they die, their souls go into a Tapir, and live on that way. They take good care of their pet Tapirs, but they also will hunt Tapirs for food. In this way, they keep the so-called “circle of life” going. If they kill the mother of an animal, they will take care of the mother’s babies until they are ready to be released back into the wild, although many such animals tend to stick around for the remainder of their lives, having the “imprint” of humans on their personality and their normal abilities. They also go out and hunt for monkeys regularly, sometimes traveling up to twenty-five miles on one hunt. Many times they will come back empty-handed, but such is the life of a Machuaginga hunter. They will also eat very large grubs that they extract from felled trees. They have been described as tasting like a soft cheese. They seem to be big enough that a few of these could sustain a person for a little while at least. The Machuaginga people are excellent herbalists, knowing of more than 300 medicinal plants in their area alone. Most of these plants are just now being identified by Western medicine, and some of them are still unknown to us! The Machuaginga are a Shamanistic people, and use some of these plants to contact ethereal planes. They believe that the use of some of these plants will help them on their hunting trips, and it seems like it works for them. These people were extremely interesting to learn about, as their culture is completely different from my own. I would have liked to learn more about these people.

[Chris B]

much better