Video

The American ‘Ethnic’ Food Section
An American visits a grocery store in Berlin and explores the “ethnic” foods aisle and its selection of American foods—macaroni and cheese, blueberry muffin mix, barbecue sauce, and so on.

Questions to Consider:

  1. Do you think of macaroni and cheese, barbecue sauce and the other products shown in the video as being “ethnic” foods? Why or why not?
  2. Why would a grocer in Berlin stock these things?
  3. How is food a part of a society or group’s “personality”? What do these foods in particular say about U.S. culture?

Andrew Eats Maggot Cheese
Excerpt from the Travel Channel’s “Bizarre Foods.” Featured in the segment: cheese that contains maggots (a regional delicacy in Sardinia) and the slaughter of an animal.

Questions to Consider:

  1. Does this show seem to reflect a relativist or ethnocentric view? Explain your answer.
  2. Why do you think that the host looked apologetic when he said that he liked the cheese and when he said that he “likes liver”?

Wife’s Wish: Bury Me in the Front Yard
A man runs into legal difficulties when he tries to fulfill his late wife’s wish to be buried at home, on their property.

Questions to Consider:

  1. What burial norms are being violated?
  2. Several reasons for burying a body in a cemetery are mentioned. What are these? Do they sound “reasonable”? Explain your answer.
  3. Would all cultures object to a family member being buried at his or her home?

From Jesus to Christ - The First Christians
This program considers the beginnings of Christianity. Over the course of four hours, scholars discuss recent archaeological findings that provide clues about the life of Jesus and his early followers.

Questions to Consider:

  1. Explain early Christianity as a religious subculture.
  2. How does an “academic” or “scholarly” approach to the study of a religion differ from “common” or “everyday” approaches to understanding a religion?

Gospel of Intolerance
Many evangelical Christians believe that the culture war against sexual “immorality” has been lost in the US and so they have decided to focus their efforts on African nations. This New York Times video looks at the influence of the evangelical Christian movement in African nations, such as Uganda.

Questions to Consider:

  1. What role does money play in these efforts?
  2. Why have evangelical Christians focused their attentions on the continent of Africa?
  3. How does a religion “change” when it is exported from one culture to another? Is the religion also changed in the process?