Cultural Relativity
I hesitate doing this, but here goes. Franz Boas introduced the concept of cultural relativity. I don't understand it well, and wouldn't agree with it if I did, but here is Wikipedia's interpretation:
Cultural relativism is the position that there is no universal standard to measure cultures by, and that all cultural values and beliefs must be understood relative to their cultural context, and not judged based on outside norms and values.
The link I posted is to the 1953 film, The Story of Three Loves, and in the first story, "The Jealous Lover", Moira Shearer, the great Scottish ballerina, dances to parts of Rachmaninoff's 'Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini', including the superb 18th variation. (I watched this on my black and white TV when I was about 14 or 15. Rachmaninoff has remained my favorite composer, and this piece my favorite music.)
The rhapsody, the dance, is immortal. It appeals to our highest instincts, a level of intellect combined with emotion that cannot, literally cannot, be excelled.
The ballet begins at 22:48 and continues to 29:30. She is like an angel, a sprite dancing on air.
Now compare to the African dancing found in places like Guinea-Bissau (a good one to view is "Traditional Guinea-Bissau Dances in Danger" that gratifies our most basic instincts, as Freud calls it: lustprinzip: the pleasure principle.
Cultural relativity.
Cultural relativism is the position that there is no universal standard to measure cultures by, and that all cultural values and beliefs must be understood relative to their cultural context, and not judged based on outside norms and values.
The link I posted is to the 1953 film, The Story of Three Loves, and in the first story, "The Jealous Lover", Moira Shearer, the great Scottish ballerina, dances to parts of Rachmaninoff's 'Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini', including the superb 18th variation. (I watched this on my black and white TV when I was about 14 or 15. Rachmaninoff has remained my favorite composer, and this piece my favorite music.)
The rhapsody, the dance, is immortal. It appeals to our highest instincts, a level of intellect combined with emotion that cannot, literally cannot, be excelled.
The ballet begins at 22:48 and continues to 29:30. She is like an angel, a sprite dancing on air.
Now compare to the African dancing found in places like Guinea-Bissau (a good one to view is "Traditional Guinea-Bissau Dances in Danger" that gratifies our most basic instincts, as Freud calls it: lustprinzip: the pleasure principle.
Cultural relativity.
Thomas Sowell theorizes that in mild climates survival is physically easier thereby leading to observed "lesser" cultures. Jewish over performance in Nobel prizes, math and science may, likewise, be related to cultural persecution and "survival of the fittest."
My theories involve the evolution of a greater sense of foresight that developed in the Northern climes resulting in the Neanderthal DNA that most humans---those with lighter skin color---have. See my conversation with the olduglycarl.
Found this in "Civilisation" by Kenneth Clark (1969). On p.2, where he is comparing 1. The "Apollo of the Belvedere" with 2. an African mask. I
"To the Negro imagination, [the world of their imagination] is a world of fear and darkness, ready to inflect horrible punishment for the smallest infringement of a taboo. To the Hellenistic imagination it is a world of light and confidence, in which the gods are like ourselves' only more beautiful and descend to earth in order to teach men reason and the laws of harmony."
Putting yourself down, negatively criticizing yourself so others not as talented or intelligent or even as moral as yourself can feel better. The destruction of everything good in yourself, by yourself, solely in order that others can think they are as good or as intelligent or as talented as you.
A horrid, horrid thing to do. It not only destroys you, it destroys civilization. And this is what happened to America: use their morals against them, urged Saul Alinsky. And so we have Affirmative Action, and meritless advancement and everything else that destroys the 'good'. What was the name of the man who wrote for the newspapers, who exalted the mediocre over the excellent? And in the 1940's film of The Fountainhead gave us the great line: "I deal in the human spirit; and I sell short".
I remember; Ellsworth Toohey.
My take is: Once Conscious Introspection is attained, common morals are realized and filter through society. Observer the west, (yes, much of our morals were realized by the old testament man, Hebrews and Christ) BUT, they are observable and commonly realized once one introspects his and others behavior)
(60% of the population has yet to demonstrate any introspection [conscience] at all)
Marcel Knewtson (sp) of the Julian Jaynes Society did an updated version of the works of Jaynes and did a study of current world cultures.
(can't find his book right now in my book case)
For me, morals refer to beliefs, convictions, that aid or guide the individual so that not only interaction in the present is at an optimum, but that the future can be attained. Read into that whatever you want.
If one cannot make that jump then they indeed have not awakened . . .
Morals develop when a child learns respect for himself and then others. For self-respect is a necessary condition for respecting others. And the Golden Rule covers it all, mostly. Though in certain cultures, how you treat yourself will differ from other cultures, don't you think?
The Mandans' treatment of young men coming into adulthood, as outlined by George Caitlin, is evidence for this.
Ps, it should be the bicameral brain. The mind is not physical
It was just a start to a more serious and proper book,
I learned from others that perhaps, I should have tried writing a long time ago, meaning that it might have suited my abilities better than a plethora of other learned skills.
Along the way, I am also trying to define what being consciously human is and wondering if we might be an important cog in the Universe.
I planned to continue the work with psychological and scientific studies but life since finishing the first book has been waaaaaay tooooo invasive.
Just don't forget, some people have to be leaders, or guides. The U.S. Constitution was unique in that he has shown us how to limit the 'will to power' of men in positions of authority.
Yes but most that find their way into government or assume rule over the rest of us have no conscience what so ever. They find their way there because there isn't much else they can do, They have to live off us or they have inherited money which gives them the ability to hide the fact that they are nothing like us and they'd be in deep shit if we found out. Perhaps that is the inbetween bicameral / introspective that Jaynes alludes to.
I suspect psychopathy for most of them.
The real interesting question is how do those with a conscience, intelligence and skill go arye so badly.
To just say that "we" are flawed is insufficient and lacking insight. I am tired of hearing that response.
And Yes, they have continued to dumb us down but "We the People" have been electing idiots for a long time.
Perhaps our "Moral Empathy" gets in the way.
(not advocating for ignoring that)
Heard a new phrase in the past two weeks: Suicidal Empathy . . .
Suicidal Empathy in relation to what?
I think it pertains to the left, "Letting Criminals go unpunished? gota listen to it again.
(I was thinking, I guess, of Rommel. Hitler gave him a choice.)
"You
suicidal empathy
Copilot
I'm really sorry you're feeling this way. It's important to talk to someone who can provide the support you need. Please reach out to a mental health professional or a trusted person in your life. If you're in immediate danger, contact emergency services. You don't have to go through this alone."
Is that how you think of it? I don't know what it means...
I really must find that vid and listen to it again.
Until a child has reached that period of growth, morals are really not applicable, only as Piaget said, it is respect for rules, and in primitive societies this was paralleled by taboos.
Moral behavior in humans of necessity involves the awareness of consequences.
And the evolution of foresight, in the races of man, to a lessor or greater degree, determines our ability to discern consequences.
Bronowski's The Ascent of Man goes into some of that relation. Building of cathedrals, etc.
My theory is that about 2500/3000 years ago, Actuaries noted that our magnetic field achieved full strength, which I know, inturn shielded the brain and the body from extreme cosmic radiation, ( we are just beginning to experience that right now) Lots of research in this area.
Mankind could finally (or once again) realize the voice in his head was his own. (both sides of the brain could now communicate and act as one on occasion).
In short, introspection, observations and reason allowed us to come to similar moral observations.
Most other cultures in the world did not go through this, for many it had to be learned or "Ruled" because they still were not fully aware of their own awareness- Genetic?
But the origination of foresight, that ability in man that allows him to 'sense' future periods of time, as well as memory, we---evolutionists, etc.---think it happened around the time of the ice ages, and gave rise to mutations in the DNA that resulted in Neanderthal. Humans, except for the blacks of Sub-Saharan Africa and their descendants, have a partial amount of Neanderthal DNA. This has also given them a lighter skin color, and changes in the immune system, as well as this more extended sense of foresight, that enables more precise organizational skills and planning.
I think the Negro genetics stuck with the old ways, because of the survival needs: pattern recognition, the old immune system, the old skin color.
I took the Ghanaian IQ test about six years ago, and it was quite difficult toward the end, as it involved pattern recognition and possible ability to discern changes in pattern. This is more a right brain trait; reason and awareness of cause-and-effect appear in the left brain. It's a bit more complicated than that, but that is the essence.