Summary FINAL PAPER.edited.docx ANT101 Anthropological Perspective on Mortuary Rituals ANT101: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Introduction If we are to understand other cultures it is imperative to change our perceptions of what is culturally acceptab

FINAL PAPER. ANT101 Anthropological Perspective on Mortuary Rituals ANT101: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Introduction If we are to understand other cultures it is imperative to change our perceptions of what is culturally acceptable and explore cultural rituals from a morally relativistic point of view. It is generally difficult to accept other cultures based on our preconceived notions since we tend to develop ethnocentric viewpoints about our own culture - which is due in part to enculturation. To counteract cultural superiority, it is advantageous to look at our own culture from an etic perspective and another culture from an emic perspective. Throughout this essay, I will perform a cross-cultural analysis on my own culture from an etic perspective, and I will examine another culture from an emic perspective. In cultures around the world, rites of passage are an essential part of eve