RE: Culture of honour

From: david.preiss@yale.edu
Date: Tue Jan 06 2004 - 21:33:16 PST


Culture of Honor: The Psychology of Violence in the South
by Richard E. Nisbett, Dov Cohen (Contributor)

Paperback: 119 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.64 x 9.21 x 6.08
Publisher: Westview Press; (May 1996)
ISBN: 0813319935

Would love to hear opinions about it. When I was checking this book,
there was something about this book´s approach to the issue that made
me feel a bit uncomfortable with its underlying notion of culture. As I
could not figure it out, I abstained to do a final judgement.

Quoting Eugene Matusov <ematusov@udel.edu>:

> Dear David–
>
> Can you provide a reference to Nisbett, R's book about culture of
> honor,
> please?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Eugene
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: david.preiss@yale.edu [mailto:david.preiss@yale.edu]
> > Sent: Tuesday, January 06, 2004 12:37 PM
> > To: xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
> > Subject: Re: Culture of honour
> >
> >
> > There is a book of R. Nissbett about culture of honor and that
> studies
> > southern USA and that may be quite close to what you are looking. I
> do
> > not know the book in detail so I cannot express further opinions
> about
> > it.
> >
> >
> > Quoting Peter Smagorinsky <smago@coe.uga.edu>:
> >
> > > I did not mean to sound offended, but wanted simply to ward off
> > > overgeneralizations on a large and varied region.
> > >
> > > First, people do not agree on what is included in the American
> South.
> > > When
> > > I lived in Oklahoma, some considered it Midwestern, others
> Southern,
> > > others
> > > Southwestern (and that orientation might depend on which part of
> the
> > > state
> > > you lived in--the part bordering Arkansas, the part bordering
> New
> > > Mexico,
> > > the part bordering Kansas). To some Maryland is in the South,
> to
> > > others
> > > not. Many people in Georgia think that my home state of Virginia
> is
> > > in the
> > > North. And many people in southern Virginia do not believe the
> > > Washington
> > > DC metropolitan area (where I grew up) to be part of the South.
> So if
> > >
> > > you're going to talk about the region, you need to consider that
> it's
> > >
> > > ill-defined to begin with.
> > >
> > > Second, many perceptions of the region are based on the
> dominant
> > > culture,
> > > when many other cultures exist. In the South most obviously
> this
> > > would
> > > refer to African American culture, which itself includes a number
> of
> > > social
> > > class distinctions. Metro Atlanta, for instance, has a robust
> > > governing
> > > and entrepreneurial African American social class that is not
> present
> > > in
> > > other parts of Georgia where the legacies of slavery and
> segregation
> > > are
> > > still present and affect economic opportunities for African
> > > Americans. More recently, the large Latino/a immigration has
> brought
> > > new
> > > cultures to the region--I emphasize the plural because of the
> variety
> > > of
> > > nationalities represented (see, e.g., the large Cuban population
> in
> > > Miami
> > > and burgeoning Mexican population in Georgia).
> > >
> > > They say that the South isn't as Southern as it used to be. A
> lot of
> > >
> > > Northerners have relocated to the South because of the
> temperate
> > > climate
> > > and business opportunities. It's still got an unfortunate base
> of
> > > racist
> > > White residents (see the inflammatory debates about the
> Confederate
> > > flag),
> > > both those blatantly hostile and those who discriminate more
> subtly.
> > > But
> > > I've lived in a number of parts of the US and have found racism
> > > everywhere. This is not to excuse Southern racists, only to
> point
> > > out that
> > > they're hardly unique and perhaps more indignant given that not
> long
> > > ago
> > > their prejudices were written into law and they feel that
> they've
> > > lost
> > > their entitlement. In most of the state-wide elections we've
> had
> > > since I
> > > moved here, the candidates who've played the race card have
> lost.
> > >
> > > As for a Southern code of honor, I just don't know. I think
> it's
> > > like a
> > > lot of other legacies (e.g., the Southern tradition of
> civility,
> > > which was
> > > extended only to other Whites), it's part of a heritage that may
> or
> > > may not
> > > have actually been practiced, and is referred to these days
> primarily
> > > in
> > > terms of its loss. But like a lot of other Golden Age concepts,
> it
> > > may
> > > never have existed as strongly as memory suggests.
> > >
> > > Well, hardly a chat analysis, and likely an impressionistic
> ramble,
> > > but my
> > > 2 cents' worth, and worth every penny.
> > >
> > > best,Peter
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > At 04:44 PM 1/6/2004 +0100, you wrote:
> > > >Sorry Peter,
> > > >
> > > >I did not want to offend you or other Southern in any way. I
> guess
> > > it was
> > > >the same generalization as talking about Mediterranean,
> Arabic,
> > > Islamic
> > > >culture of honour. And that is one of my problems to be able
> to
> > > locate it
> > > >clear and distinct, but still it exist floating around and
> showing
> > > its face
> > > >here and there. So Peter, since you are born, raised and live
> in
> > > South and
> > > >work with CHAT what is your reflections on the subject? Can you
> give
> > > me a
> > > >tread to start with?
> > > >
> > > >Yours curious
> > > >
> > > >Hans
> > > >
> > > >Den 04-01-06 16.19, skrev "Peter Smagorinsky"
> <smago@coe.uga.edu>:
> > > >
> > > > > Hans wrote: (I heard that some say that the culture of honour
> in
> > > the South
> > > > > of USA should be somewhat equal to the Arabic?)
> > > > >
> > > > > I have lived more than half of my life in the American South
> and
> > > would say
> > > > > that, while such a strain of belief might exist, it does
> not
> > > characterize
> > > > > the whole region. The South is a large and diverse place,
> in
> > > spite of what
> > > > > you see depicted in the media, which prefers
> Deliverance-style
> > > backwoods
> > > > > caricature (note that almost any character in a movie or TV
> show
> > > with a
> > > > > Southern accent is an idiot).
> > > > >
> > > > > Peter (native of Virginia, current resident of Georgia)
> > > > >
> > > > > At 03:41 PM 1/6/2004 +0100, you wrote:
> > > > >> Hi,
> > > > >>
> > > > >> I am just starting to do an assignment about young people,
> who
> > > are
> > > > attracted
> > > > >> to their own sex, how they are exposed to violence in the
> family
> > > due
> > > > to the
> > > > >> culture of honour. And how the social service and police
> deals
> > > with it. It
> > > > >> is not about what you call the coming-out process and
> problems
> > > around it.
> > > > >> More that the violence towards girls in some family, even
> > > killing,
> > > > have put
> > > > >> a focus that there also could be the same problem for
> young
> > > people who are
> > > > >> attracted to their own sex, living in such families.
> > > > >>
> > > > >> In Sweden we have had the last years two killing of daughter
> by
> > > their
> > > > >> fathers in the name of family honour, since the daughters
> had
> > > Swedish
> > > > >> boyfriends instead of the man to marry that the parents
> have
> > > chosen from
> > > > >> their own culture. In both cases the families have come
> from
> > > rural Middle
> > > > >> East culture. (I heard that some say that the culture of
> honour
> > > in the
> > > > South
> > > > >> of USA should be somewhat equal to the Arabic?) That made
> people
> > > in Sweden
> > > > >> focus on patriarchal family system threatening or
> conducting
> > > violence on
> > > > >> their children in the name of cultural honour. Culture of
> > > honour, in the
> > > > >> violent form, seems to be connected to ³shame-culture²,
> where
> > > the public
> > > > >> esteem is the greatest good and to be ill spoken of the
> greatest
> > > evil. In
> > > > >> the name of this honour-code mostly fathers and brothers
> use
> > > threats of
> > > > >> violence, violence and in extreme cases killing to rule
> over
> > > their
> > > > >> daughters/sisters. In Sweden we think that the same
> condition
> > > exist for
> > > > >> young people who are attracted to their own sex. The
> Government
> > > therefore
> > > > >> have supported funds for this report.
> > > > >>
> > > > >> But since I want to base the report on culturalhistorical
> > > activitytheory I
> > > > >> want to ask following.
> > > > >>
> > > > >> I want to know if someone has done some researched in this
> area?
> > > Since I
> > > > >> want to lift the question away from just Middle
> East/Arabic
> > > culture I need
> > > > >> to focus more about what is building up a culture and in
> this
> > > case the
> > > > >> culture of honour, and especially the culture that cherish
> > > honour more
> > > > than
> > > > >> life. And here I have not yet come across a good
> definition
> > > about culture
> > > > >> out of CHAT. Do you know a good operational one? I have not
> yet
> > > found
> > > > >> something using CHAT to explain family violence - in this
> case
> > > towards
> > > > sons
> > > > >> and daughters because of their sexuality.
> > > > >>
> > > > >> I have found some good thoughts in Lave and Wenger about
> the
> > > learning
> > > > >> process which could be used to describe why the culture of
> > > honour still
> > > > >> exist in families, even though they live in a country that
> do
> > > not
> > > > allow that
> > > > >> kind of law.
> > > > >>
> > > > >> Could anybody help me?
> > > > >>
> > > > >> Yours
> > > > >>
> > > > >> Hans Knutagård
> > > > >> Sweden
> > > > >
> > >
>
>



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