Persuasive Essay On Cultural Diversity

Nowadays, with the booming of overwhelming globalization, cultural diversity has been a burning topic, which is discussed frequently among the public. Many people argue that practices and beliefs in other cultures that are against ethics and human rights, such as cannibalism in Wari’, clitoridectomy in Africa and the Middle East, or anal sex in Marind-anim are wrong and should be abandoned, or even abolished. However, there is no accurate definition related to the judgment of cultures. That is, western culture is not superior to others’, though some of the tribes have controversial and ethical issues. What is more, every culture deserves our objective respect, because of the characteristics of culture, cultural rights and cultural relativism.

To begin with, “all people are cultured, and all people have culture” (Gezon& Kottak, 2014, 21). People who grow up in a certain society share common religions, beliefs and values. They are influenced by their own cultural standards so that they have biases when encountered with other different cultures. Additionally, even though the custom of eating corpses among Wari seems to be unreasonable and cruel, it is still a way to show appreciation to their dead loved ones. The public should not criticize it when people have not experienced the other culture’s life in person. Finally, some people argue that all human beings should change their customs and behaviors on the basis of western cultural standards so that they can become “civilized” or “modern”. These statements are impractical and unrealistic, because “if one part of the system (the overall economy, for instance) changes, other parts change as well” (Gezon& Kottak, 2014, 21). In other words, if the whole world is westernized, the western culture will be no longer being what it used