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The Social Construction of the Civilized World

It is interesting to note how Schneebaum posed the idea that the Akarams viewed him wearing clothing just as if people in our society would view a person naked. This total change in the way of looking at people does not really catch Schneebaum off guard as much as if someone from the center of our American society were completely immersed in the Akarama culture. It is the American constructed idea that in order to be civilized, people need to have an almost fear of the bodies of others, especially that of children.
             Newman gives a very clear example of this fear in the beginning of chapter seven. He talks of the case of Kelly Michaels, where a mild-mannered, devout Catholic who loved children (Newman 175) was accused of numerous forms of sexual abuse towards the children under her care at a preschool. Newman points out that the fear that their children might have been sexually abused caused many parents to begin to automatically make assumptions and behave without trying to clearly determine what happened. This point can easily show that those parents believe that for a society to be civilized it must maintain a certain level of physical separation to all but the most immediate family members. Even though Schneebaum is subjected to physical behavior that would be classified by the parents in the Michaels" story as totally uncivilized, he never fails to mention that the emotional ties being forged between him and the Akaramas are more powerful than most he has ever had in his lifetime.
             Another difference that the society of the Akaramas has from ours is the way they look at death. It took nearly ten to twelve weeks before Schneebaum realized that he hadn't noticed any deaths among the entire tribe. He did notice that a couple of the women who used to be pregnant are no longer carrying their children, but they also don't seem to be visibly caring for any infants. This seems to suggest that they had miscarriages, but that such an incident is not reacted to in such a way as we Americans are accustomed to.


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