Appiah The Sense Of Culture

Submitted By tygafgen
Words: 585
Pages: 3

The United States of America, in our eyes, is often viewed as a strong and well-built country. Unfortunately, other countries don’t see us as being strong at all, well, in the sense of culture and society. Kwame Anthony Appiah gives perfect examples as to why we have cultural issues. The main argument in his essay is that we sweat the little things and don’t worry about bigger issues in the world. Martha Nussbaum tries to show a patriotic and worldwide connection to society. If America could stop arguing over whether or no a movie was good or bad and focus their attention on others than themselves, then maybe, just maybe, there is a brighter future. In order to connect ourselves with the world, we must connect as a society. Appiah tries to show that society should have a wider understanding of other cultures. We must learn and accept people’s differences. It’s almost like the golden rule, “Treat people the way you want to be treated”. Why should we judge other peoples differences when they can do the same thing to you? This is what is separating society as a whole. We are more concerned about unimportant things such as a movie or a game, rather than a serious issue, like crime or even our environment. “…When we disagree, it wont always be because one of us just doesn’t understand the value that’s at stake” (Appiah, 666). Appiah is trying to say when people disagree, its not only because they don’t know what’s at stake, but its because of judgment and discretion against the argument. America is possibly the most judgmental country in the world. If someone is different from us or lives a different lifestyle, we automatically judge them without thinking. We don’t know what they have been through to get to where they are today. If America were to put down the iPhone and high-class technology and learn about other cultures other than our own, then we can have to be a positive connection to our world. Martha Nussbaum, on the other hand, argues whether children should be taught in education to be patriotic or cosmopolitan. For me, I 100% agree that children should be taught in a cosmopolitan manner first, then in a patriotic manner