Culture Contradictions

Without ever attending Dimensions of Culture, one could safely assume that the word contradiction is a statement or proposition that is logically incongruous. However, the term contradiction in Dimensions of Culture holds a significantly different meaning but still is a close cousin to the term most are familiar with. The key difference between the DOC term and the colloquial term is the connotation of the terms. As defined in the DOC reader, “Contradictions are present in all cultures and permeate every ideological formation. The tensions produced by contradictions [...] ultimately facilitate social change” (DOC Teaching Staff, 1). The second part of the definition is the most essential part because it highlights that contradictions in society …show more content…
Therefore, contradictions in terms of the DOC method of analysis hold an inherently positive connotation and purpose. One infamous example of a contradiction in the United States is the societal ideal of equality in tension with the lived reality of the institution of slavery. One of the many influential men and women who exposed this age old contradiction was the abolitionist John Brown. Although Brown was a white man, he was infuriated by the inhumane way that the slaves were being treated like chattel and set out to eliminate the immoral institution. Fueled by that fury, he eventually wrote A Declaration of Liberty by the Representatives of the Slave Population of the United States of America in order to call out the contradictions promised in the Declaration of Independence. Throughout this document, Brown uses a very sarcastic and mocking tone by closely emulating the style of the original Declaration in order to effectively point out the social ideals that it promises yet fails to deliver. The first sentence reads “When in the course of Human events, it becomes necessary for an oppressed people to Rise, and assert their Natural Rights” (Brown,