Summary Of Distant Mirrors: America As A Foreign Culture

When living in our day to day culture and environment we tend to not look at the way we operate as a society. We also take an ethnocentric point of view when looking at another cultures day to day operations. The book, “Distant Mirrors: America as a Foreign Culture by Phillip R. DeVita & James D. Armstrong” is a compilation of essays written by anthropologists that ask questions about American cultures and values. It is important to have a grasp on the values and beliefs of your own culture as well as others and take an ethnographic approach (Amazon.com, 2015). After reading this book I learned that there were a few recurring themes in the essays. These themes were the American social relationships, individuality, and how Americans pride themselves on their own personal gain. …show more content…
He described it as a “Land of great success, cradle of democracy, and unrestrained jungle of competition with a model to follow” This refers to the economic model of capitalism with little government interference with businesses. Ramos describes several experiences where he felt as if this was contradicted, especially when it came to the usual U.S custom of tipping. As an American citizen I find this act odd myself. Restaurant employees make money solely from tips, they are not paid by the employer for the work that they do, and they are paid by the customers. In the essay Ramos explained that he was puzzled by this social norm because he saw American life as, “Full of merit, success, and justice, to give a tip humiliates someone.” I still cannot explain why some jobs pay only cash