Richard Shweder's Talk

Richard Shweder's talk on 4-2-2012

1)   Identify Richard Shweder’s major themes and key points?

-       Shweder started out talking about robust cultural pluralism and the three prophecies that shaped society. 

-       Prophecies 1: view of globalization (Francis)

-       “Witnessing the end of history, the end point of man kind ideological evolution, the universalization of western democracy as the final form of human government” (new world replacing old world)

-       Civilization project: universal ideal civilization

-        US everyone is hyphenated, American way of life should be universalize because US is the Best and is the only civilization

-       David miller (left) talking about people attachment to their own community

-       “Nation stretch backward and their origins are lost, various event have occur…community of obligation, we are born into it have a obligation.”

-       Roger (philosopher of right) “since enlightenment it is normal for European to think of society as a contract, implies that social membership is free choice and 2^nd all member of society is currently living, care of the dead and unborn goes hand in hand.”

-       Prophecies 2:free trade and globalization

-       Ex: trade where people lived in different lands and made goods that the other island liked. Meeting at the borders and have the goods go? No one questions about how the good is made?

-       Eventually leading into investment and legal systems

-       Civic Jewish community came to US after WW2, settle in Brooklyn, (Jo L), reproducing life in 18 century Hungary in New York, created school system lead to issues of violation of separation of church and state

-       Prophecies 3: people in course of human history the modern nation state is more likely to be an acceptation

-       People lived in empire, return to a global empire, have better features of ottoman empire

-       Ex: 22 different people, weak central state collected taxes and prevent others from getting into other’s territory. Given local control.

-       Was no standard family life

-       Jews: kick out of Spain and Portugal in 1492 found empire welcoming, protected and given local control

-       World system: pushing toward a cosmetician elite, run world system come from different backgrounds. Allow local control. Have exit visa.

2)   What kinds of indicators would help you to predict the direction of global change?

-       Equality versus diversity where one country can never have both because it will be like a utopian idea

-       Modern technology: TV cellphone brought into India (Hindu national movement started because of TV)

-       Civilization project: critiquing that we remove barbaric society and moving toward universal ideal civilization  

3)   How important is culture in shaping economic outcomes? Give some specific examples.

-       Culture is important in that it can create a society of people to have a common way of living

-       Ex: 18^th century Hungary life in New York

-       Richard’s example was the story of trade in prophecies 2

Different culture can trade with each other without questioning where the goods came from

-       Thomas McCally: education system turning Indians into Englishman