Essay on Non-Western, Lineage-based Cultures

In an attempt to understand non-western nations, it is vital to study the culture that is created and embraced by such regions. Non-western cultures are no different from western cultures in that they strive to hold strong to their own traditions, rituals, and people. However, the traditions of non-western cultures are geared toward lineage, shame, and honor rather than the western achievement-based society that encourages individualism. Rather than focusing on how non-western nations are different from western nations, one can come to appreciate what makes those nations who they are by studying and considering all the different aspects of their cultures.

One of the key concepts of these non-western cultures is that they are based on lineage. Lineage is the basis of understanding how non-western cultures are different, because it is lineage that branches out to other cultural traditions. Lineage reveals who a certain person or group is by their line of descent and by the culture that has been constructed by such a descent group (lecture). Lineage is such a beautiful, family-uniting, nation-uniting tradition. In a kinship or descent group, all individuals are somehow related through a common ancestor, from which all sense of obligation is derived. It refers to tribes and descent groups whose cultures survive through blood and loyalty, shame, and honor (lecture). Lineage reveals how a culture is structured through a group-identity, which is far more important than an individual identity. Through understanding lineage, other aspects of a non-western culture can be understood as well-such as marriage rituals, unilineal systems, and symbolic rituals. But first, it is necessary to value the concepts of shame and honor.