Two ways of seeing reality (emic and etic)

Analyzing reality is not easy and, given the problems that these analyzes present, it was proposed to make a distinction between emic and etic. When it comes to interpreting other cultures and the behaviors they perform, there are, at least, two ways of making interpretations: the one that corresponds to an internal vision, that of the investigated group, and the one that corresponds to an external vision, that of the researcher.. The first is designated with the term emic, the second with the term etic.

From cultural materialism, which Marvin Harris develops, a distinction is also made between the mental and the behavioral, between thoughts and behaviors. Sometimes this division is confused with the emic/etic division and it is thought that the mental is emic and the behavioral is equivalent to etic. The emic and etic perspectives perhaps do not have as marked a separation as we can make between mind and behavior. Emic and etic are opposed as two different minds, that of the researcher and that of the investigated subject.

I emic it

Emic is the point of view of native actors. Thus, for example, an emic description of a certain custom of the inhabitants of a place would be based on how the members of that society explain the meaning and reasons for that custom.

To give an emic explanation it is necessary to enter their minds and know their purposes and attitudes. The emic perspective helps to understand culture and language as everything ordered and to understand the actors in their daily lives. Studies carried out from the emic perspective take into account the intentions, motivations, objectives and attitudes, thoughts and feelings that are given to the events, especially the one studied, from within the culture that stars them.

It’s ethical

It is the point of view of the researcher. An etic description is a description of observable facts by any observer who is not interested in discovering the meaning that the people studied give to those facts. It creates formal meanings or schemas in the minds of actors that do not depend on their senses or intentions.

Interpretations of reality from an etic perspective are not easy to distinguish and, often, the same actors whose reality is interpreted do not understand these explanations. A classic example of this distinction is that made by Marvin Harris in the case of cows in India and pigs in Arab and Jewish cultures.

The example of cows and pigs

Cows

In the example of the cows that we find in India, an emic interpretation would be that cows are sacred and killing them would be a reprehensible moral act. Likewise, letting them die of hunger or neglect would also be unthinkable.

On the other hand, an etic perspective would say that if we look at the number of cows and bulls in North and South India, it will be seen to be different. When interpreting these differences, it can be seen that these differences are due to economic reasons. In each region, the sex of the animal that is most profitable to the owners is more abundant. Given that the same number of cows as bulls are born, the economic explanation from the outside is more “understandable” than the emic explanation.

Pigs

In the case of the avoidance of consuming meat by members of ethnic groups such as Arabs or Jews, something similar happens. An emic interpretation of the rejection of this practice would be that it would be produced by religious precepts and moral laws.

An etic interpretation, based on the cost of keeping a pig, would say that it is not profitable since the pig eats more than it can contribute to these people. Also, due to the arid and desert climate of the areas where these ethnic groups live, pig farming would become more complicated since these animals are not adapted to withstand high temperatures.

Sometimes we do not conceive certain behaviors just because we consider them irrational. If, in addition, the explanation they give us is also irrational (an emic explanation), we will doubt and reject those behaviors more. But Perhaps there is another rational interpretation for those behaviors (an etic explanation) that is not so easy to see and is more logical.

On the other hand, when we approach a new culture – to discover the treasures that are contained within it – It is advisable to know and achieve both perspectives. What is said from an emic perspective or from an etic perspective can include complementary reasons or explanations for the particularities of that behavior that, without a doubt, can make our understanding of it richer.

Etic and egocentrism

If we dig a little further, we can see how behind the “etic” analysis, an egocentric vision of reality hides. Each culture has its traditions. When an observer analyzes other types of customs, he will tend to do so from his own. In many cultures insects are a delicacy, while in others they arouse enormous disgust. Thus, We will not be able to get closer to a complete understanding if we do not try to investigate and live in the culture analyzed.

Our conditioning and our learning history will be a strong barrier to understanding other forms of life.. We tend to see our traditions as “normal” and others as “strange.” However, an observer from another culture may also think that we are the outsiders. For many cultures, getting up every morning two hours before work, having breakfast, taking the subway where there are hundreds of people and going to work may be seen as a highly stressful life. However, we see it as normal.

Getting rid of one’s own point of view to understand and delve deeper into other cultures will be essential to understand them. So that, The next time we don’t understand something about other traditions, we can try to think like them.. It will be a good exercise!

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