"Barbarism" of Cultures 06/20/13

Montaigne

In his book, Essays, Michel de Montaigne examines what it means to be human and how the “mind works” (1649). Rather than focusing on differences in civilizations, Montaigne argues that “cultural norms are relative and should be free from judgment” (1649).  Montaigne boldly asserts that the term barbarism is defined as anything that is not “in one’s own practice,” (1653) and his views are corroborated by the judgments held by technologically advanced civilizations which perceive simplistic and primitive lives as being barbaric. For instance, many people find it difficult to relate to the lives of the Amish, many of whom refuse to utilize the luxury of electricity and have maintained an isolated existence despite being surrounded by advanced civilization. 

The ideologies of the Amish differ from those of the dominant culture in their preference for simplistic and domestic life. The Amish stand out immediately in a crowd, clad in what many would refer to as outdated garb. Children are schooled at home or in small school houses and are sheltered from most of popular culture. What might be the most “barbaric” feature of the Amish is their use of a horse and buggy for commuting rather than a motorized vehicle. Some may struggle to understand how or why a group would choose to live such an old-fashioned way of life amidst the technological advancements of the twenty-first century, but similar to the barbaric civilizations in Montaigne’s essay, “Of Cannibals,” those living an old-fashioned way of life actually “retain…their genuine, their most useful and natural, virtues and properties, which we have debased…in adapting them to gratify our corrupted taste” (1653).  The Amish rely on nature and one another for survival; they do not need to conform to the dominant culture’s use of technology, and they actively protect their children from many of the corruptions that accompany modern life. In doing so, it may be said that it is not they who are barbaric, but rather the majority of Westerners who have lost their ability to fend for themselves and instead rely solely on technology and the labor of others in order to survive. 

Works cited

 “Michel de Montaigne.” The Norton Anthology of World Literature. Ed. Martin  Puchner. Vol.

            1. New York: W.W. Norton, 2013. 1647-1650. Print.

Montaigne, Michel de. Essays. The Norton Anthology of World Literature. Ed. Martin

Puchner. Vol. 1. New York: W.W. Norton, 2013. 1650-1665. Print.