Cosmopolitanism(intro-IV)

Introduction:
When first beginning the book, I wondered to myself, "what does cosmopolitanism mean?". So I will begin by clarifying that for myself. In earlier times, a citizen, or polites, belonged to a polis(city). The cosmos referred to the world in the sense of the universe. The word rejected the conventional view that every civilized person belonged to a community among communities.
Now that that is out of the way, I'll begin with the guided questions. Appiah suggests that the two foundational principles of cosmopolitanism are the way in which we feel obligated to others, obligation beyond those we are related to. And the second element is taking an interest in particular human lives, learning about their interests and their culture. These two elements are important as the cosmopolitan knows that people are different. It is important to analyze what we find is worth studying in another culture, while simultaneously fulfilling whatever obligations we have to people. Sometimes these two concepts can clash in practice, but it goes a long with the paradoxical nature of the world "cosmopolitanism" to begin with.

Chapter 1:
Point of view is a very important component of observing other cultures. It is necessary to see something through one's own eyes to make an observation about it, but this point of view also needs to be compared to the view coming first hand from the people being observed. In the text, Burton is a man who has devoted much of his time to learning about all various sorts of religious activites and cultures from many different regions. It is even said that he is an agnostic with an equal view on all of the relgions he has studied. Because of this, and by not having one relgion he favors over another, he is able to see each religion for what it is, and not have to judge it against his own beliefs. For example, if a Christian were to study ideals represented by a Jewish culture, the findings would be much different than if the culture was studied by someone with no native religion. Altough it is difficult, remaining unbiased is the best way to examine an area.

Chapter 2:
It is also important to remember when studying a culture the difference in fact and opinion. Facts are a universal truth that everyone can agree on in any culture in the world. An opinion is a subjective statement believed in by one's own philosophies. Morals are an opinion of what is right, not a fact set in stone. Different people may govern their lives based on the words of different Gods or Deities, but other cultures will still disagree with these. Therefore, it is true that all morals are relative to a culture. Something I believe is right based on the word of my God could completely conflict with a moral you have based on the word of your God. It all depends on what one is taught to believe, and chooses to follow. It is impossible for mankind to ever agree on a single set of rules to be governed by, if this were the case, life would be much different.

Chapter 3:
Whether or not one believes in something is governed by whether or not they believe in the facts regarding the subject. For example, if I were to believe in the values of witchcraft, I would first have to believe in the logic behind it to see if it was even possible. If I did not conceive witchcraft as a real, possible study, then there is no way that I could even consider the values regarding it. If the facts I attached to the subject were facts of logic and truth, then I could then and only then begin to forumlate opinions of morality on it.

Chapter 4:
Appiah means that terms of agreement are "open textured" and "contestable" because these words are often times subjective. For example, what is good to me could differ greatly from what is good to you. It is difficult to use these terms in a context in which they all have the same level of meaning. These adjetives can be construed to different degrees of meaning, and in essence entirely change the tone of a conversation depending on how interpreted. The best way to have discussions is to use terms that are non subjective, and that everybody can universally agree on the meaning of, or intensity of meaning.

Relations to Real World

Ideas in this book are very relevant to the bafa bafa game. Things such as morals or values, and aspects of life are all topics mentioned in the appiah book. He talks a lot about viewing things from perspective, and how biases can cloud one's vision. This was very relevant in the bafa bafa game. Each individual had ideas pre-conceived from their own culture, and when it was time to switch cultures, people were confused at the customs and rituals performed by the foreign culture. They wanted to relate the new culture to their own, and make it function in the same way, but this simply can not be done. It is essential that one steps back and observes another culture from an unbiased view before trying to make assumptions about it.

I do not know that I've seen any cosmopolitans in second life, although I would like to become one myself. I feel that by surveying others and posing questions about everything I see, I can get the most out of the game and try to learn many new things. I look forward to observing a foreign culture and analyzing the attributes that make it both similar, and different, from the real world I am used to.