Martha Nussbaum writes in “Cultivating Humanity” about recognizing humanity and not letting nationality, class, or ethnicity create barriers between each other. She goes on to say that we should still be focusing on “the self” and everything that surrounds it, which leads to humanity itself. Humanity should be the main focus as it encompasses all nationalities, classes, and ethnicities. The only thing stopping unity within humanity is the barriers people place between themselves and other cultures. The lack of education concerning cultures that is not one’s own is what creates this idea of superiority. It is difficult to not be prideful towards something that one was first exposed to and is the most familiar. Because of the lack of knowledge, there is a lack of understanding, meaning an unwillingness for acceptance. The only way to move humanity forward in uniting and finding a center is to be educated so that we may accept and have a better understanding for each other’s differences.
“Imagine that all human beings are limbs of a single body, cooperating for the sake of common purposes.” – Nussbaum, 64
Because humanity is like a single body, it will never work properly and serve its’ main purpose unless the “limbs” fully cooperate and work together to form a single movement. If the limbs are not moving together but in different directions, then the body is going nowhere. Rather than building these barriers there should be an embracing of differences, otherwise there will not be any improvement within humanity.
“We were born to labor together, like the feet, the hands, the eyes, and the rows of the upper and lower teeth. To work against one another is therefore contrary to nature, and to be angry against a man or turn one’s back on him is to work against him.” Nussbaum, 64
There is a reason for our differences, so rather than work against them, they should be used towards a greater purpose since that is what they were intended for by nature. To go against that is to go against ourselves in the end. If our main issue towards breaking our barriers is lack of understanding, then it is our job to be educating one another to save humanity.
The emphases on education that Nussbaum had, that you focused on, was a very vital part to her argument. Education attacks ignorance which is what leads to hate and barriers that make working together as a world so frustrating. Therefore, a good first step to world citizenship is education!
ReplyDeletePS - great blog, I like all your fonts =)