Objectivity, Culture and Knowledge

How to 'explain a culture'? Maybe to base the explanation on one's ideas of what (our or their) culture is.. Then, wouldn't this inevitably lead to the conclusion that we prioritize some cultural aspects over some others? or that we consider some aspects as 'cultural' while other as 'natural'?

The whole concept of culture seems to be wide enough to approach it from all perspectives, therefore the need to develop Areas of Knowledge (Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Human Sciences, Arts, etc.). Geertz suggested that "man is an animal suspended in webs of significance he himself has spun", and that culture were those webs.. Every time we study the world, we carry out an interpretative exercise from the part of the net we are standing, always looking for meaning.

Maybe there is no such a thing as total objectivity, but (individual or group) interpretations of reality. The process of making sense of the world could be the way in which knowledge is ‘created’, while the meanings stand for the justifications needed. An analysis from the knower's perspective is supposed to ‘dissect’ the whole process, reflecting upon the ways of knowing (sense perception, language, emotion, and reason), in order to appreciate the changing character of knowledge and reformulate one’s process as a knower.

Gender Equality in...

Today, during the English lesson at Tallinn University, we were discussing this article http://news.err.ee/culture/e6460d0b-b689-49e9-b30f-ce4b6d373b01 Besides language issues, we tried to consider a bit other scenarios (besides the labour one, focus of the article) in which gender equality was an issue.. Such an interesting activity! Students started appealing to their experiences, referring to how at school in Estonia (the context matters little, maybe, but the ideas of the world we share are certainly spread through the educational systems) girls get less attention than boys, but they idea that the former are more intelligent than the latter is widely generalized! Boys in blue, girls in pink; boys with car toys, girls with dolls.. "Don't cry, be a man!" is someting commonly heard in my beloved Colombia.. but it is also common here.. Women are supposed to be raised soft and delicate, sentimental and vulnerable, sweet and tender... Men, on the contrary, are supposed to grow tough and clever, always ready with a solution, and never hesitating.. never allowed to express his feelings, at least not in an emotional way..
When people talk about gender equality, they refer mostly to labour opportunities, salary gaps between men and women, and the "natural" limitations of genders (i.e. pregnancy)   Nevertheless, the ways in which gender equality is conceptualised reach very confortable situations.. are we talking about men talking more responsibilities at home.. cleaning the dishes or playing with children? Or women paying for dinner, driving the family car, or teaching the boys to ride a bike? Culturally we raise our children to cope with certain roles.. some more critical than others!
This, I would like to point out, is just a reflection, intended to become the starting point for discussion.. the word is to you :)

Nice picture for reflection..