I just finished watching a film called "The Gods Must be Crazy."Constantly, I was reminded of how those people we are so quick to call backward, are, in many ways, better off than we are. The introduction of the film provides a uniquely strange view and concept of our culture that we so often take for granted. We are a people who live by numbers: when the clock says 8.00, we wake up. When it gets to 9.00, we act busy, before settling back down at 12.00 to eat. The warm, National-Geographic-esque narration makes Xixo, a bushman and main character of the film, strikingly relatable to the viewer. In many ways, he begins to seem more "human" than we are.
Filled with clean, mild and genuine late 1970's comedy, the film in an enjoyable watch if you view it through the right lens; in my case, the anthropological. Head to your local Blockbuster or *cough* torrent site to get the film. You won't regret it.
Click here to get more info on this film.
Blog by Abraham Hedaya
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Sharing is learned through enculturation. It is not part of our genetic blue print. We see this when a coke bottle is introduced into the Bushmen’s environment. At first they were curios about the new gift from the Gods. Most of the family members got a chance to examine the coke bottle.
Once the Bushmen found different uses the coke bottle their world changed. They all wanted to use the coke bottle at the same time and even when one member of the family was finished with the coke bottle they did not want to pass it onto another family member. This led to individual family members hurting each other so that they could have the coke bottle for themselves.
I had to teach my children to share. They did not instinctively share their toys with each other, friends, cousins or other children they interact with. If a child placed a toy down and stepped away another child would pick it up and claim it as their own.
“In many ways, he begins to seem more ‘human’ than we are.” – I couldn’t agree more. I think this film is telling us something deeper than slapstick comedy. In some scenes, you can see how Xixo realized the consequences of allowing the bottle to stay in their tribe. In his best judgment, he decided that it would be best to throw it away to avoid conflict and envy.
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