The Albatross: An Exercise in Cross-Cultural Appreciation

Staring through an imaginary transparent 4th wall in the MacNeil Centre, two Social Studies 11 classes were bedazzled as Meghan G and Ian M sat silently at dinner in traditional “Albatrossian” dress. Four students were randomly picked and brought into the dinner setting, acting as travellers stranded in this exotic eastern-Pacific country. What may have first appeared to be a patriarchal society in the eyes of a Westerner was actually a culture dominated by maternal values. The Albatross is a simulation often run by Mr. Zenker in Oregon. Meant to demonstrate the pitfalls of ethnocentrism, students must examine the short skit of the encounter between the two cultures and attempt to explain the rationale behind Albatrossian rituals. Why, in Albatross, are women always below the man? Why do the women not wear shoes? Why do they serve such a strange meal?  Also up for discussion is why the man gently pushes his wife’s head towards the ground. Students initially guess that the male is placed above the woman as he more powerful. She must walk barefoot, dirtying her feet, and he always has shoes on. However, little did they know that the women in Albatross, as the source of life, must be the closest to Mother Earth, the natural source of all life. The women are barefoot not because they do not deserve to wear shoes, but because they must be one with the Earth. Women with larger feet are considered holy priestesses. It is the male’s humble duty to remind the woman of her holiness and her central role in society by gently pushing her head toward the Earth from time to time.  
The importance of this simulation was to encourage us to consider our ethnocentrism and broaden our appreciation and respect for the cultures of others.