Michael Brandt

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What we are missing in our culture is the positive kind of shame, so of course we don’t have a word for it. This kind of shame leads to virtue. People feel this shame before doing something shameless. For example, Arabs have haya, a shame that monitors one’s behavior so one doesn’t violate the community norms. Everyone should feel haya. It keeps us within the lines. When a young man leers at a woman on the street, people will tsk their tongues and say, “Ah, he doesn’t feel haya.” (My American grandmother would have agreed, saying, “He has no shame.”) Haya should have stopped him from doing it. ...more
Misreading Scripture with Individualist Eyes: Patronage, Honor, and Shame in the Biblical World
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