Читать книгу Counseling the Culturally Diverse - Laura Smith L. - Страница 54

Because we are members of the human race and belong to the species Homo sapiens, we share many similarities. Universal to our commonalities are (a) biological and physical similarities, (b) common life experiences (birth, death, love, sadness, and so forth), (c) self‐awareness, and (d) the ability to use symbols, such as language. In Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice, Shylock attempts to acknowledge the universal nature of the human condition by asking, “When you prick us, do we not bleed?” Again, although the Human Genome Project indicates that a few genes may cause major differences between and within species, it is startling how similar the genetic material within our chromosomes is and how much we share in common. However, that we are similar at a broad human level does not erase our individual and cultural uniqueness.