7 Elements of Culture

What is Culture? Culture is made up of norms and values Norms: Normal living habits Values: Important beliefs It is greater than just a region: it includes the way people think, believe, and feel Culture is a way of life shared by a group of people.

The Elements of Culture Geography: The Key Element Social Organization Customs and Traditions Arts and Literature Government and Economics Language Religion

Element 1: Geography Geography is synonymous with location Where the culture is located Most obvious element of culture: The KEY element Examples: American culture; Middle East culture; Asian Culture

Element 1: Geography Geography, as the key element, affects many aspects of a culture. Customs and Traditions What people value or worship A person’s appearance Economy, based on available resources Agriculture and the food that is consumed Transportation and recreation Example: American celebrate Thanksgiving and Independence Day, people closer to the equator are darker-complected with darker hair and eyes

Element 2: Social Organization How people are divided in terms of power in a society Based on a hierarchy Hierarchy: Order of importance Pyramidal in shape, with few people wealthy enough to be at the top, and most people poor enough to fill the bottom

Element 2: Social Organization Social organization affects different people in a society differently This determines who has the most power Power influences annual salary, education attained, and the amount of possessions a person owns Affects lineage Patrilineal means transferred through the father Matrilineal means transferred through the mother

Element 3: Customs and Traditions Customs are behaviors based upon a specific culture People who practice different customs do so almost without thinking These include the “unwritten rules” for behavior; includes “taboos.”

Element 3: Customs and Traditions Customs or Traditions include celebrations and holidays—even the food we eat They affect schedules, believes, interactions with other cultures “Rights of Passage,” such as wedding traditions, Bar Mitzvahs, communions, or funerals. Examples: Decorating Christmas trees, not picking your nose in public, saying “Excuse me,” after belching

Element 4: Arts and Literature “The record keeper of society” This element preserves what a culture finds most important.

Element 4: Arts and Literature Includes written works, such as myths, legends, sagas, books, plays, poems Includes oral works, such as plays or music Includes physical artifacts Artifacts: Tools left behind which were at one time used by humans Examples: hammers, bowls, pottery Jewelry Monuments, statues Recorded works, like photographs or films

Element 5: Government and Economics The structure of a culture A culture would be unstable without a strong government

Element 5: Government and Economics Closely tied with customs and traditions Largely affects other aspects of a culture Complexity of a culture leads to complexity of its government and economy Some economies depend on bartering and other practices for their money system Barter: Trade without the use of money Monetary Economy: Use of the money system

Element 6: Language The way people communicate with one another Language helps hand down information from generation to generation The ideas of culture are transferred via language

Element 6: Language Language affects dialects, slang, written language, and sign language Dialects: “Ya’ll come back now, ya’hear?” Slang: “Yo, whaddup, homie!” Written Language: Arabic numbers v. Roman numerals; symbols or letters Sign language: Depends on the root language

Element 7: Religion The heart and the soul of a culture

Element 7: Religion Guides the rules of behavior Tends to stay the same over the course of time Guides people; gives hope The faith in something bigger than you Examples: Judaism, Christianity, Atheism, Agnosticism, Hebraism, Muslim

Bringing It All Together… Based on the aforementioned elements, answer the following questions: What cultures do you belong to? How do the 7 elements relate to those cultures? Describe the culture of the United States. Describe the culture of your hometown. Is there a disconnect between American culture and the culture of your hometown?