CULTURE A DESIGN FOR LIVING

WHAT IS CULTURE? A complex whole consisting of objects, values, & other characteristics that people acquire & relate to as members of society Primary groups: close, personal relationship (informal) Secondary groups: temporary relationship based on interests (formal)

CULTURE Consists of abstract things & human-made objects Material culture – physical objects made by people (archaeologists study this) Nonmaterial culture – knowledge, beliefs, norms & values, signs & language (sociologists study this) Preindustrial vs. Industrial Civilizations: little contact with other civilizations vs. development of cities (more contact)

Breakdown of culture VALUES NORMS Socially shared ideas about what is important to a society/group (i.e. Informal Social Control) Ex: parents value mass education Ex of ISC: in your group text, you accidentally leave out a friend. Now that friend doesn’t speak to you. NORMS The valued rules of how people should behave according to their society Ex: parents send you to school

FILING CABINET OF CULTURE Values are the two drawers Norms are the hanging folders The papers in the folders are all the different norms found in a given society

NORMS Norms change over time (i.e., racial segregation non-existent now) We are constantly & without notice, conforming to norms

TWO TYPES OF NORMS FOLKWAYS – “weak” norms that specify proper behavior Not a big deal if violated, just considered rude MORES – “strong” norms that specify normal behavior & constitutes demands Violators punished through law enforcement

HOW IS THIS ENFORCED? Enforced through sanctions – rewards/punishments for conforming to norms Generally happy to conform if you believe in the values of it (values overpower our behavior)

VALUES AND PEOPLE We have 15 different basic values, and all are related to one another = cultural integration

SUBCULTURES Cultures within larger cultures Ethnic group: shares distinct values, language, and behavioral patterns that distinguish it’s culture from others Deviant subcultures – values unacceptable to the dominant culture Countercultures – unacceptable values, but not illegal or criminal

WE ALL HAVE NEEDS Cultural Universals – all sharing the same basic cultural needs Western Confucian Japanese Islamic Culture then broken down into civilizations: 8 domains in the world    Hindu Slavic-Orthodox Latin American African

CULTURAL UNIVERSALS

STEREOTYPES Oversimplified generalizations about groups of people Based on age, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, etc. Can be positive, but mostly negative VIDEO

ETHNOCENTRISM and CULTURAL RELATIVISM US not a “melting pot” b/c minorities forced to adopt white European male subculture - Ethnocentrism To alleviate this, we learn cultural relativism = belief that a culture must be understood in it’s own terms (This is why you’re taking this class!) Most central function of culture – ensure social order & stability

VIDEO: UNDERSTANDING & APPRECIATING CULTURAL RELATIVISM

ADDITIONAL ASPECTS OF CULTURE Education Architecture Law Government Cuisine Values Agriculture Technology Work ethic Economy Music/Dance Sports Etiquette Sport Grooming Religion Courtship Recreation Medicine Dress Gestures Language Gender roles Holidays

LANGUAGE AND GESTURES Verbal/non-verbal ways people communicate VIDEO  Verbal/non-verbal ways people communicate Gestures: body movements and hand signals with specific meanings Strong connections to identity through language and even accent Accents are regional variations in languages Ex: The New York accent vs. the Boston Accent • Can be nationalistic Ex: French people speak French

GOVERNMENT Series of rules & beliefs towards leadership which governs people of a society Laws – Systems of enforced rules Different societies have different views about how the country should be governed and the traditions attached to it

ECONOMY Different ways a culture regulates & controls exchange of goods and services Ex. Traditional barter based economy vs. money based economy

EDUCATION Methods in which a culture prepares its members to participate in society by teaching them necessary skills. Series of formal & informal lessons teaching necessary skills & knowledge Sometimes left up to families to provide

AGRICULTURE Farming practices a culture uses in order to feed members of its society Ex: Western use of machinery and traditional family farms CUISINE Different foods a cultural group eats, often with national connections to regional variations Ex: Korean Kimchi

DANCE AND MUSIC Cultures differ in connections to which music they listen to and how connected it is to dance Ex: Dancing is a very large part of South American Culture Ex: The connection between Country Music and rural areas of North America

FESTIVALS AND HOLIDAYS A day fixed by law or custom on which ordinary business is suspended in commemoration of some event or in honor of some person from a culture Connected to religious or national origins

ETIQUETTE Expected behaviors for someone living within the culture Behaviors are actions and the reasons for doing them Ex: Giving a bus seat to an elderly person out of respect Ex: Table Manners: US, chew with mouth closed. In China, the louder the better

ARCHITECTURE A particular way in which a society designs their buildings. Can be cultural expression or practicality Ex: Japanese “efficient” architecture vs. American “space” architecture for hotels

WORK ETHIC Societies differ on the value of how hard individuals within the society should be working. Some societies value a “hard day’s work”  individuals living to work or working to live? Ex: Spanish siesta mid-day breaks vs. Japanese Dawn to Dusk work ethics

GENDER ROLES COURTSHIP Perceived set of standards & actions for a male and a female within society Ex: Male Machismo in Latin America Courtship COURTSHIP Methods in which a member of a culture goes about in finding a mate Ex: Practice of arranged marriages in India

MEDICINE Methods different cultures use to heal their sick & wounded. Some cultures rely on modern technology & medicines to heal, while others use traditional methods (prayer and rituals) Ex: Jehovah’s Witnesses refusal to accept blood transfusions because of religious beliefs

TECHNOLOGY Societies differ in how much they embrace new technologies or if they hold on to traditional methods. Some view foreign technologies as a burden & prefer a more simple life, while others embrace it as a helpful tool Ex: The Amish rejection of most modern technologies

friends MMMM…Tacos

HOW DO OTHERS IN THE WORLD DISTINGUISH AMERICANS?

70 COUNTRIES IMITATE AMERICAN ACCENTS