1. Components of Culture: Values

2. Values defined: A standard by which members of culture define what is
desirable or undesirable
good or bad
beautiful or ugly
acceptable or unacceptable

3. Values are regularly contested.
For
example,
what makes a
person
beautiful?

4. The answer often depends on WHEN the question is asked…
Today
mainstream
Canada might
cite these people as being beautiful

5. Or perhaps one of these people:

6. But what about 50 years ago?
Canadians might have said that these were the most people.

7. How are these people different from today’s version of beauty?
How about 100 years ago?
How are these people different from today’s version of beauty?

8. Beauty also depends on WHERE the question is asked.
Around the world, there is not just one standard of beauty, but many.
Certain features of the face or body are emphasized in various parts of the world.
Women from Burma

9. Ears and mouths are features commonly accented…
Women from Ethiopia

10. Adornments for the mouth can include tattoos and jewels for the teeth.
Girl from Borneo
Maori Woman with Moko

11. Here beauty accents are focused on the face and head…
Nigerian Woman
Mangbetu Woman

12. although other parts of the body have also been emphasized, such as the feet.3 ” S H O E
Sketch of a woman’s bound feet

13. The overall body can also reflect values of beauty.
Today thinness is commonly accepted in many cultures as synonymous with beauty.

14. In some cultures thinness might be a reflection of physical fitness…

15. Although there are still extremes:
When does thin become “too thin?”

16. Thinness has not always been a Western standard of beauty.
Painting by Peter Paul Rubens

17. Nor is thinness the standard everywhere in the world today.

18. To summarize: Values are standards set by the members of a society.
Values are often highly contested.
Values can change significantly over time.
Values can differ within one society and around the world.