1. CULTURE
CHAPTER 4

2. What is Culture? that form a way of life Ways of thinking and acting
Material objects
that form a way of life

3. What is Culture? Non-Material (Symbolic)Culture
Ideas created by members of society
Material Culture
Physical things created by members of society

4. Physical objects people create and give meaning
Material Culture
Physical objects people create and give meaning
Examples:
Homes
Schools
Churches, synagogues, temples, mosques
Offices and factories
Clothes
Cars
Computers
Books

5. Non-material Culture Thoughts and behavior people learn Examples:
Politics
Economics
Language
Rules
Customs
Beliefs
Values
Knowledge

6. Non-material Culture
Rules of Etiquette for Eating: Japan

7. Non-material Culture Rules of etiquette

8. Non-material Culture: Music
Wiz Khalifa

9. Material Culture

10. Non-material / Symbolic Culture
Allows us to communicate through:
Signs
Gestures
Language

11. SOCIETY People who interact in a defined territory And share a culture
Society & Culture are interdependent

12. Culture

13. Society

14. One indication is language 7,000 languages
How Many Cultures?
One indication is language
7,000 languages

15. Elements of Culture
Common elements:
Symbols
Language
Values
Norms

16. Symbols Humans create meaning
Meaning recognized by people who share a culture
Humans create meaning

17. Symbols

19. Cultural Transmission
Language
System of symbols:
People communicate
Language:
Key to accumulating knowledge
Cultural Transmission
Passing culture one generation to the next

20. Human Languages: A Variety of Symbols Here the single English word “Read” is written in twelve of the hundreds of languages.

21. Does language shape reality?
Sapir & Whorf: Linguistic Relativity
Distinct symbols
Building blocks of reality
People see and understand world through language
Cannot think without language
Languages connect symbols with emotions

22. Reflects cultural values
Language & Reality
Reflects cultural values
Example:
Society where horses are revered have many words for horses
Eskimos have many words for snow
Americans for cars
Norwegians for fish

23. Language and Reality

24. Words Past and Present 60s & 70s Slang 40s Slang Skinny Take a powder
Can you dig it?
Spaz
Far out
Chill
Bread
A gas
Bug out
40s Slang
Take a powder
Fuddy-duddy
Gobbledygook
Eager beaver
Flip your wig
Lettuce
Pass the buck

25. Language and Emotions Language influences human emotional experiences
English words such as anger or sadness are cultural artifacts of the English language

26. Connecting symbols with Emotions

27. Values and Beliefs Values Beliefs Culturally defined standards
People decide what is desirable, good, and beautiful
Broad guidelines for social living
Beliefs
Statements that a people accept as true

28. American Values

29. Key Values of U.S. Culture
Robin Williams Jr. (1970)
Ten values central to our way of life
1.Equal Opportunity
Not equality of condition but equality of opportunity
2.Individual Achievement & Personal Success
3.Material Comfort

30. 4. Activity and Work
Our heroes are “doers”
5. Practicality and Efficiency
Practical over the theoretical
6. Progress
7. Science
Expect scientists to solve problems and improve our lives

31. 8. Democracy and Free Enterprise
Individual rights
9. Freedom
Individual initiative over collective conformity
10. Racism and Group Superiority
Some people in the U.S. still judge others according to gender, race, ethnicity, and social class

32. Emerging Values Values change over time: Material comfort
Personal growth
U.S. always valued hard work
Recently, increasing importance of leisure
Time off from work for:
Travel
Family
Community service

33. 10/2 Norms Rules that guide behavior People respond with Sanctions:
Rewards
Punishments
Encourages conformity to cultural norms……Norbert Elias

34. Laws Norms established in a community by an “authority” Examples:
Speed limits
Income Tax
Murder

35. Mores (“more rays”) or Taboos
Norms widely observed
Great moral significance
Religious dietary restrictions
Polygamy
Pedophilia
Incest
Cannibalism

36. Folkways Norms for routine or casual interaction Correct manners
Appropriate dress
Proper eating behavior

37. Sanctions Shame Guilt Painful sense that others disapprove
Negative judgment we make about ourselves

38. Ethnocentrism
People use their culture as standard to evaluate another group or individual
Viewing other cultures as abnormal
You may have experienced this yourself—if you’ve ever watched a program on television where they’re showing you some remote tribe of people, and their way of life seems so different you might say “Oh, that is so gross, I can’t believe those people eat that…” You’re assuming that your way of life is better than their way of life. Interestingly, if that tribe watched your daily life, they would question some of the things that you consider “normal.” *For an in class activity, ask your students to tell you some of the things that are part of their daily routine. You’ll probably get some responses like shaving, getting dressed, driving to work, going through the drive-thru, making coffee… things that seem very mundane to Americans. Ask them to try to explain the purpose of these activities to a Martian who is visiting earth. You could even “play” the Martian, and “badger” your students to try to explain why they do the things they do. It might get them to think more about how strange Americans would seem to an outside perspective. You can also discuss the “Nacirema” tribe, from pg. 97.

39. Cultural Relativism Understanding other cultures on their terms
Rather than judging according to own culture
Researchers: Use cultural relativism
See others more objectively
You can think about the importance of cultural relativism when thinking about studying distant or remote cultures, or even when studying different cultures within the United States. For instance, New Yorkers tend to communicate differently than people from Gatlinburg, Tennessee. If you’re a researcher from New York, you have to consider these differences when you’re conducting research in Gatlinburg.

40. High Culture & Popular Culture
Cultural patterns of society’s elite
Popular Culture
Cultural patterns widespread among a society’s population

41. High Culture

42. Popular Culture

43. Applying Theory: Culture
Society: The Basics, 9th Edition by John Macionis
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