the meaning of culture chapter 2 – section 1. what is culture?
TRANSCRIPT
– Material Culture?
– Nonmaterial Culture?
– Society• Organization of a independent group of
people• What do they organize?
– Technology
• Combination of objects and rules
– Symbols
– Language
• Organization of written and spoken symbols into a standardized system
– Values
• Shared beliefs
– Mores• Great moral
significance for society
– Laws• The written
rules of conduct in society
• Cultural Traits– Simple levels of culture
• Culture Complexes– Cluster of interrelated traits
• Culture Patterns– Combination of culture complexes
What Do We Have in Common
• Cultural Universal
– All cultures have the same needs – Why are they different?
– Family as cultural universal
Variations Among Societies
• Cultural differences
– Inherited characteristics
– Cultural influences
• The Arapesh
– Society based on complete cooperation
• Shared work responsibilities between women and men
• Marriage arrangements for girls
• The Mundugumor
– Headhunter• Men and women
extremely aggressive
– Hostility between family members• Fathers linked to
daughter • Mothers linked to
sons
• Comparing the Two Societies
– Arapesh – living in the mountains• Farmers
– Mundugumor – living in a river valley• Gatherer
Studying Variation
• Ethnocentrism– Tendency to see one’s own culture
and group as superior
• Cultural Relativism
– Different cultures should be judged by their own standards
– Example – India
Variation Within Society
• Subculture
– Values, norms and behaviors not shared with the entire population
– Groups add diversity
• Counterculture
– Groups reject major values, norms and practices of the larger society
– Replaced by new set of cultural pattern
– Do they become a threat to society?