THE CONCEPT OF CULTURE

THE CONCEPT OF CULTUREWhat do anthropologist mean by the term culture?How do we acquire culture?Despite the enormous variation in different cultures, are some common features found in all cultures of the world?11Culture, taken in its wideethnographic sense, isthat complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired my man as a member of society.

Edward Burnett Tylor1832-191The sum total of knowledge,attitudes and habitual behaviourpatterns shared and transmitted bythe members of a particular society'

Ralph Linton (1940)The pattern of life within acommunity, the regularly recurring activities and material and social arrangements characteristic of a particular group.

Ward Goodenough (1957)Culture is the framework of beliefs, expressive symbols,and values in terms of which individuals define theirfeelings and make their judgements

Geertz 1957American Anthropologist15everything that people have, think, and do as members of society.This definition is instructive because the three verbs correspond to the three major components of culture.

Everything that people have refers to material possessionEverything that people thinks refers to the things in their heads, such as ideas, values and attitudesEverything that people do refers to behavior patterns.16

COMPONENTS OF CULTUREComponents are related and connected.It is difficult to separate them in real life.Example: writing (involves three fundamental concepts of culture things/artifacts, ideas and knowledge, and patterns of behavior

17Culture is symbolicSYMBOL: Something that stands for something else.Perhaps the most fundamental aspect of culture and what makes humans unique in the animal world, is the capacity to symbolize.

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Taiji, also known asTaichi, is an important ancient concept in Chinese culture. The figure on the left is called Taiji Tu (Taiji figure), used to demonstrate the idea of Taiji.The circle of the Taiji picture represents one, universe or Wuji. The black and white part indicate Yin and Yang (or Earth and Heaven), respectively. The curve boundary between the black and white represents everything or the human world between Yin and Yang (or Earth and Heaven), and the curve stands for change and interaction. The white dot in the black part shows some Yang exists in Yin and the black dot in the white part shows Yang contains some Yin. Thus Yin and Yang are not mutually exclusive and static. They are constantly evolving or changing to create the colorful universe.19

The particular arrangement of colors and shapes symbolizes, among other things, democracy, the bill of rights, due process, war on terrorism.Others see it as the symbol for imperialism,Whether the U.S. flag symbolizes positive or negative images, it is true that all human behavior begins with the use of symbol.

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The blue colour of the Philippine flag is the symbol for peace, truth, and justice. The red is the symbol for patriotism and valour. The white triangle is the symbol for equality and fraternity. It is also symbolize the Katipunan, the secret Filipino society who stands against the Spanish rule. The three golden stars in the corners of the triangle, represent the three major group of island in the Philippines, namely the Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. The golden sun at the center of the triangle is the symbol for unity, freedom, people's democracy, and sovereignty. The sun has eight rays around it. Each ray represents one of the first eight provinces that started the 1896 Philippine revolution against Spanish colony. These provinces are Manila, Cavite, Bulacan, Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, Laguna and Batangas.21LESLIE WHITEAbility to symbolize is the most important hallmark of humanityIt is the capacity to create and give meaning to symbols that helps people identify, sort, and classify things, ideas, behaviors.Example: when people use language they are able to express experiences that took place at an earlier timeWithout symbols we would not be able to store the collective wisdom of past generations22Components of Symbolic Culture

1. Gestures2. Language3. Values4. Norms5. Folkways6. Mores7. Taboos8. Sanctions23GESTURESUsing ones body to communicate with others; useful ways to give messages without using words

PROBLEM: Gestures can have multiple meanings and can be easily misunderstood within a culture and especially across cultural lines24LANGUAGE Symbols that can be combined in a number of ways for the purpose of communicating thought

Language is a cultural universal to all human groups But not the language itself25 VALUESthe standards by which people define what is right or wrong; desirable or undesirable; good or bad; beautiful or ugly

Values underlie our preferences, guide our choices, and indicate what we hold worthwhile in life.

26NORMS expectations or rules of behavior that develop out of a groups values Ex.) Kissing - as a form of greeting in the U.S.? Russia kiss one cheek, then the other, and then back to the first Latin America kiss the air next to one cheek, but dont actually kiss the skin France kiss the air next to both cheeks, but dont actually kiss the skin Ex.) Kissing in Public U.S. kissing between Men and Women in public is common Japan kissing is considered an intimate sexual act and not permissible in public.27FOLKWAYSthe learned behaviour, shared by asocial group, that provides a traditional mode of conduct.folkways are social conventions that are not considered to be of moral significance by members of the group28MORESnorms that are strictly enforced because they are thought to be essential to the core values of the culture.Some folkways becomemores(borrowed from the Latin word for customs by Sumner) when they become ethical principles, the behaviours considered essential to the welfare of thesociety. Mores are more coercive than folkways: relatively mild disapproval follows an infringement of a folkway; severe disapproval or punishment follows the breaking of mores. Polygamy violates the mores of American society; failure to wait ones turn in line is a breach of folkways.29TABOOa norm so strongly ingrained that even the thought of its violation is greeted with revulsion

Ex.) Cannibalism Ex.) Incest Punishment for violating a cultural taboo is very severe i.e. banishment, death Ex.) Cannibalism Ex.) Incest Punishment for violating a cultural taboo is very severe i.e. banishment, death Ex.) Cannibalism Ex.) Incest Punishment for violating a cultural taboo is very severe i.e. banishment, death30SANCTIONSthe reactions people get for following or breaking cultural normsTwo Types of Sanctions Positive Sanction expresses approval for following a norm Material Positive Sanction prize, trophy, money Nonmaterial Positive Sanction hug, smile, handshake, high five

Negative Sanction reflects disapproval for breaking a cultural norm Material Negative Sanction being fined in court Nonmaterial Negative Sanction harsh words, stares, frowns, raised fists31Race v. CultureRACE: Refers to interbreeding population whose members share a number of important physical traits with one another, such as blood types, eye color and shape, skin color and hair texture etc.CULTURE: Refers to non biological and non genetic characteristicsCulture refers to our non-biological and non-genetic characteristicsThese two concepts are independent of each other32Culture is like an ICEBERG

33CULTURE IS LEARNEDIt is not transmitted genetically.Acquired through the process of learning and interacting with ones cultural environment.Children learn their culture from their parents and others in their societies.

LEARNING V. INSTINCSHuman beings are born with little predetermined behavior.They must learn most of their coping skills from others in their culture.Anthropology stand in favor of learned nature of human behavior.Enculturation: The transmission of culture from one generation to the next

LEARNING DIFFERENT CONTENTAll people acquire culture by the same processPeople in different cultures learn different cultural content and they accomplish this with similar efficiency

CULTURE IS TAKEN FOR GRANTEDMONOCHRONIC CULTURESView time in a linear fashionValues punctualityPOLYCHRONIC CULTURESPrefers to do many things at the same timeSee no particular value in punctuality for its own sakeThey choose to place greater worth on social relationships instead of completing a particular task on timeCULTURE CHANGESINTERNAL CHANGES (innovation)

EXTERNAL CHANGES (cultural diffusion)In response to environmental or societal pressures.Ex: North American apparelCapitalism, need market growth = fashion changes constantly. Ideas about what is proper always evolving.Compare to ancient Egypt: ~3,000 years style of dress pretty much the same. No capitalism, instead a Theocracy. Balance, harmony, emphasis on sameness and repetition of cycles.Ex: New symbols emerge or are invented to convey changed cultural meaningsEx: Religion Osiris + Zeus = Sarapis