Lauren Hedrick September 10 2013 What is culture Culture the social heritage of a people Culture o Knowledge language values customs and material objects that are passed from one person to another and from generation to generation in a human group or society Society Group of people who live within the same territory and share a common culture o Unique to humans because animals do not have symbols that stand for Culture as a human trait something else Instinct vs learned behavior We are not born with the ability to reason and know things most of human behavior is strictly learned from someone else o Instinct Something that is a common experience to all members of a species that does not have to be learned Types of Cultures o Material Culture Physical things created by member of society o Non material culture Ideas created by members of society abstract Components of Culture Norms Rules and expectations by which a society guides the behavior of its members change over time deal with sex property and safety o Mores Norms that are widely observed with a great moral significance Example Adultery and theft Taboos are the most extreme form of mores o Folkways Less stringent norms for routine or casual interaction Example Shaking someone s hand o Laws Formal norms enforced by threat of force to regulate members thoughts and behavior Example Not all mores are enforced by laws Adultery is not desirable but there is no law against it Values Broad ideas shared by members of a society regarding what is desirable correct and good o Collective behavior about what is right and wrong o Change over time o Serves as a broad guideline for social living o Common American Values Individualism Equal Opportunity everyone has to have a shot for material comfort Achievement and Success Material Comfort you must work hard for what you want in Symbols and Language order to be happy o Symbols acts or objects that in society stand for something else Lauren Hedrick September 10 2013 Traffic Lights Nothing more than colored lights but the different colors of lights has a meaning we attach to it Gestures Not completely as widely attached meanings different meanings in different cultures The same gestures mean different things Flags The American flag symbols freedom and unity as a country o Language Socially structured system of sound patterns with specific and arbitrary meanings that allows people to communicate with one another Our language perception determines how we perceive reality How language affects culture People use different language to Solidifies the cultural norms distinctly identify the people around them Cultural Unity and Diversity societies Universals Patterned and recurrent aspects of life that appear in all known o George Murdock Classification of universal components 88 general categories Do not include the actual behavior o Examples of Cultural Universals Reproduction Search for food Religion Having a home Fine arts Having clothing Travel and Transport Social stratification Infancy and Childhood Diversity There is a main culture where there is believed to be values norms and traditions that are a part of the bigger picture of societies main culture o Subculture Members who participate in main culture of a society while sharing number of unique values norms traditions and lifestyles Amish They share the main ideas as a the bigger society but they just go about it in a different way o Counterculture Subculture at odds with its parent society Hippies or the Ku Klux Klan This sub group doesn t share many of the same values as the bigger society and they go against the beliefs of the main values of a society Culture and Consumerism Trying to sell the consumer to buy things Cooperate American is now targeting kids to be consumers at a young age Lauren Hedrick September 10 2013 Sociological Approach to Culture The Functionalist Approach o The balance between supply and demand o Culture binds people together o Culture unites people o Gives them a reason to rally together o Cultures are strategies for meeting human needs o Allows people to feel part of a group The Social Conflict Approach base for social change o Counterculture is always at odds with the main culture and that is the o Norms laws and values are the main reflection of the people in power o Culture is glue that attaches people to different point of view o Hard work and wealth are valued to motivate people to keep working o Capitalist society The Symbolic Interactionism Approach o Culture is constructed and produced at an individual level o Culture is fluid in changing o Culture is more expressive Ideas Instrumental