What does culture mean to you? The Meaning of Culture.

What does culture mean to you?

The Meaning of Culture

Definition of CultureConsists of all the shared products

of human groups.These products include

Physical objectsBeliefsValuesBehaviors

ALL SHARED BY A GROUP

CULTUREMaterial Culture

The physical objects that people create form a group’s material culture.

Artifacts:

Nonmaterial CultureAbstract human

creations form a group’s nonmaterial culture.

Ideas

Work practices

Political system

Family patterns

What can an artifact tell us about a culture?Artifacts contain many clues about a

society’s culture.Anthropologists search for artifacts to

learn about cultures of past societies.

What kind of information can anthropologists gain by studying artifacts?

Think of an example…..

Society v. Culture

SocietySociety: is a group of mutually inter-dependent people who have organized in such a way as to share a common culture and feeling of unity.

Huh? In simple terms…

Society consists of people and

Culture consists of the products that people create.

Components of Culture

b u ild in g scom p u ters

c lo th in gb ooks

P h ys ica lO b jec ts

ch u rch servicec lass rin g

h an d sh akeL in co ln M em oria l.

S ym b o ls

U SS p eaks A m erican

F rom E n g lish

L an g u ag e

g ood v. b adrig h t v. w ron g

d es irab le v.u n d es irab le

V a lu es

exp ec ta tion s o fb eh avio r

cover you m ou th w h en you yawn

N orm s

C om p on en ts o f C u ltu reC u ltu re is b o th lea rn ed an d sh ared

Types of NormsFolkways: are norms that do not have

great moral significance attached to them. They are common customs of everyday life.Ex. Holding a door for someone, saying “bless you” to a sneeze

Mores: have great moral significance attached to them.Ex. Adultery, lying, cheating

Law: is a written rule of conduct that is enacted and enforced by the government.

Cultural Ps

Product: Anything created by the culture for members of that culture, tangible or intangible, such as food, art, books, educational system, and laws.

Practices: What people do, when and where of social interactions, what they do with their products, etc.

Perspectives: The attitudes, beliefs, or values of people in a culture.

Complexity of CultureCulture Traits- Use of forks and

knives, saying hello to someone you see in the hall, tackling someone in a football game

Culture complexes- Table manners, the game of football

Culture Patterns- Sports, Religion, Family life

Teaching American CultureHow hard would it be to teach someone

from another country about our culture?Why?

Example: American Christmas

Questions to ask myself:What makes American

Christmas different from Christmas around the world?

What sort of cultural products, practices, symbols, language, norms, language, etc. make up American Christmas?

How could I share this with someone who has recently moved to this country?

American Christmas…What Makes it Different?

•Rides on horseback•Puts toys in shoes

•Has a sleigh driven by flying reindeer•Brings toys down our chimney

Santa in Holland

American Santa

Cultural Products, Practices, Symbols

Norms: Thanking someone for a gift, RSVPing to a party, greeting someone, etc.

Products: gifts, ornaments, candy canes, etc.

Practices: caroling, decorating the Christmas tree, wrapping gifts, watching Christmas movies, spending time with family and friends, Secret Santa, White Elephant parties, etc.

Symbols: mistletoe