What Is Culture?
Culture is a set of shared ideas, beliefs, and behaviors, which are the distinct achievements of human groups. While some define culture as high-brow aspects of life, others describe it as everything that characterizes a way of life. Culture encompasses a wide variety of things, from sports to symphony concerts, and even McDonald’s. Culture is a term often used synonymously with ethnicity, which refers to a common language and history.
Different cultures manifest their differences in different ways. At the most superficial level, cultures differ in the use of symbols and values. The use of symbols carries a specific meaning only among members of a particular culture, but other cultures frequently copy them. Heroic figures also serve as role models for behavior. Cultures vary in the ways that they honor and respect these figures, but all share a common purpose – to inspire and connect with other human beings.
Rituals are collective activities that reflect the world of the group in which they arise. Sometimes they serve no practical purpose, but are nonetheless performed for their own sake. Values constitute the core of culture. These are broad tendencies towards a particular state of affairs, and often remain unconscious. Values cannot be observed directly, but must be inferred from the behavior of people who practice them. For example, a Latino population may experience “ataques de nervios,” which is characterized by shaking and a feeling of heat in the chest, or an Iranian population may suffer from “susto,” or “heart distress.”
Another aspect of culture that is often neglected is the universality of language. While language is used to express cultural values, many other people use it to describe how they experience visible radiation. It’s also a universal aspect of culture, and the differences between cultures can be profound. In addition to language, cultural universals include things like color and unit of time. For example, people speak the same language and use different color names for the same color. This translates into different ways of perceiving the same image.
People can adopt a specific style of music to express their preferences. In many cases, they adopt the language of the dominant culture, while rejecting its cultural differences. Using the language of the dominant group, however, will allow for a more cohesive and harmonious society. If they don’t, they may be absorbed into the dominant culture. This means that a dominant culture isn’t necessarily the best way to represent the culture. And even if it is the only culture that exists, it doesn’t have to be.
Other types of culture are characterized by different values. For example, Chinese culture tends to value political power and gender conformity, while Western culture emphasizes individual liberty and democracy. Europeans also tend to celebrate a cultural identity that they share. Socio-political institutions and ecological factors can also affect the strength of cultural norms. Punk culture, for instance, was very popular in the early 20th century, but it’s been overtaken by other music-oriented subcultures.
Culture is a set of shared ideas, beliefs, and behaviors, which are the distinct achievements of human groups. While some define culture as high-brow aspects of life, others describe it as everything that characterizes a way of life. Culture encompasses a wide variety of things, from sports to symphony concerts, and even McDonald’s. Culture is a term often used synonymously with ethnicity, which refers to a common language and history. Different cultures manifest their differences in different ways. At the most superficial level, cultures differ in the use of symbols and values. The use of symbols carries a specific meaning only among members of a particular culture, but other cultures frequently copy them. Heroic figures also serve as role models for behavior. Cultures vary in the ways that they honor and respect these figures, but all share a common purpose – to inspire and connect with other human beings. Rituals are collective activities that reflect the world of the group in which they arise. Sometimes they serve no practical purpose, but are nonetheless performed for their own sake. Values constitute the core of culture. These are broad tendencies towards a particular state of affairs, and often remain unconscious. Values cannot be observed directly, but must be inferred from the behavior of people who practice them. For example, a Latino population may experience “ataques de nervios,” which is characterized by shaking and a feeling of heat in the chest, or an Iranian population may suffer from “susto,” or “heart distress.” Another aspect of culture that is often neglected is the universality of language. While language is used to express cultural values, many other people use it to describe how they experience visible radiation. It’s also a universal aspect of culture, and the differences between cultures can be profound. In addition to language, cultural universals include things like color and unit of time. For example, people speak the same language and use different color names for the same color. This translates into different ways of perceiving the same image. People can adopt a specific style of music to express their preferences. In many cases, they adopt the language of the dominant culture, while rejecting its cultural differences. Using the language of the dominant group, however, will allow for a more cohesive and harmonious society. If they don’t, they may be absorbed into the dominant culture. This means that a dominant culture isn’t necessarily the best way to represent the culture. And even if it is the only culture that exists, it doesn’t have to be. Other types of culture are characterized by different values. For example, Chinese culture tends to value political power and gender conformity, while Western culture emphasizes individual liberty and democracy. Europeans also tend to celebrate a cultural identity that they share. Socio-political institutions and ecological factors can also affect the strength of cultural norms. Punk culture, for instance, was very popular in the early 20th century, but it’s been overtaken by other music-oriented subcultures.