1. Culture and Diversity
2.1 and 2.2

2. So, what’s the difference?
Culture consists of all the shared products of human groups, both physical and abstract.
-Material culture: physical products
-Nonmaterial culture: abstract problems
A society consists of the people who share a culture.
So, what’s the difference?
Society consists of people; culture consists of material and nonmaterial products created by people
What Is Culture?

3. The Components of Culture
Culture is both learned and shared.
All cultures have basic components such as technology, symbols, language, values, and norms.
The Components of Culture

4. The Components of Culture, cont’d
Technology
Refers to objects and the rules for using them
Any tool and its usage
Any rule that makes a use of an object illegal
There are acceptable and unacceptable uses for technology: Social media use for bullying, “hacking”, etc.
Symbols
The basis of human culture
Any words, gestures, or images
Different cultures use different symbols
Traffic laws, American flag, sports team logos, etc.
The Components of Culture, cont’d

5. The Components of Culture, cont’d
Language
Organization of written or spoken symbols into a standardized system
Can be used to express any idea
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The Components of Culture, cont’d

6. The Components of Culture, cont’d
Values
Values are shared beliefs
Distinguish between good and bad, right and wrong, desirable and undesirable
Group’s values help to determine character and culture
(JSJ/SES=RMS)
Norms
Shared rules of conduct in specific situations
Folkways do not carry heavy moral significance
Mores carry heavy moral significance
Laws are written and enforced by government
(Manners)
The Components of Culture, cont’d

7. The Components of Culture, cont’d

8. The Components of Culture, cont’d

9. Cultural Variations Cultural Universals
Cultural universals are features developed by all societies to fulfill basic needs
George Murdock compiled list of over 65 cultural universals
Specific nature of the universals may vary widely between cultures
Cultural Variations

10. Cultural Variations, cont’d
Subculture
Groups that share traits with each other but not the larger society
Examples are groups organized by age, gender, politics, or geography
Most do not reject all of the values of the larger society
Most subcultures do not threaten the larger American culture
(Youth cliques,
Counterculture
Countercultures adopt values that are designed to challenge the values of the larger society
Examples are groups such as cyberpunks, anarchists, the Mafia, and hippies, gangs, KKK
Cultural Variations, cont’d

11. Response to Variation Cultural Relativism
Ethnocentrism
A tendency to view one’s own culture and group as superior (1st world probs)
People from all cultures are somewhat ethnocentric at different times
Can lead to discrimination
Can cause the home culture to stagnate (Offended by EVERYTHING)
Even professional scholars struggle with ethnocentrism
Cultural Relativism
Cultural relativism is the idea that a culture should be judged by its own standards
Can help explain beliefs or behaviors that seem strange or different
(US judging everyone else)
Marvin Harris explored this question from a culturally relative POV: Why is India against killing cows, even food shortages exist?
Response to Variation

13. Cultural Change Cultural diffusion
Cultural diffusion is the spreading of culture traits from one society to another
Today it can happen almost instantly (Asian food)
Cultural lag
Cultural lag is the time it takes for nonmaterial culture to “catch up” to changes in material culture (“Baby Boomers” and smartphones)
Cultural leveling
Cultural leveling is a process by which cultures become more and more alike
Some suggest it is the first step toward a global culture (LLWS, McDonald’s: 31K/100, Starbucks: 2k/30, Burger King, Pizza Hut, KFC [Japan])
Cultural Change

14. Dreams from Endangered Cultures
Wade Davis · Anthropologist, ethnobotanist
A National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence, Wade Davis has been described as “a rare combination of scientist, scholar, poet and passionate defender of all of life’s diversity.”
ndangered_cultures
Dreams from Endangered Cultures