Introduction to Culture

Multicultural Literature

Part One NotesIntroduction to Cutlure

Class Goal

0To help students value cultural differences while realizing that individuals across cultures have many similarities.

Defining Culture

0Think: In your notebook, write a definition for culture.0Pair: Compare your definition with a partner.0Share your ideas with the class.

Let’s Compare

0Culture is the system of shared beliefs, values, customs, behaviors, and artifacts that the members of a society embrace.

0Culture is transmitted from generation to generation through learning, a process known as enculturation.

0Our culture helps to shape and influence our perceptions and behaviors.

(Sue & Sue 2003)

Heritage

0 Biological heritage: innate, born with it. Can’t change (without surgery or some other modification).0 Eye color0 Hair color/texture0 Skin color

0 Cultural heritage: customs, beliefs, and expectations we’ve learned0 How to be an “American”

0 Showering once a day0 Eating three meals a day0 Expecting freedom

Ethnicity0 Ethnicity refers to an identification with others who have

the same ancestral background (not based on race) based on shared cultural practices, perspectives, and distinctions that set apart one group of people from another.

0 Ethnicity = a shared cultural heritage. 0 These subgroups can be characterized by:

0 religion0 language0 customs0 traditions0 dress0 ancestral origin.

http://dept.sfcollege.edu/ruralalliance/

Examples of Ethnic Groups

0 In the United States:0 Jewish Americans0 African Americans0 Asian Americans

0Vietnam is one country that contains 54 ethnic groups, each with its own language, lifestyle, and cultural heritage.

Race

0Race is a group of people who are classified together on the bases of a common history, nationality, or geographical location.

0 In other words race is an ethnic group that has assumed biological basis or physical attributes that are believed to be characteristic of that group i.e. hair type and color of the skin.

0Often times it is difficult to identify one’s racial background based on physical characteristics because many people have multiple racial and ethnic backgrounds.

http://dept.sfcollege.edu/ruralalliance/

Races

0White0Arab0Black0Asian0Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander0American Indian/Alaska Native0Eskimo0Hispanic/Latino

Race vs. Ethnicity

0Race is a social category based on similar physical appearance (biological heritage).

0Ethnicity is a social category based on shared culture or cultural heritage.

Ethnicity vs. Race

0Example to help clarify race and ethnicity: 0 John is a male in his twenties. His skin color is black, his

eyes are brown and his hair is tightly woven. For all accounts one might assume that John is African American. However, he was born in Jamaica. John considers his race to be black, and his ethnicity to be Jamaican.

http://dept.sfcollege.edu/ruralalliance/

Characteristics of Culture

0Culture is the system of shared beliefs, values, customs, behaviors, and artifacts that the members of society embrace. 0 Learned0 Shared0 Adaptive0 Changing

Characteristics: Learned, Shared

0Learned: Culture is made up of learned behaviors. Culture is transmitted to its members.

0Shared: Culture binds people together as an identifiable group.0 Describe the various ways our society transmits cultural

norms to its members in America. Who is responsible for transmitting our cultural norms?

Characteristics: Adaptive and Changing

0Adaptive: Culture develops to accommodate environmental conditions and available resources.0 Describe a culture that has adapted and modified its

culture based on available resources. How do available resources influence a culture?

0Changing/Dynamic: Culture is constantly changing.0 Describe parts of our culture that are constantly

changing. How do these changes occur?

American Culture

0 Can you think of some examples of things that are part of/unique to American culture?0 Tailgating0 Black Friday shopping0 The American Dream0 Trick-or-treating0 Fast-paced lifestyles0 Individualism/self-reliance0 Equality0 Link from Yale for International Students

“It is difficult to define what an American is because there are so many kinds of Americans.” — Korean student at Yale

http://www.yale.edu/oiss/life/cultural/americans/values.html

Similarities Across Cultures

0All people have the same psychological and biological needs regardless of their culture (Maslow’s Hierarchy).

Can you list needs that you believe all humans share (physical or mental)?

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

0Level 1: physiological needs0Level 2: safety needs0Level 3: love and belongingness needs0Level 4: self-esteem needs0Level 5: self-actualization needs

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Differences

0How we go about meeting or fulfilling our needs is different.0 Depends on resources available, environment of region,

and the groups relationship to dominant society

Ethnocentric

0 Ethnocentric mean’s that one’s own culture traits are viewed as natural, correct, and/or superior to those of another culture whose traits are perceived as odd, amusing, inferior, even immoral.

0 Any foreign behavior, values and standards are evaluated in terms of the behaviors, values and standards of the person's original culture.

Brigham Young University

Conflict and Ethnocentrism

0Discuss: What problems arise when a person is not aware of his/her ethnocentrism?0 Egotistical attitude0 Naïve understanding of other cultures0 Prevents us from learning about and understanding

others0 May prevent us from learning new and/or better ways of

doing things0 Creates conflict; prevents us from avoiding conflict.

Brigham Young University

Ethnocentric Exercise

0We view the world through a cultural lens.

0Ethnocentrism Exercise:0 View “The Lunch Date”0 When the video is paused, write:

0Your interpretation of what happened so far0Your prediction of how the video will end

0 Follow-up:0Was your interpretation correct?0Was your prediction correct?0What does your prediction reveal about your “cultural lens”?

Part Two NotesIntroduction to Culture

Learning Culture

0How does an individual learn to become a functioning adult in his/her society?0Enculturation – process of learning the

characteristics of a given culture and becoming fluent in its language.

0Socialization – learning to function as a member of society by learning social roles (mom, husband, student, child).

Remember

We are not born a culture …we are encultured and socialized to a culture.

Socialization

0What have you been taught about how to be your gender as part of your socialization process in the United States?

GUYSGIRLS

Multicultural

0Multiculturalism refers to a society that contains multiple cultures.

0A multicultural individual is who can operate successfully in two or more different cultures.0 mastered the knowledge and necessary skills to feel

comfortable and communicate effectively.

Cultural Relativism

0Cultural Relativism is an attempt to understand other cultures in their own terms; not judging on the basis of your own cultural beliefs.0 How?

0Learn/know own culture0Learn other culture0Experience another culture

How do we all live together?

0Assimilation is the process by which one individual gives up or forgets his/her own culture to become part of a different culture and is accepted by the dominant culture.

How do we all live together?0 Acculturation is the merging of cultures as a result of prolonged

contact; adapting to or borrowing traits from another culture.0 Theories of Acculturation in the U.S.:

0 Anglo Conformity Theory – conforming (losing native culture) to the dominant White Anglo Protestant Saxon (WASP) culture of U.S.

0 Melting Pot Theory – a variety of races and cultures blend together by exchanging cultures and becoming a more assimilated, homogenous culture.

0 Mosaic or Salad Bowl Theory – different cultures mix and interact but retain original culture.

Living Together, or Not?

0 Cultural Pluralism is a condition in which minority groups fully participate in the dominant culture, yet maintain their own cultural differences.

0 Ethnic Enclave: an isolated area of a minority culture w/in a dominant culture.

0 Have you ever visited an ethnic enclave?0 Little Italy, Manhattan, New York0 Chinatown, Manhattan, New York0 Cambodia Town, Long Beach, California0 Little Ethiopia, Los Angeles, California0 Amish communities0 Native American reservations

Macro/Micro Culture

0Macro : National culture that is shared by most of its citizens.

0Micro: A subculture that shares common traits, behaviors, and values not common to all “Americans” but common among members of that group (social groups, gangs, occupations).

Macro vs. Micro Culture

0Example of micro culture: Neo-Nazi Skinheads0 Describe common traits, behaviors, values of that micro

culture.

0 Describe traits, behaviors, values Neo-Nazis may share with the macro culture.