vce sociology
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VCE Sociology. Unit 3 Area of Study 2 Australian Cultural Communities “The content and meaning of culture and multiculturalism”. Culture and multiculturalism. “Verstenhen” is imagining yourself to be in the position of the person whose behaviour you are seeking to explain - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Unit 3 Area of Study 2Australian Cultural Communities
“The content and meaning of culture and multiculturalism”
“Verstenhen” is imagining yourself to be in the position of the person whose behaviour you are seeking to explain
When studying culture and identity it is important to consider the experiences of diverse groups of people
In order to understand culture you must be able to imagine what it would be like to live within that culture, without judging it against norms from your culture
Close your eyes Imagine you’re in a remote indigenous community
targeted in the NTER◦ Imagine yourself as a 20-something Aboriginal male. Why do
you drink alcohol?◦ Now imagine yourself as a Government policy maker. How are
you going to deal with the issues in the community? Consider everything from education to housing and the justice system.
◦ Now imagine being a reporter from Today Tonight sent to investigate what’s happening in the community. What angle would you take and why?
How do values and norms influence the different perceptions of the same community?
Culture includes the practices and beliefs that become associated with a group and leads to its distinctive identity Culture focuses on how people live rather than human genetics
Culture is made of two parts: Material culture: physical artifacts and objects
technology, clothing, art, building forms, etc Non-material culture: abstract creations
values, beliefs, norms, customs, symbols, language, institutional arrangements, etc
“The social heritage of a people; those learned patterns for thinking, feeling, and acting that are transmitted from one generation to the next, including the embodiment of these patterns in material items” (Hughes 2002).
In order to understand culture you need to understand its language e.g. The Rosetta Stone unlocked the language of
Ancient Egypt, allowing exploration of their culture The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis suggests the
language used by a culture is representative of how it “thinks” If we don’t have an already existing language to
describe something like an idea or emotion, we change our perception or meaning of the idea or emotion to fit into already existing language
The language you speak can limit or determine how you think because language represents reality differently Therefore, no two languages are ever similar enough to
allow for perfect translation between them
Identify examples of how languages spoken by ATSI peoples and non-ATSI peoples influence perception.
In groups, discuss your ideas of Australian culture by identifying examples of material and non-material culture.
Does Australia have one culture?
Monoculture◦ One single cultural heritage◦ One set of physical and abstract characteristics◦ New members to the culture must “assimilate” or
“integrate” (become absorbed by dominant culture)
Multicultural◦ A cultural heritage consisting of a number of
cultures in parallel◦ There is no dominant culture as each cultural
group experiences equitable status◦ There is no dominant set physical and abstract
characteristics
Is Victoria a monoculture or is it multicultural?◦ Scan through the ‘Victoria’s Population Diversity’
booklet and identify examples that support both types of cultures
Norms are standards of behaviour or ways of thinking determined by a dominant group
Norms include: Folkways
customs and habits Mores
ethical standards and established practices Laws
institutional norms and rules Values
degree of importance placed on something
Norms are the acceptable standards and specific guides for conduct to promote social cohesion
They are social expectations of what is correct or proper e.g. codes of behaviour such as saying thank-you, eating with
cutlery, not talking in a lift, etc We punish people who do not behave ‘normally’ or who
break the codes (this is called ‘social control’) as adherence to the norms of a community ensures social order e.g. streakers or nude bathers are fined
We learn what is normal by watching and mimicking (internalisation) and by being taught (socialisation)
Norms change e.g. good samaritanism is decreasing due to being time poor,
individualistic, or dangers
How do norms inhibit thoughts and actions? Identify three norms in this classroom and
the consequences of not conforming to them.
Think of two situations where moral norms may differ from institutional norms.
What is one norm in Australian culture that you have seen change over your lifetime?
Values are the ideas and qualities that are considered worthwhile, desirable, correct and good by a society
Values underpin the norms of a society and determine behaviour
They provide the criteria by which we evaluate people, objects and events
For example, my family values include:◦ work ethic, individuality, social equality,
democracy, etc
As a class, brainstorm values that are important to you
Then, individually rank your Top 5 according to their level of importance to you
Discuss your ranking with others How do you values differ from your
grandparents? Why? What is the greatest influence on the
development of Australian cultural values?
Symbols◦ Symbols are acts or objects that have a special
meaning to a particular group of individuals◦ They represent something through shared
understanding◦ Symbols include:
gestures: head movement for yes/no, handshakes objects: flags, uniforms, religious icons language: vernacular, slang, accent
Which symbols were used to represent Australia in the opening ceremony of the Sydney Olympics?
Are there any symbols that represent all Australians?
Identify five symbols that are unique to Australia.
Institutions underpin the norms and values of a society and can act as agents of social control
Institutions shape our behaviour through formal or “unwritten” rules
Society is always changing and so are institutions Institutions have interdependent relationships with
each other (they need each other and change to one institution filters into changes to another)
Examples include: Money (including banking institutions) Marriage (including religious institutions) Family (including governmental institutions) Web2.0
Organismic analogy◦ Think of society as an organism (or a body)
Just like you need lungs to breath, society has need too (requisite needs)
And like the organs in your body, institutions are taken for granted by society (that is, they work without your conscious awareness)
Talcott Parsons argued that all societies need four things: Adaptation, Goal Attainment, Integration, and Latent Pattern Maintenance
Which institutions do you think these four things relate to, and which body part do they most suit?
◦ Adaptation the subsystem that converts raw materials from the
environment into usable stuffs◦ Goal Attainment
the subsystem that motivates and guides the system as a whole
◦ Integration the subsystem that regulates the activities of the systems
diverse members◦ Latent Pattern Maintenance
the subsystem that indirectly preserves patterns of behavior that are needed for survival
Adaptation◦ in the body, the digestive system◦ in society, the economy
Goal Attainment◦ in the body, the mind◦ in society, government
Integration◦ in the body, the central nervous system◦ in society, the law
Latent Pattern Maintenance◦ in the body, the autonomic nervous system◦ in society, education, religion, and family
Imagine you take a sleeping tablet and go to bed You wake up in a tent You’re in the jungle It could be Indonesia No-one speaks English You look around and don’t understand what people are doing
even though it appears habitual to them How is your life different from it is in Australia in terms of
Living conditions Food Laws Work Relationships
Do you feel insecure? What has happened to your sense of identity because of
being in a different culture?
Cultural identity is a person's sense of self identity related to their notion of belonging to a particular cultural group e.g. the identity ingrained in your psyche
Cultural identity can enhance belonging for an individual
When considering Australia’s cultural identity you need to consider whose culture you are referring to: ATSI cultural identity or non-ATSI cultural identity
Does Australia have a shared cultural identity?
Australia’s cultural identity includes the right of all Australians, within carefully defined limits, to express and share their individual cultural heritage, including their language and religion
Read the ‘People in Action’ handout◦ Write a reversal of the story◦ What Australian values and norms should Abdula
be aware of when visiting Australia on a business trip?
Read the ‘Identity, Multi-culturalism, and Imagined Community’ handout
Write definitions of the following terms in your glossary:◦ Cultural identity◦ Culture◦ Monoculture◦ Mulitculturalism