CULTURAL VARIATIONCh 2.2(30-39)

Traditional Japanese Dinner Norms

Bring a gift to show appreciation Take shoes off upon entering house Kneel or sit on the floor (Do not stretch legs out under the table –

it is seen as bad manners to show the bottom of feet)

Lift bowl to your chest Slurping is accepted DO NOT pour drinks for yourself!

Indian versus American Wedding

What ways is an Indian wedding different from traditional American wedding?

Cultural Universals

Things, such as rituals that ALL societies have.

George Murdock Examined hundreds of different cultures

to determine universals among all cultures

EX-body adornment, cooking, dancing, family, feasting, greetings, marriage, funeral ceremonies, language, religion, tool making.

How does the make-up of the family differ from culture to culture? In the Western world, a family consists of

both parents and their children (grandparents may be included)

In some parts of the world a man may have several wives and their children.

While the make-up of the family may be different, the purpose is the same-to bring new members successfully into society.

Cultural Variation – Margaret Mead

Studied several small societies in New Guinea (during the 1930s).

Wanted to find out if there was differences in basic temperament – the emotional disposition of a person – were they a result of inherited characteristics OR from cultural differences.

The Arapesh Contented Gentle Non-aggressive Receptive Trusting Society based on complete cooperation

The Mundugumor Aggressive Competitive Violent Hostility is emphasized (an ideal) For a man, power and wealth = the

number the wives. Children are often left unattended when

mother works outside

Mead’s Conclusion

Mead concluded that temperament is mainly a result of culture, rather than biology.

Whorf’s main point about language People are conditioned by their language

to notice some features of the real world and to ignore others. If the language does not have a word to describe an object, that object has little or no significance in that culture.

EX – Inuit have TONS of different words to describe the snow (different conditions, etc.)

EX-1:00-7:55: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRMNr

Eo7CRw&feature=related

Ethnocentrism

Ethnocentrism is the practice of judging another culture by the standards of one’s own culture.

Cultural Relativism

Cultural relativism views the behavior of a people from the perspective of their own culture.

Applying Cultural Relativism

Cultural relativism helps anthropologists and sociologists understand practices that seem strange or different from their own culture.

OBJECTIVE not SUBJECTIVE!

Death customs:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0m9p55XAqM

Cultural Discontinuity

Cultural discontinuity is when subgroup members’ values, beliefs and practices differ from the larger culture and are at odds with those of their subculture.

EX-Cultural Discontinuity-Drop-out rates among Native Americans

American education system is built on the competitive model – preparing students for a competitive market economy.

Native American society is not based on a competitive model, rather it is based on the cooperative. Achievement is based on the basis of effort, commitment and degree of satisfaction.

While cultural discontinuity has existed, as attitudes and beliefs about education change, drop-out rates are predicted to go down (culture changes/adapts).

SUBCULTURE

When a group within a society shares vales, norms or behaviors that are not the same as the entire population. MOST subcultures do NOT reject the values of the larger society.

Unique groups – age, gender, religions, geographic region, political, social class, occupations…

What states have the highest number of immigrants? What types of questions might a sociologist have

based on the information presented in a map?

COUNTERCULTURE

Group that rejects the major values, norms, and practices of larger society = new set of cultural patterns EX- hippies, anarchists, communists (?)

Cultural Variation in Society Cultural variation in a society can give rise

to ethnocentric feelings – racism, prejudice, etc.

It is important that sociologists maintain the objective perspective = perspective/attitude of cultural relativism.

BE OPEN MINDED ABOUT OTHER CULTURES!

Cultural Change•Cultural diffusion

•Cultural diffusion is the spreading of culture traits from one society to another

•Today it can happen almost instantly

•Cultural lag•Cultural lag is the time it takes for nonmaterial culture to “catch up” to changes in material culture•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

Cultural Change