Cultural Construction Unit 3 Flashcards
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Questions and Answers

What is cultural construction?

  • People's beliefs about reality are largely constructed by their culture. (correct)
  • Absolute truths that transcend culture.
  • Physical traits that define race.
  • Inherent qualities of symbols.

    • How do cultural constructions affect our thoughts, feelings, and beliefs?

    Cultural constructions affect our thoughts, feelings, and beliefs through concepts like gender, art, and beauty.

    How does cultural relativism relate to cultural constructions?

    Cultural relativism allows us to understand that constructions are relative to their circumstances.

    What is the difference between cultural and moral relativism?

    <p>Cultural relativism focuses on understanding reality in context, while moral relativism suggests all judgments are ethnocentric.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What do anthropologists mean when they say that race is a cultural construction?

    <p>Race is a cultural construction because the classification into racial categories is influenced by culture.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What evidence do anthropologists use to support the idea that race is a cultural construction?

    <p>Different racial categories can be constructed by various criteria, and definitions of race can change within cultures.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are norms?

    <p>Shared ideals or expectations about how certain people ought to act in given situations.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are folkways?

    <p>Norms about how things should be done in a given situation; standards about politeness.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are mores?

    <p>Norms about behavior that carry moral connotations.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are symbols?

    <p>Objects, behaviors, qualities, and phenomena that have culturally defined meanings.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are values?

    <p>Shared ideas or standards about the worthwhileness of goals and lifestyles.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What does arbitrary mean in this context?

    <p>No inherent qualities in the symbol that lead a group to attribute one specific meaning.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What does conventional mean?

    <p>Meanings exist only because people implicitly agree they exist.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is multivocality?

    <p>Symbols represent many qualities and abstract values simultaneously.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What does condensation in symbols refer to?

    <p>Symbols express their meanings in a material form that is easy to represent and emotionally attach to.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are classifications of reality?

    <p>Ways the members of a culture divide up the natural and social world into categories.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a worldview?

    <p>Ways people interpret reality and events, including their relation to the world.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the cultural construction of gender?

    <p>The idea that the characteristics attributed to males and females are culturally determined.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are multiple-gender identities?

    <p>Definitions of sexual identities beyond the female and male duality.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Knowledge = _____ and/or _____ + their ________.

    <p>ideas; objects; relationships</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Why is 'relationship' essential to the meaning of knowledge?

    <p>'Relationship' is essential because understanding connections between ideas/objects constitutes knowledge.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Why are names and terms important?

    <p>They make it possible to apply our knowledge.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Why are diagrams considered distilled knowledge?

    <p>They reduce concepts to their essence and visually represent relationships.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    The three categories of relationship are ________, ________, and ________.

    <p>environment; social; self</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the connection between cultural construction of relationships and knowledge?

    <p>Culture constructs what we know about the world and its relationship to ourselves and society.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Why is knowledge power?

    <p>Knowledge is power because understanding our relationships enables us to change them.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Study Notes

    Cultural Construction

    • Cultural construction refers to the idea that individuals’ beliefs and perceptions of reality are shaped by their cultural backgrounds.
    • This concept challenges the notion of an objective reality, emphasizing the influence of culture on personal expression, values, and expectations.

    Impact on Thoughts and Feelings

    • Cultural constructions shape our understanding of gender, beauty, and art, significantly influencing emotions and beliefs.

    Cultural Relativism

    • Cultural relativism posits that people's constructions of reality are context-dependent; understanding these constructions requires knowledge of their cultural circumstances.

    Cultural vs. Moral Relativism

    • Cultural relativism focuses on understanding reality in its specific context, while moral relativism claims all judgments are ethnocentric, with no universal standard for morality.

    Race as a Cultural Construction

    • Anthropologists argue race is a cultural rather than a biological construct, highlighting that human classifications into racial categories are socially determined rather than based on innate differences.

    Evidence for Race as Cultural Construction

    • Different criteria can create various racial classifications; no objective method exists to determine racial categories, leading to cultural variability in racial identification.
    • Example: Brazil has over 40 terms for race, reflecting diverse cultural perceptions.

    Norms

    • Norms represent shared expectations regarding behavior in specific situations, setting standards for propriety and appropriateness.

    Folkways

    • Folkways are norms governing everyday behavior, focusing on standards of polite conduct without strong moral implications.

    Mores

    • Mores are norms with moral significance, reflecting societal views on right and wrong behavior, especially regarding issues like sexuality.

    Symbols

    • Symbols have meanings that are culturally defined and do not possess inherent qualities; they represent conventional interpretations of various behaviors and objects.

    Values

    • Values encompass shared beliefs about what goals and lifestyles are deemed worthwhile within a culture.

    Arbitrary and Conventional Meanings

    • Symbols are arbitrary, meaning their significance is not derived from inherent qualities, but rather from collective agreement on their meanings.

    Multivocality

    • Symbols can convey multiple meanings or qualities simultaneously, representing complex ideas and values.

    Condensation

    • Symbols can simplify complex ideas into recognizable forms, facilitating emotional connections and easier comprehension.

    Classifications of Reality

    • Cultures categorize their social and natural environments through linguistic constructs, creating unique interpretations of reality.

    Worldview

    • A worldview shapes how individuals interpret events and realities, influencing their connection with the surrounding world.

    Cultural Construction of Gender

    • Gender characteristics are attributed culturally rather than biologically, reinforcing societal norms around masculinity and femininity.

    Multiple-Gender Identities

    • Some cultures recognize more than two gender identities, allowing for a broader spectrum beyond just male and female.

    Components of Knowledge

    • Knowledge consists of ideas, objects, and their relationships, where understanding these connections is crucial for meaningful knowledge.

    Importance of Relationships in Knowledge

    • Relationships are essential as they provide context to ideas and objects, contributing to a deeper understanding of knowledge.

    Role of Names and Terms

    • Names and terms are vital for articulating knowledge, enabling effective communication and understanding across cultures.

    Diagrams as Distilled Knowledge

    • Diagrams represent condensed knowledge, visually illustrating relationships and the essence of concepts.

    Three Categories of Relationships

    • Relationships can be categorized into environmental, social, and self; these connections are integral to understanding one's place in the world.

    Knowledge and Cultural Construction

    • Cultural contexts shape what we understand about our relationships with the environment, society, and ourselves, influencing our overall knowledge base.

    Knowledge as Power

    • Understanding relationships empowers individuals to effect change in their interactions with the world, illustrating the dynamic between knowledge and power.

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    Dive into the concept of cultural construction with this set of flashcards. Explore how cultural beliefs shape our thoughts, feelings, and values. Ideal for students looking to deepen their understanding of cultural influences on perception and reality.

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