Cultural, Social, Political, Economic Symbols

• Understanding Culture, Society and Politics is the main topic.
• Ms. Kristine Mae B. Frayres

Objective:

• Identify cultural, social, political, and economic symbols.
• Analyze the significance of cultural, social, political, and economic symbols and practices.

Cultural, Social, Political and Economic Symbols

• A symbol is an object, word, or action that stands for something that is culturally defined.
• Symbols such as gestures, signs, objects, signals, and words, help people understand the world.
• Symbols provide clues to understand experiences.

Functions of Symbols

• Symbols are used to transfer culture, ideologies, or beliefs from one group of people to another.
• Symbols are also used to preserve traditions or beliefs of a certain group of people.
• All symbols contain "hidden" values, which hold greater meaning and importance than the face value from a functional perspective.
• Symbols have been used to create movements, spread ideas, and share advocacies that surpass time and distance.

Types of Symbols

• Cultural Symbol
• Social Symbol
• Political Symbol
• Economic Symbol

Cultural Symbol

• Manifestation that signifies ideology of a particular culture that has meaning within that culture.
• National items and symbols are used to create Filipino identity and to promote solidarity and unity in the nation.
• A religious symbol is an iconic representation intended to represent a specific religion, or a specific concept within a given religion.
• Examples of religious symbols include symbols for:
  • Judaism
  • Hinduism
  • Islam
  • Christianity
  • Confucianism
  • Buddhism
  • Shintoism
  • Taoism
  • Sikhism
  • Bahaism

Cultural Practices in the Philippines

• Manifestations of a culture concerning the traditional practices of a particular ethnic or cultural group.
• Examples include:
  • Traditional Medical Practices
  • Religious/Spiritual Practices
  • Culinary Practices

Social Symbol

• Relates to human societies and their modes of organization (social classes, social problems, social issues).

Political Symbol

• Used to represent a political standpoint.
• Seen in various media and forms such as banners and flags.
• Artifacts of different political meanings related to power are usually used to embody an ideology, advocacy, or a group of people with the same principles.
• Political practices are common things that are done within a state or country.
• Related to the practices done in the administration, distribution and attainment of power, bureaucratic composition, etc.

Economic Symbol

• Used in production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services like currency, market, labor, demands and other economic activities.
• Represents economic standpoint and can be seen in various media such as Stock Exchange, Money, and Currency, Gold and Petroleum, Life Insurance, Banking, etc.

Significance of Symbols and Symbolism

• The usage of symbols and symbolism has given mankind an avenue to communicate with different groups of people, influence others of different ideologies, and preserve values that were transferred from generations to generations.
• "People are the most significant symbol of a nation."

Explore cultural, social, political, and economic symbols and their significance. Symbols, including gestures and signs, help people understand the world. They transfer culture and preserve traditions, containing hidden values and meanings.