PPT Steckley Chapter 5 Culture PDF

Chapter 5 Culture  Chapter Topics and Overview 5.1 What We Mean by Culture and Why It’s Contested 5.2 What Kinds of Cultures Are There? 5.3 Cultural Norms 5.4 Culture Symbols 5.5 Values 5.6 Ethnocentrism 5.7 Cultural Relativism 5.8 Sociolinguistics  For Starters… W...

Chapter 5 Culture  Chapter Topics and Overview 5.1 What We Mean by Culture and Why It’s Contested 5.2 What Kinds of Cultures Are There? 5.3 Cultural Norms 5.4 Culture Symbols 5.5 Values 5.6 Ethnocentrism 5.7 Cultural Relativism 5.8 Sociolinguistics  For Starters… When Does Culture Need Protecting? What do you think?  5.1 Culture and Why It’s Contested Culture is a system of behaviours, beliefs, knowledge, practices, values, concrete materials including buildings, tools, and sacred items. Expressed through language and things we make (artifacts) Cultures are dynamic and change over time – Culture and its elements are contested: there is little agreement as to who and what belongs to a culture, even by those who belong to a cultural group – One of the points of contestation is authenticity or what is true to a particular culture  5.2 What Kinds of Cultures Are There? Types of cultures can be distinguished along two central oppositions – Dominant culture vs. subculture and counterculture – High culture vs. popular and mass culture  Dominant Culture versus Subculture and Counterculture Dominant culture is the culture that, through its political and economic power, is able to impose its values, language, and ways of behaving and interpreting behaviour on a given society – Dominants refers to people who are closely linked with the cultural mainstream – Canada’s dominants are white, English-speaking, heterosexual, male university graduates of European background between the ages of 30 and 55, in good health, who own homes in middle-class neighbourhoods of cities in Ontario  Minority Cultures, Subcultures, and Countercultures Minority cultures are those that fall outside the cultural mainstream – There are two subcategories that fall under minority cultures: countercultures and subcultures Countercultures are minority cultures that feel the power of the dominant culture and exist in opposition to it. (e.g., clothing styles or sexual norms) – E.g., hippies, biker gangs, and alternative (music and fashion) Minority Cultures, Countercultures, and Subcultures Subcultures are minority cultures that differ in some way from the dominant culture but don’t directly oppose it. – E.g., groups organized around occupations or hobbies  High Culture versus Popular Culture High culture: is the culture of the elite, a distinct minority. It is associated with the arts (e.g. theatre opera, ballet, and classical music) – High culture requires what Pierre Bourdieu called cultural capital: a set of skills and knowledge needed to acquire the sophisticated tastes that mark someone as a person of high culture  High Culture versus Popular Culture Popular culture: The culture of the majority, especially those who do not have power (e.g. the working class, the less educated, women, and racialized minorities) – Cultural studies cast light on the significance of, and meanings expressed in, popular culture  Popular Culture and Mass Culture Mass culture: refers to people who have little or no agency in the culture they consume (e.g., big companies dictate what people watch, buy, value or believe) Created by those in power for the masses – A crucial distinction exists between popular culture and mass culture. The two differ in terms of agency, the ability of “the people” to be creative or productive with materials given to them by a dominant culture.  Popular Culture and Mass Culture Simulacra is a feature of Mass Culture: – Simulacra are stereotypical cultural images produced and reproduced like material goods or commodities by the media and sometimes by scholars (Jean Baudrillard, 1929–2007) (e.g. Inuit represented through igloos, kayaks, etc..). – Simulacra are “hyperreal”, thus likely to be considered more real than what actually exists and distorts contemporary Inuit “reality”  Popular Culture and Mass Culture Important distinction between the two positions involves decipherment and reading: – Decipherment involves looking in a text for the definitive interpretation, for the purpose (conscious or unconscious) the culture industry had in mind in creating the text. – Reading is the process in which people treat what is provided by the culture industry as a resource, a text to be interpreted as they see fit, in ways not necessarily intended by the creators of the text.  5.3 Cultural Norms Norms are the rules or standards of behaviour that are expected of a group, society, or culture – Norms may be contested along the lines of ethnicity, “race,” gender, and age – Norms are expressed in a culture through various means, from ceremonies that reflect cultural customs (a wedding, for example) to symbolic articles of dress (the white dress worn by the bride) – Norms change over time and differ from culture to culture  Sanctions Sanctions are rewards and punishment in response to a particular behaviour – Positive sanctions are rewards for “doing the right thing” (e.g., smiles, high five or bonus) – Negative sanctions are reactions designed to tell offenders they have violated a norm (e.g., a glare, an eye roll, parking ticket, a library fine)  Folkways, Mores, and Taboos William Graham Sumner (1840–1910) distinguished between three kinds of norms: 1. Folkways, or etiquette, are norms that govern day- to-day matters. Those are norms we should not violate and they are weakly sanctioned (e.g., double- dipping chips) 2. Mores are more serious than folkways. These often formalized norms we must not violate and violations are met with serious sanctions (e.g., stealing, rape). Mores are complicated and may be contested 3. Taboos are norms that are so deeply ingrained in our social consciousness that the mere thought or mention of it is enough to arouse disgust or revulsion (e.g., incest, child pornography)  5.4 Culture Symbols Symbols are cultural items that hold significance for a culture or subculture. – Symbols can be tangible (material objects), such as the maple leaf, niqab – Symbols can also be intangible (non-material objects) such as songs or events (e.g., seal hunt, Canadian Anthem) – Cultural symbols change over time  5.5 Values Values are the standards used by a culture to describe abstract qualities such as goodness, beauty, and justice and to assess the behaviour of others. Values and behaviour are not always congruent – Ideal culture: is what people believe in (e.g., environmentalism) – Actual culture: what really exists(e.g., driving large SUVs)  5.6 Ethnocentrism Ethnocentrism occurs when someone holds up one culture—usually their own— as being the standard by which all cultures are to be judged – Ethnocentrism is often the product of a lack of knowledge or ignorance – Ethnocentrism has played a role in the colonizing efforts of powerful nations imposing their political, economic, and religious beliefs on the Indigenous populations of lands they “discovered.” – e.g., the 1884 Potlatch Act  Eurocentrism Eurocentrism involves addressing others from a broadly defined European position and assuming the audience is or would like to be part of that position – e.g., Eurocentric perspectives of many textbooks used in the West tends to champion advances made by people of European stock while downplaying or altogether ignoring important non-European developments. (e.g., the standard numbering system is the Hindu– Arabic system)  Cultural Globalization Cultural globalization is the intensification and expansion of cultural flows across the globe (Steger, 2003). – The “Americanization” of the world or the danger of a one-directional flow of culture could be problematic  5.7 Cultural Relativism Cultural relativism is an approach to studying and understanding an aspect of another culture within its proper social, historical, and environmental context – We cannot use our own cultural standards to assess and judge the cultural practices of others Cultural relativism becomes problematic when studying historical practices and views that were once widespread but are now considered abhorrent and offensive such as acts of genocide against Indigenous Peoples (e.g., Mi’Kmaq population)  Cultural Relativism versus Presentism Cultural relativism is the ability to judge figures of the past within their own time and not by today’s standards. Presentism is the inability to judge figures of the past within their own time, instead we judge them by today’s standards. – (e.g., figures like Cornwallis, McClung, and Sir John A. cannot be judge by today’s standard)  5.8 Sociolinguistics Sociolinguistics is the study of language as part of culture – Language is key to the communication and transmission of culture – Sociolinguistics looks at language in relation to such sociological factors as “race,” ethnicity, age, gender, and region  Dialect as a Sociological Term Dialect: a variety of a language that differs from others in terms of pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar – Dialects are often evaluated according to whether they represent proper or improper, casual or formal, even funny or serious versions of a language. – The distinctions are a product of linguistic and social factors An example of a dialect difference can be seen in the SUV commercial that featured a voiceover in a Newfoundland accent. However, you might not hear that same accent extolling the marketable features of a Lexus.  Linguistic Determinism and Relativity Sapir–Whorf hypothesis describes the relationship between language and culture Language, words, and the meanings they generate are culture-specific, therefore language outside of its cultural context does not make sense Linguistic determinism suggests that the way we view and understand the world is shaped by the language we speak – e.g., gendered pronouns reflect and shape how we think about gender  Summary Not only do cultures differ, but cultures are viewed and lived differently by people who occupy different social locations, based on gender, sexuality, “race,” ethnicity, age, etc. Similarly, although humans, as intensely social creatures, cannot live without culture, they can also feel oppressed by their culture, if their social location is not one of power and influence.  Chapter Outcomes: Test Your Knowledge  Describe Canada’s dominant culture.  Explain what it means for culture to be contested.  What is the difference between a subculture and a counterculture?  How does the concept of agency relate to popular culture and mass culture?  How do cultural norms and sanctions constrain and define our behaviour?  Explain how folkways, mores, and taboos differ.  How do values and language contribute to culture?  Define ethnocentrism and explain its significance.  Source Steckley, J. (2023) Elements of Sociology. (6th Edition). Oxford University Press Canada. 29