Unit 2, Chapter 5: Culture!

1. Unit 2, Chapter 5: Culture! 1) What is culture? 2) Our Cultural Mosaic. 3)Expressions of Atlantic Culture. 4) Occupation and Lifestyle. 5) Culture and Politics.

2. What is Culture? (Handout) • Culture is a reflection of who and what we are. It refers to everything connected with the way humans live in groups. It includes all the ways people respond to their physical environment, their history, their economic life, their social life, and their political life. Culture includes arts and entertainment such as video-making, as well as beliefs such as what is or is not fair. It includes organizations such as city governments and schools as well as behaviour patterns like hanging out after school. • 5 main factors involved in culture: Physical environment, history, social life, economic life, and political life. Culture is NOT the same as genetic traits or characteristics!

3. Cultural Diversity(Handout) • The important differences among cultures is referred to as Cultural Diversity. For example, there are many important differences among the cultures of Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Chile, China, Russia, Hawaii, and Canada that make each culture unique. • Scientists who study human cultural characteristics and cultural diversity are known as Anthropologists.

4. Cultural Discussion • In groups of 4 or 5, give examples from around the world of how each of the five factors influence culture. • 5 main factors involved in culture: physical environment, history, social life, economic life, and political life.

5. Material and Non-Material Culture • Material Culture is composed of the physical objects produced and/or used by the society to which you belong such as items related to education, hobby, work, religious, or other items. • Non-material Culture, on the other hand, refers to the elements of culture that are not physical. It includes spoken language, ideas, stories, myths, legends, religious beliefs, and ways of behaving.

6. Material Culture: Currency! • 10 Taiwan Dollars : Chiang Kai-shek, military and political leader of the R.O.C. • Canadian $5.00: Henri-Charles-Wilfrid Laurier: responsible for bringing the French and English to better relations, winter sports • Omani ½ Rial: Qaboos bin Said al Said, responsible for modernizing Oman • 10 Hong Kong Dollars: National flower: the Orchid Bauhinia, a symbol of harmony • 10 British Pounds: The Queen, a symbol of the British Monarchy and Charles Darwin, founder of the theory Darwinism • One American Dollar: First President of the U.S. George Washington, the Eagle: national symbol of freedom and power • 20 Euros: gothic architecture from the 13th and 14th centuries, the EU flag • U.A.E.: ??

7. Culture Cont’d • Complete questions 1 and 3 on page 69 in your textbooks • Refer back to figure 5.1 on pg. 68. Put each item into the category of either material or non-material culture.

8. Culture Cont’d • Questions 1 and 3 on page 69 in your textbooks • M: Art, Calendars, Hairstyles, Housing. • NM: Everything Else.

9. Culture Cont’d • Among the most important aspects of non-material culture are our values – the ideas, beliefs, and ways of behaving that are valuable or important to people in a particular culture. • Take a minute to think about the main culture that you belong to or the culture you feel you most belong to. What are some of its core values? List some of them.

10. Traditional Culture • The customs, beliefs, stories, and opinions passed down from one generation to another are known as traditions. • The traditional culture of a group is made up of practices established over many generations. • Think of at least two traditional traditions and new or emerging traditions in the way things run in your household.

11. Mainstream and Contributing Cultures • Like rivers running into large lakes, contributing cultures add to and enrich the mainstream culture. • Mainstream culture is the general culture of the majority of the people. • Contributing cultures are the differing cultures of small groups of people within the larger mainstream culture. The mainstream culture of Nova Scotia is composed of people mainly European decent and Christian belief systems. However, this now includes increasing numbers of people from contributing cultures mainly of Middle Eastern and Asian decent and of Islamic, Atheistic, and Buddhist beliefs (for example).

22. Agents of Socialization

23. Popular Culture • There is a much more widespread kind of culture of which many societies all over the world share and consume: popular culture. • Popular culture is composed of products and brands that are mass produced. It is then spread throughout the globe to be mass consumed through mass distribution and mass communication. • Popular culture promotes many of its own values that may either agree with or go against a traditional culture’s values. • Popular culture is seen everywhere including television, movies, music, internet, radio, magazines, books, and billboards.

24. Homework Assignment • Thinking about concepts of culture, traditions, traditional culture, material culture, and popular culture, complete the following questions on page 74 in your text book: • 1., 4a, and 5. (you will do 5 on your own). For #1, come up with at least three examples of traditional culture and three examples for popular culture as you’re listing your activities.

25. Explorations Activities: pg. 74 • In groups of three, discuss the questions presented in 4. b. Create a t-chart. On one side, list the positive ways in which popular culture has affected society. On the other side, list the ways in which popular culture may affect traditional culture or society negatively. • While you’re doing this, think about every way in which popular culture affects a more traditional society: food, music, movies, art, hobbies, clothes, entertainment, family activities, etc. • Each group must come to a conclusion: Does Popular Culture affect traditional cultures in a mostly negative way, or a mostly positive way?

26. Explorations Activities: pg. 74 (cont’d) • Class debate (two teams): 4. c. • Do limits need to be placed on the amount of (mainly) American media available here in the U.A.E. and elsewhere? • Each group will be expected to come up with at least 3 reasons why they take the stance they have with examples or evidence to back up their reasons. When finished, each large group will come together, pick out the points they wish to use for their arguments, choose three keynote speakers, and be ready to defend their argument.

27. Popular Culture Cont’d • The driving force of popular culture throughout the world is advertising. • Advertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience (viewers, readers or listeners) to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. Commercial advertisers often seek to generate increased consumption of their products or services through “branding”. • Branding involves the repetition of an image or product name in an effort to associate certain qualities with the brand in the minds of consumers.

28. Advertising: Promoting Popular Culture (Handout) • Watch these advertisements on youtube.com and answer the following questions for EACH advertisement: • Pepsi Commercial (Britney, Pink, Beyonce) • INSPIRATIONAL NIKE AD • Revlon Grow Luscious Plumping Mascara • a) What is the company’s name, b) what is the product being advertised, and c) what is the company’s brand? • What are the main things that happen and that are said in the advertisement? • What are three main images that stick out in your mind after watching the advertisement? (Branding) • Listen to the music being used. What kind of emotions or feelings does the music evoke? • What are the main messages/ideas being associated with this product in the commercial? (Branding) • Do you think this advertisement is effective? Why or why not?

29. Socialization (Handout) • Human infants are born without any culture.  They must be transformed by their parents, teachers, and others into cultural and socially adept animals.  The general process of acquiring culture is referred to as socialization . • During socialization, we learn the language of the culture we are born into as well as the roles we are to play in life.  For instance, girls learn how to be daughters, sisters, friends, wives, and mothers.  In addition, they learn about the occupational roles that their society has in store for them.  We also learn and usually adopt our culture's norms through the socialization process.  Norms are the conceptions of appropriate and expected behavior that are held by most members of the society.

30. Agents of Socialization (Handout)

31. Agents of Socialization Exercise • Choose three of the agents of socialization from your handout that you believe are the most important and answer the following questions: • Why is this agent one of the most important to your socialization? • What are at least two values that you have learned from this agent that you have not learned from any other? • What are two other agents that are closely linked to this one in some way and how are they closely linked?

32. Unit 2, Chapter 6: Our Cultural Mosaic! 1) What is culture? 2) Our Cultural Mosaic. 3)Expressions of Atlantic Culture. 4) Occupation and Lifestyle. 5) Culture and Politics.

33. Celebrating Cultural Diversity (Handout) • Read pages 80, 81 • Humans are social creatures. They develop by interacting with each other. Healthy humans belong to and interact with members of many different public and private groups. • The members of an ethnic group share a common background which can include geographical, linguistic, and cultural background. E.g. Are your roots Lebanese? Syrian? Taiwanese? Icelandic? Swedish? Chilean? Portuguese? • There are more than 6000 languages spoken world wide. If you share one of these with others you belong to a certain linguistic group.

34. Celebrating Cultural Diversity cont’d • Many people belong also to a religious group or sect. There are more than 122 000 recorded groups and sects of religious and spiritual beliefs. • All of these things come together to make up the culture one belongs to. Also, as mentioned, in society there is generally a dominant culture called the mainstream culture. Members of other groups make up the contributing cultures. E.g. A Nova Scotian living in Abu Dhabi is a part of the contributing culture while someone of a Western European background living in Canada is of the mainstream culture.

35. Problems between Cultures • Read first two paragraphs on pg. 86. • The view that all members of a group are the exact same regardless of any evidence that says otherwise is known as a stereotype. • A person holding a view based on previously held ideas and not on knowledge or experience is someone who holds prejudice. • This person may then treat a group unfairly based on his/her prejudice. This is called discrimination. • Racism is the belief that abilities, personality, and values are influenced by race, colour, or ethnic origin. • It is the mistaken belief that one group is superior to another and is often the cause of individual, cultural, and institutional racism and/or discrimination. • Canada’s immigration policy: racism at the institutional level – bottom of pg. 87.

36. Understanding the Process • The following is the process in which prejudice becomes a part of our non-material culture: • First, a person learns incorrect or only partial information about a group or groups of people. This leads to that person learning stereotypes. • When that person comes to truly believe these stereotypes and develops an emotional response to them, that person will hold a prejudice. • If/when that person acts on his or her prejudice, this is called discrimination. Discrimination includes, but is not limited to, racism. Discrimination includes individual, cultural, and institutional racial discrimination AND individual, cultural, and institutional discrimination on other grounds. • Other forms of discrimination include ageism, sexism, homophobia, classism, and discrimination based on religious and political views and against those with mental or physical disabilities.

37. Main Forms of Societal Discrimination • Individual Discrimination: The act of discrimination by one person toward another or a group of persons. E.g. A young man mocks and disrespects an elderly person because he feels old people are useless. • Cultural Discrimination refers to the belief of one (usually dominant) cultural group that another cultural group is inferior, dangerous, or both. E.g. Many Muslims living in New York after September 11th, 2001, faced discrimination and even physical harm by members of the dominant American culture. This was in response to the falling of the twin towers and the thousands killed at the hands of what was reported to be an Islamic extremist’s terrorist attack on the U.S. • Institutional Discrimination refers to the policies of those who dominate and control the major institutions of society that are intended to benefit and privilege certain dominant groups and have a harmful effect on minority groups. Examples of major institutions are the professions, the trades, big business including corporations, politics, religion, and the media. E.g. Although circumstances continue to improve in the West, women with the same education and work experience as their male counterparts still earn lower salaries on average (the glass ceiling). • NOTE: All of the above forms of discrimination are interconnected in many circumstances.

38. Ethnocentrism, Socialization, Globalization video • What is the video’s definition for ethnocentrism? Ethnocentrism is the tendency to view things from one culture’s perspective. • Why is it claimed that we are all ethnocentric? Everyone is ethnocentric to an extent because one will always know one’s own culture the best. • Why do you think it is better to be on the edge of the spectrum of Ethnocentrism, Stereotype, and Prejudice in the diagram presented? What are the benefits of being there? • Define globalization and list the ways mentioned that countries interact. Globalization is simply countries interacting with other countries on a global scale. These forms of interaction include: trade, exchange of ideas, war, and commerce. • How does socialization make one ethnocentric? Socialization is a process of adopting and accepting a culture. Therefore, it makes one ethnocentric to an extent. • What images are presented for the male and the female when talking about culture?

39. Ethnocentrism, Socialization, Globalization video • What does the media usually support and why? • For what reasons does $$$ push media to support the dominant ideology? • What effect do you think that might have on what is put on television and the news? • Write a definition for the two different types of norms. Give an example of each from life here in Abu Dhabi. Folkways: an accepted behavior by a culture that does not have a set penalty when not followed. Mores: an expected behavior by a culture that has a set penalty when not followed. • What is cultural relativism and explain two ways you could personally move closer toward it. Cultural Relativism is the ability to judge cultures on their standards and norms and not from one’s own perspective as much as possible. • Why is the word “civilized” loaded? • Why is it important that we look at history from a “grey” perspective.

40. Examples of Individual, Cultural, and Institutional Discrimination and Racism. Are the following examples of: individual, cultural, or institutional racial discrimination OR individual, cultural, or institutional discrimination on other grounds? • A young man who has a degree in finance from a university applies to a position at a corporate firm. He is originally from Afghanistan. Another applicant is chosen over him because the company does not want anyone representing them who may slightly resemble an Islamic extremist. • A young woman who has a teaching degree applies to a position at a high school. Even though she is more experienced, a man is chosen over her as it is the principal’s belief that women cannot handle high school students. • A Caucasian man yells racist slurs at an Asian man when the Asian man accidentally bumps into him on the street. • Upon arriving to the New World (North America), the Europeans took much land from the native populations because the Europeans felt that they were superior to the natives. • A cab company made a new rule that they will refuse to pick up teenagers because teenagers are rude and never pay. • Many Africans were taken to America and other parts of the world and were sold as slaves. Slave traders were able to commit these crimes because they truly felt their slaves were inferior human beings.

41. Self Reflection Assignment: • Most of us hold some stereotypical views even if we would rather not. • Think about 3 of the stereotypes you hold and complete the following assignment in the form of a personal journal: • What are these stereotypes? Explain each. • Where did you pick these up? Do they come from your environment? Have these stereotypes caused prejudice within you? • Identify at least one weakness in your stereotype and explain at least one way in which this stereotype could be harmful to others. • Identify at least one step you could take to undo this thinking. • Briefly list the benefits that might result from your changed way of thinking.

42. Predicting Future Trends! • As discussed, culture is made up of many things and is something that changes over time. • In groups of three discuss the ways in which you feel and see the culture around you changing. Make predictions! • When you have children, what do you think will still be strong in your culture for them? What do you feel may be lost by that time? • Think about society as a whole. What do you see changing now? What traditions or forms of traditional culture do you feel will remain strong for generations to come? What, do you feel, is threatened or will change? • Discuss!

43. Christopher Columbus

44. Is this really India??? • “Indian” Etymology: applied to the native inhabitants of the Americas from at least 1553, on the mistaken notion that America was the eastern end of Asia. “Red Indian”, to distinguish them from inhabitants of India, was first attested 1831.

45. “Run to the Hills” by Iron Maiden (from contact to Residential Schools) • White man came across the seaHe brought us pain and miseryHe killed our tribes, he killed our creedHe took our game for his own needWe fought him hard we fought him wellOut on the plains we gave him hellBut many came too much for CreeOh will we ever be set free?Riding through dust clouds and barren wastesGalloping hard on the plainsChasing the redskins back to their holes • Fighting them at their own gameMurder for freedom a stab in the backWomen and children and cowards, attackRun to the hills, run for your livesSoldier blue in the barren wastesHunting and killing their gameRaping the women and wasting the menThe only good Indians are tameSelling them whiskey and taking their goldEnslaving the young and destroying the oldRun to the hills, run for your lives 

46. Aboriginal, First Nations, Native Canadian Peoples • Residential schools were established with the assumption that aboriginal culture was unable to adapt to a rapidly modernizing society. It was believed that native children could be successful if they assimilated into mainstream Canadian society by adopting Christianity and speaking English or French. Students were discouraged from speaking their first language or practicing native traditions. If they were caught, they would experience severe punishment.

47. Mini-assignment: Rita Joe • Read page 90 including the poem “I Lost My Talk” in your text book and answer the following questions. Answer in thoughtful and complete answers. • She states, “Two ways I talk…Your way is more powerful”. • Who is she addressing this to? • What does she mean by this? • Reference the culture terms we have been discussing in your notes and think about her “talk”. When she “lost” it, what group did she also lose? What kind of culture is her “talk”?  • Complete 1. a) on page 92. When discussing the overall message, choose two quotes from the poem and explain how they effectively demonstrate this message. • Complete 1. b). Choose two adjectives to sum up the tone of the poem. Support your answer with at least two examples of language she used and explain how that language creates this tone. • Rita Joe had her culture taken away as a child. Is she bitter or angry about this as she addresses those who have done this to her? Why or why not? • Complete 1. c). Explain this question. You may use examples from the poem to back up your statements.

48. DRUM! • Musical extravaganza that has been on the road in North America for ten years. • DRUM!’s combination of music, dance, rhythm, and song tells of the arrival, settlement, struggles, and ultimate coming together of four of North America’s founding cultures upon arrival to Nova Scotia.

49. DRUM! • The Mi’kmaq • Describe the pace, sounds, music, and rhythms and stage presence • Percussion-based rhythms, chanting, slow, steady pace • Sitting together • Describe the clothing • Earthy browns, feathers, leather • Les Acadiens • Describe the sounds, music, and rhythms • Strings-based music (violin, guitar), spoons!! (kitchen parties) • Quicker pace, lots of dancing • Celebratory • Describe the clothing • Bright clothing – purples and greens, suit for the man

50. DRUM! • The Celts • Describe the sounds, music, and rhythms • Guitar , bagpipes, marching drum, violin, and voice • Slower pace with lots of harmonies (almost like the chanting of the Mi’kmaq) • Later celebratory with high energy dancing • Describe the clothing • Blacks, whites and plaids • The Black Settlers • Describe the sounds, music, and rhythms • Very percussion-based, drums, piano, chains • Quick-paced until gospel-like singing/preaching • Celebratory • Describe the clothing • Bright clothing – but earthy colors unlike the Acadiens and the Celts