Latin America: Culture

1. Latin America: Culture Unit 5 Lesson 3

2. Components of Culture • On a piece of paper write down as many components of culture as you can remember. • You have 60 seconds. • GO!

3. Components of Culture • Art – What art forms are typical of this culture? (crafts, paintings, drama, music, dance) • Buildings – Which building, monuments, structures, and types of homes symbolize this culture? • Communication – How do people communicate with each other? How is information spread? • Dress–What clothing is typical of this culture? • Economy – Who owns the farms and factories? Are they high tech, low tech, or no tech? • Family – What does the typical family look like? What is the role of women? Children? • Government – Who has the power? How is the average citizen connected to the government? • History – What experiences have shaped this culture? (colonialism, war, revolution, famine, etc.) • Icon – What images (religious or not) cause an immediate response in every person? • Jobs – How does the average person (or family) make a living? • Knowledge – How is knowledge passed from one generation to the next? (schools, government, oral history) • Language – What words and expressions have a special meaning? What are the most popular forms of literature? • Movement/Migration – How does the average person get around? To where are the people moving? • National pride – What people, places, and things spark feelings of loyalty and patriotism? • Organizations – What are the most important organizations (formal and informal) in this society? • Population – What are the largest groups – age, race, religion, language, ethnic group? Who is in the minority? • Quality of Life – Rate the average person’s health and happiness. (medical care, life expectancy, opportunity.) • Religion – What beliefs and values do people hold? What are the traditional holidays, festivals, ceremonies?) • Status – What classes, castes, professions, and groups (racial, ethnic, religious, cultural) have high or low status? • Taboos – What behaviors are considered to be totally unacceptable? • Urban or Rural – Do most people live in the city or the countryside? What does the typical community • look like? • Vacation/Recreation- How do the people in this culture have fun? • Ways of everyday life – How do people take care of everyday things (cooking, washing clothes, shopping)? • X marks the spot – How does geography shape this culture? • Yum – What foods were invented here? What do people normally eat? Special foods? • Ztuff– What is typical “stuff” of this culture? (like chopsticks in China, or maracas in Mexico)

4. Think about… • How has your culture been influenced by a larger culture group from a different time period? • Hint: Look at your list of culture components and think about how they relate to your own culture.

5. Today’s Big Idea • To identify the elements of culture through research of Latin American cultures. The influences of culture and cultural beliefs on the environment, policy (government), and diffusion. • How do the following affect culture? • History • Human-Environment Interaction (HEI) • Physical Process • Sustainable Development • Public Policy • Economics

6. History • Latin America was home to many indigenous civilizations. Aztecs, Mayans and Incas were the largest. • Spanish and Portuguese explorers traveled to Latin America for God, Gold, and Glory. • Conquered native civilizations forcing their own language and religion on natives.

7. Human-Environment Interaction • Latin America contains many natural resources, probably the biggest is the Amazon rainforest. • Use of the rainforest is contested amongst different groups. • Slash and burn agriculture is used amongst farmers • Natives in mountainous regions adapted to their geography by cutting into hills and mountains to plant crops • Terrace Farming

8. Physical Processes • Latin America is on the eastern edge of the Ring of Fire • Earthquakes and volcanoes are common along the region. • How has adaptation to these natural phenomena affected culture?

9. Sustainable Development • Ecotourism • Tourism in exotic, often threatened, natural environments to support conservation efforts and observe wildlife • Has ecotourism affected the ways cultures interact with their environment? • Use of Bio-Fuels • One of Brazil’s main crops is sugar cane and has been used as a bio-fuel substitute to gasoline

10. Public Policy • Latin American countries began winning their independence from their colonizers in the 19thcentury. • Mexico 1822 • Brazil 1822 • Transition from Imperial rule to democratic-style governments. Some survive, others shift to socialist or dictatorships.

11. Economics • Columbian Exchange • Trading of goods between the “New” and “Old” World • Slave trade brings new population and culture to continent • Panama Canal was constructed with the help of outside influences. • Connects Atlantic and Pacific Ocean transforming the isthmus into an international port • NAFTA – North American Free Trade Agreement • International agreement between Mexico, USA, and Canada to remove restrictive tariffs and encourage trade • What is the effect of outside influences on culture?

13. Your Task… • In pairs research 1 Latin American country and create a presentation on the culture of that country. • Your presentation should answer the following questions: • How has culture developed over time? (How has history affected culture?) • Does the country’s culture affect its economic system or government system? • Include at least 10 different components of culture with pictures • ABC CLIO should be your only online resource