Transcript Culture Ch. 3 - Kentucky Department of Education

Sociology
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Culture and Society
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Culture- knowledge, language, values, customs, and
objects passed down through generations
Helps to explain human behavior
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2 types of things passed down

Material
 Cell phones, buildings, computers
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Non Material
 Beliefs, customs, rules
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pyvtCzx
QDk
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aM_300qX4
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A group of people that live in defined territory
and have common culture
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Way of life for certain groups of people
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Instincts- genetically inherited patterns of
behavior

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Non human rely more on instincts
Reflexes- automatic reaction to physical stimuli

sneezing
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Sociobiology-study of biological
basis of human behavior
 Believe that behaviors that help
the most are biologically
transferred

Cultural Transmission
 The creation and transmission of
culture

Things that stand for or represent
something else
 Snapping in Brazil
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Language allows us to create culture
 With language, humans can pass
ideas, experiences, and knowledge
to others

Hypothesis of Linguistic Relativity
 Our perception of the world depends
on our language we learned
 Since languages differ, so do
perceptions
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_xUIDRxdmc
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When something is important, it has many
words
When something is not important, it may not
have one word
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How many ways can you say toilet
Throne
 Comfort Station
 Commode
 Toilet
 Pot
http://www.rotorooter.com/blog/101-names-for-atoilet-marking-101-years-since-thomas-crappersdeath/

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpK86Oq
qROc
Ode to the Commode video
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How we see things is influenced by
more than just language
 Cultures differ, and this may
influence them experiencing things
differently
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A penny saved is a penny _____________
Better safe than _______________
Better late than _________________
Hard work beats talent when talent
________________________
No news is ________________
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A penny saved is a penny earned
Better safe than sorry
Better late than never
Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t
work hard
No news is good news
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What you can do today, don’t put it off
___________________ (Germany)
A bird in the hand is worth
___________________ (England)
A closed mouth
____________________________ (Italy)
A good husband is
_________________________ (Japan)
A monkey never thinks ___________________
(Haitain)
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What you can do today, don’t put it off until
tomorrow (Germany)
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush
(England)
A closed mouth catches no flies (Italy)
A good husband is healthy and absent (Japan)
A monkey never thinks her baby’s ugly
(Haitian)
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Rules defining appropriate and inappropriate
behavior

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Senegal

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Never eat with left hand, considered offensive
Zambia

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So engrained in behavior we don’t even realize it
Avoid direct eye contact with opposite sex
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ngAuIn
K7SA
Folkways
Rules that cover customary ways of thinking
Sleeping on a bed rather than a floor
disapproval is low

Deals with what is
right and wrong

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Taboo

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Conformity is
supported, and are of
great moral
significance
Norm so strong, if
violated you will get
punished
Videos
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Defined and enforced by officials

Consciously created and enforced
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It is illegal for a vehicle
without a driver to
exceed 60 miles per
hour
It is legal to beat your
wife on the court house
steps on Sundays.
It is illegal to fart in a
public place after 6 P.M.
on Thursdays.
it’s illegal to paint your
lawn red.
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California
South Carolina
Florida
Kentucky
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Broad ideas about what most people consider
desirable

Form the basis for norms
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Involved in most aspects of daily life
Achievement and Success
Democracy