Cultural Analysis of Brazil

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Cultural Analysis of Brazil Brief History The Portuguese colonized Brazil in the 1500. The Native tribes originally occupied the land, became slaves along with the Africans after the colonization. In 1822 Brazil became independent and slavery was abolished. An end came to the royal family in 1889 and a dictator ruled throughout the 1950's. After a great deal of turnover civilian rule was created in 1985. Geography Location. Brazil is located in South America and is the largest nation in the continent covering 3,286,470 square miles. Brazil borders the Atlantic Ocean and neighbors all nations in South America expect Chile and Ecuador. Brazil has a span of four time zones. Climate. The climate is 90% tropical and temperate in the south. Brazil is divided into five climatic regions: equatorial, tropical, semiarid, highland tropical, and subtropical. Topography. Brazil consists of lowland basins, mountains, plateaus, hills, and rivers. Social Institutions Family: Brazilians are true to family values and uphold their beliefs. Children are admired. Nuclear. Nuclear families are rare and the majority of families are extended. Extended. Families include close and distant relatives such as stepchildren, godparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. Parental Roles. A father influences authority roles on sons while mothers influence homemaker roles upon the daughters. Marriage and Courtship. Marriages are granted by the civil courts or under the Roman Catholic Church. Female/Male Roles. The men work and have authority over women and children. The women stay at home and tend to the children, but are growing independent, employed are more educated than men, taking over their households. Education. Education is in high demand. Schools are pub... ... middle of paper ... ...zil. In 1998 social security was cut by $17 billion. Workers were outraged. Health Care. Health care is public and private. Public health care is less expensive but lacks all the necessities. Private health care is expensive as is only found regionally. Bad health is common among the poor. Language Official Language. The official Language is Portuguese. English is the second most spoken language. Spoken vs. Written. The written language is Portuguese. Portuguese is standard throughout the country and follows the nation's rules. Written Portuguese versus the spoken Portuguese differ and only the well educated use it correctly. Dialects. There are no dialects of Portuguese but there is a difference in accents and vocabularies. Nouns, pronouns, and verb conjugations also vary. 1: The World Factbook: Brazil http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/print/br.html

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