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The consequences of cultural assimilation
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Cultures
Culture is something that is very stable but it is still something that is subject to
change. There are different causes to change including accidents or the unexpected
outcome of events that are already in existence. Sometimes it is also the attempt to solve a perceived problem. Change can also be forced upon a group through intense contact between two societies. Adaption and progress are both consequences and not causes of change.
The ultimate source of all change is innovation. This is any new practice, tool, or
principle that gains widespread acceptance within a group. A primary innovation is a
change that involve the chance discovery of a new principle. A secondary innovation
results from the deliberate application of known principles. A great example of primary
innovation is the firing of clay which makes it permanently hard. Modeling the clay to be fired by known techniques into familiar objects. Primary stimulate other inventions and may prompt rapid cultural change.
Diffusion is known as the borrowing of cultural elements from one society by
members of another. Borrowing is so common that the North American anthropologist
Ralph Linton suggested that as much as 90% of a culture is accounted for by borrowing.
The Pilgrims that settled in New Plymouth might have starved to death if it wasn’t for the Indian Squanto which showed them how to grow crops. There is a creativeness behind
the borrowing, picking and choosing from multiple possibilities. Most of these choices
are made to be compatible with the already existing culture.
Cultural loss has to do with the abandonment of some trait or practice with or
without replacement. People think of change as an accumulation of innovations: adding
new things to those that are already there. When reflected upon you come up with the
conclusion that the existence of a new innovation leads to the loss of an older one.
This in not only a feature of Western Civilization. In biblical times chariots and carts were in Widespread use but were replaced by camels because they worked better by the 6th century.
Acculturation is the occurrence of two groups of different cultures coming into
intensive firsthand contact with each other. An element of force is usually involved
directly or indirectly. There are other variables which include the degree of cultural
difference; circumstances, intensity, frequency, and hostility of contact; who is dominant and who is submissive: and whether the nature of the flow is reciprocal or nonreciprocal.
Culture is expressed through a variety of different ways, from clothing styles to lifestyles to faithful traditions. It can also have a deep impact on the viewpoints of those around you, whether negatively or positively. No matter how a person goes about their everyday life, they can rise above the expectations of their culture to change the world around them. Culture does not have to be the basis of every thought, word, or deed of a person.
Life changes, which leads humans to change, some changes are little others are dramatic, some
Squanto spent much of his life living in the Plymouth Colony teaching his newly acquired English friends how to survive in this foreign land. He helped them greatly in the area of growing and gathering food. Without the help of Squanto, the English never would have discovered many important methods involved in growing a decent crop on
In the US, CA almost always involves members of the dominant culture borrowing from the culture of minorities.
historically derived and selected) ideas and especially their attached values; Culture systems may, on the one hand, be considered as products of action, and on the other as conditioning elements of further action.”
In the essay “Cultural Baggage” by Barbara Ehrenreich in The Norton Mix, Ehrenreich claims that she possesses no type of heritage. She goes on to explain that in her life, she never learned any specific cultural values, and that her family has always lived with borrowed traditions. She closes by stating that she is proud of her lack of heritage and believes that the world would be better off without culture. Having no cultural background is a well-developed and agreeable idea because of the number of people who come from mixed and confusing backgrounds, the complexity of a mixed family tree, and the changing times and their effect on traditions.
While other that differentiate a culture of another must be preserved at all costs, elements such as language, clothing, gastronomy, religion, arts and especially the identity of those who are part of it. Something that they are forced to leave to be able to integrate life in big cities or even within the same regions, so that each time it is less possible to observe persons fully proud of their origins, their culture and also proud to have the opportunity to transmit them, even in many cases to others who do not belong to the same
According to Webster’s Dictionary, culture is defined as tradition or a way of life. It is also a defining principle in how we live our life and the type of people we become. The Salish Indians of the Montana and Celie, the main character of the book The Color Purple, are two examples of cultures that made them who they are. Celie is a poor, black, woman growing up in Memphis, Tennessee in the mid-twentieth century. The men have constantly put her down, through beatings and rape, for being a woman with no talent at all. Her husband’s lover comes to town and gives Celie a chance to see a culture where a woman can stand up for herself and teaches her that love is possible. The Salish on the other hand have a culture that has gone on through the ages and still is a part of each person today despite the obstacles they have had to face. Culture does shape us because from birth it is what tells us our ideals, laws, and morals that we live by each day.
Culture can be defined as “A pattern of basic assumptions invented, discovered or developed by a given group as it learns to cope with its problems of external adaptation and internal integration that has worked well enough to be considered valid, and therefore to be taught to the new members as the correct way to perceive, think and feel in relation to those problems”. Schein (1988)
Very often, all the aspects that built up the core of one’s culture are interrelated,
Culture is defined as a configuration of learned behaviors and results of behavior whose component elements are shared and transmitted by the members of a particular society(Linton, R. 1945). American culture is obviously typical culture model widely transmitted internationally in the contemporary era. Thanks to aborigines in American Continent and the large number of migrants from worldwide, American culture presents the characteristics of diversity and tolerance which deeply affected and shaped by native American culture, European culture and African culture. Culture itself is an abstract concept embodied by language, architecture, poems, rituals, music, arts and religions. In this
Anthropologists define the term culture in a variety of ways, but there are certain shared features of the definition that virtually all anthropologists agree on. Culture is a shared, socially transmitted knowledge and behavior. The key features of this definition of culture are as follows. 1) Culture is shared among the members of that particular society or group. Thus, people share a common cultural identity, meaning that they recognize themselves and their culture's traditions as distinct from other people and other traditions. 2) Culture is socially transmitted from others while growing up in a certain environment, group, or society. The transmission of cultural knowledge to the next generation by means of social learning is referred to as enculturation or socialization. 3) Culture profoundly affects the knowledge, actions, and feelings of the people in that particular society or group. This concept is often referred to as cultural knowledge that leads to behavior that is meaningful to others and adaptive to the natural and social environment of that particular culture.
Kelley,T. (2005, Oct.). The 10 faces of innovation. Fast Company, 74-77. Retrieved 6th March’ 2014 from http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=9&sid=1d6a17b7-c5f7-4f00-bea4 db1d84cbef55%40sessionmgr10&hid=28&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#db=bth&AN=18386009
Culture consists of the beliefs, behaviors, objects, and other characteristics common to the members of a particular group or society. Through culture, people and groups define themselves, conform to society's shared values, and contribute to society. Thus, culture includes many societal aspects: language, customs, values, norms, mores, rules, tools, technologies, products, organizations, and institutions. Sociologists define society as the people who interact in such a way as to share a common culture. The term society can also have a geographic meaning and refer to people who share a common culture in a particular location. For example, people living in arctic climates developed different cultures from those living in desert cultures.Culture and society are intricately related. A culture consists of the “objects” of a society, whereas a society consists of the people who share a common culture.
1. What is Culture? What I personally think is that our culture is the foundation of who we really are in life. It identifies the lifestyle and pursuits that are practiced in the group of people we relate with in our society. In other words, an important concept to understand is that cultural beliefs, values, and practices are learned from birth first at home, in church, and other places where people meet. Some practices and beliefs in human culture include religion, music, sports, food, health beliefs, and art which represent the values we have in life. Also, our own culture is diverse and it is significant to look with in and identify what we value the most, what is essentially needed, and how we see the world. It is our remaining tool and we don’t even realize it is needed to communicate and socialize with others.