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1. How can you define multiculturalism in Malaysia? Do you think our culture is different with other nation’s culture? Provide your analysis with two examples.

Multiculturalism can be defined as a set of beliefs and behaviors that acknowledges and respects the existence of all ethnic communities within an organization or society, acknowledges and values its socio-cultural differences, and promotes and facilitates its continued participation within an inclusive cultural framework that empowers everyone within the organization or society. The multicultural Malaysian society is characterized by three major ethnic groups, namely Malays, Chinese , and Indians. In the context of Malaysia, ethnicity is relevant when defining one 's religion. Malaysia is an extremely diverse nation, with many ethnicities, languages , and religions. People of every race have maintained the cultural traditions of their ancestors generally. Malaysian culture therefore accommodates a rich range of lifestyles, beliefs , and values. Eventhough Malaysia has more than one race and religion, the society tend to respect each other’s religion in order to maintain peace and harmony. People in Malaysia lives peacefully despite of living with people from different background,religion, language and so on. Malaysians also treat each other with deference, courtesy and compassion in an endeavor to safeguard the integrity, dignity, value and social worth of the individual. Yes, I do think our culture is different with other nation;s because most of the nations consist of similar race or almost similar background but however in Malaysia we have 3 major main race and religion which is totally contrast from each other. Malaysian’s do have national language which is Bahasa Malaysia and it is spoken by all the race in Malaysia. Most of the celebrations celebrated by each religion is celebrated together as well with other friends who are in different religion. For example, on Hari Raya, it is a festive season for the muslims but, it is also celebrated by Chinese and Indians to embrace the culture of Malaysia. Chinese and Indians do visit they Muslim friends and attend open houses during Hari Raya. This is same when it comes to Chinese New Year and Deepavali. Being members of such a multicultural community, Malaysians are usually very particular about how they communicate with people of all backgrounds in a respectful way. There are cultural norms and tabuses which remind what people generally think is acceptable and inappropriate behaviour. This relates to the Malay concept of 'budi' which considers

politeness and respect central to human interaction. The term does not have a direct English counterpart, but qualities such as one's intelligence, virtue, courtesy, and morality can usually be understood. Through this way one can see that there is a clear ethical foundation for Malaysian politeness and etiquette. Malaysian normally have high moral values. We tend to take moral values more seriously compare to other nations. Next example is that, Malaysia is much more collectivistic than Western societies and people believe like they are part of communities. Such groups represent or come to define who their members are, and require a high degree of loyalty sometimes. For example, the interests of the community typically outstrip those of the individual, even if they conflict. In addition, group members expect preferential treatment over anyone who isn't part of the group. An person receives a sense of identity, security and solidarity in exchange for that loyalty. Being a culture of collectivism, feelings of guilt and pride can be felt both at the individual and collective levels. In this way, one-person acts. To do something improper in Malaysian culture brings shame, shyness and embarrassment upon an person. These shameful feelings are commonly felt when a person loses 'face.' Face is the quality embedded in most Asian cultures which represents the prestige, authority, integrity and honor of an individual. You give them a face by complimenting them, showing them love or doing anything to boost their self-esteem. Likewise, people may lose face and save face, or build face. Individuals in Malaysia therefore typically behave deliberately and with caution to protect their self-worth and peer view. Apart from that, Malaysians are seen as strikingly polite and optimistic people. In certain cases, their common cultural emphasis on relationships and individuals means they are extremely considerate. Today the growing social attitude of Malaysia is based on striving for democracy, formal education, equal opportunities for the various races and reverence for other religions. The nation is united by a deep spiritual belief in human goodness. Another analogy of why I think Malaysia’s culture is different from other nation is because each race in Malaysia have their very own traditional clothes. For example, baju kurung is one of the traditional clothes for Malay girls, Cheongsam for Chinese girls and saree for Indian girls. Eventhough each race have their very own traditional clothes, we as a Malaysian, do wear each other race’s traditional clothes on festive season such as on National Day ( Hari Kemerdekaan).

In conclusion, Malaysian culture is definetly different from other countries because we have our own way of behaving and own perspective of how we react and act in our everyday life.

2. Cultural identity is described as one of the important elements in multiculturalism. Explain what is cultural identity and identify 3 characteristics of identity that can differentiate one person or group of people to another with clear explanation.

Cultural identity refers to one’s sense of belonging to a particular culture or ethnic group. It is formed in a process that results from membership in a particular culture, tradition, heritage, religion, ancestry, aesthetics, thinking pattern and social structures of the culture. It can also be defined as the identification or sense of being part of a group. It is part of the selfconception and self-perception of a individual, and is linked to nationality , race, faith, social class , age, locality, or any form of social category that has its own distinct culture.The 3 charactheristic of identity that can differentiate one person or group of people to another is social identity, cultural identity and personal identity. Social identity is defined by who you are, based upon your individual beliefs, age,interest and so on. For example, badminton player, scientists who strongly identify their professions as “belonging” to their group of professional. Therefore, it categorizes people into a category with a collective identity in which they belong, because they hold the same values. Social identities are constructed in a variety of ways. Those include ethnicity, age, faith, and social status. Today there is a continuing quantity of variety of social identities. A social identity requires attributes of oneself and will be used to categorize individuals into groups. Through focusing on who you are, your social identity is graded according it. Social identity is also a dynamic, multidimensional concept which is formed and modified during the lifetime of a individual. It's both the representation of what and who people want to be, and the product of social environment changes with their enforced standards, established values and aspirations. Cultural identity in simple word is the identification or sense of being part of a group. It is part of the self-conception and self-perception of a individual, and is linked to nationality, race, faith, social class, age, locality, or any form of social category that has its own distinct culture. It can also be defined as cultural identification or feeling of belonging to nationality , race, faith, social class , age, locality and any kind of social community that has its own

distinct culture as part of the self-conception and self-perception. In this way, cultural identity is characteristic both of the individual but also of the culturally similar community that has the same cultural identity shared by its members. For example, racial identity, ethnic identity as well as gender and nationality identity.

Personal identity starts at the moment of birth, and personal identity can or does not alter over time. In certain cases, the change of identity varies due to reasons of psychological, physical, or environmental changes in the life of a individual. As life advances over time, people continue to change their views on several issues and those issues include identity. Personal Identity is based on people’s unique characteristics, which may differ from those of others in their cultural and social group. For example, cooking, dancing, singing and so on. Basically it is the personal interest that possess by a person. In conclusion, all of this 3 main identity is very important in our daily life....