Soci1000 - week 3 - Lecture notes 5,6 PDF

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SOCI1000 - Tiffani Semach...

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Sociology 1000 Lecture 6 - January 21st, 2020 Culture - a system of behaviours, beliefs, knowledge, practices, values and material artifacts - dynamic systems that change over time - culture and its elements are contested (never fully agreed on) Types of culture: ● Dominant vs subculture and counterculture ○ dominant culture is the culture that, through its political and economic power, is able to impose its values, language, and ways of behaving and interpreting behaviour on a given society (white, english speaking, heterosexual men) ○ subcultures and countercultures are minority cultures that fall outside the cultural mainstream though share certain features with the dominant ○ countercultures are groups that reject elements of the dominant culture (e.g., clothing styles or sexual norms) e.g., hippies, biker gangs, and Goths ●

High culture vs popular and mass culture ○ High culture is the culture of the elite (e.g., arts such as opera, ballet, and classical music) ○ Popular culture is the culture of the majority, especially those who do not have power ○ Mass culture refers to people who have little or no agency in the culture they consume (big companies) ■ simulacra - (hyperreal) stereotypical cultural images that are (re)produced like material goods or commodities by the media (e.g., representing Inuit through igloos or inukshuk)

Symbols, Values & Norms Norms are the rules or standards of behaviour that are expected of a group, society, or culture ● can be expressed in many ways including cultural customs and symbols ● can change over time Sanctions are rewards and punishment in response to a particular behaviour. ● positive sanctions are rewards (e.g., smiles, bonuses, trophies) ● negative sanctions are reactions designed to tell someone they have violated a norm (e.g., a dirty look, a parking ticket, a library fine) Folkways, Mores and Taboos Folkways, or etiquette are informal norms that govern day-to-day matters. (e.g. table manners) Examples of folkways in different cultures:

Canada = elbows off the table, utensils stay on plate, eat quietly, tip the waiter

East & South Asia = slurp noodles, chopsticks on holder, leave a little on the plate, no tip Mores  are more serious than folkways, that we must not violate. (e.g. stealing, murder) Examples of mores in different cultures:

Canada = fine or community service for stealing, prison for murder Sharia-controlled region = hand cut off for stealing, death penalty for murder Taboos a  re norms that are so deeply ingrained in our social consciousness that the mere thought is enough to arouse disgust (e.g. incest, child pornography) Culture Symbols Symbols are cultural items with tremendous meaning within a culture. ● Tangible (material, e.g. canadian flag) ● Intangible (non-material, e.g. the hockey night, or the holocaust) Values Values are the standards used by a culture to describe abstract qualities such as goodness, beauty and justice. They also guide our behaviour and our assessment of the behaviours of others. ● Ideal culture: the values that we espouse about how we think we should act ● Actual culture: how we act Canadian and American values - Table 3.1 Ethnocentrism Ethnocentrism occurs when someone holds up one culture-usually their own-as being the standard by which all cultures are to be judged ● often the product of a lack of knowledge ● plays a crucial role in colonial and neo-colonial expansion Eurocentrism ● particular form of ethnocentrism ● Addressing others from a broadly defined European position Reverse Ethnocentrism Involves assuming that a particular culture that is not one’s own is better than one’s own in some way. Cultural Globalization The intensification and expansion of cultural flows across the globe

Cultural Relativism An approach to studying and understanding an aspect of another culture within its proper social, historical and environmental context Sociolinguistics The study of language as part of culture in relation to sociological factors as “race”, ethnicity, age, gender, and region Dialect : a variety of a language that differs from others in terms of pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar Ex: television, movies Linguistic Determinism and Relativity Sapir-Whorf hypothesis describes the relationship between language and culture Linguistic Determinism  suggests that the way each of us views and understands the world is shaped by the language we speak - Our beliefs are shaped by the language we speak - e.g. gendered pronouns reflect and shape how we think about gender

Postville - When Cultures Collide 1. What elements of dominant culture are being contested? - Christianity - Language 2. 3. 4. -

What are some examples of key Postville norms? How are sanctions expressed? Going for coffee, the Jewish could not Key Postville symbols Beautiful, well-kept lawns Annual parade What type of language is used to discuss the “other”? “We are conforming to their norms rather than them to ours” “It was like seeing a bear coming towards you” “If they didn’t want to be part of postville, they shouldn’t have came here” “Cultural people”...