sociology 5- material & non material culture
color symbolism
associated with gender (pink for girls, blue for boys)
example of beliefs
boys are naturally loud & active; pharmaceutical drugs work better than herbs; a priest is an ordinary human being
example of material culture
clothing: everyday clothing & clothing we only wear for specific rituals (weddings, running, graduation)
body language
consists of subtle or unconscious gestures, that may often be unintentional (one degree difference between a gesture & body language)
values
culturally defined standards for beauty, desirability, goodness, & importance -ideals, specifying how a culture believes people "should" be or act
ex: meaning for cow
dairy, bull fighting, or a sacred animal
ex: meaning for an apple
food, school, Adam & Eve, iPhone/Apple products
ex: meaning for guns
freedom, war, violence, Wild West, boys toys, masculinity, sports, police brutality
purpose of material culture
helps to shape an define its members behaviors and perceptions
sanctions
how norms are enforced; negative or positive reactions to how people follow or disobey norms, including rewards for conformity & punishments for norm violators -enforced by authority figures & by peers -help to establish social control
example of taboo
incest, cannibalism, eating bugs, child pornography, pregnant women drinking/smoking
formal norms
laws, rules for a game, etc.
folkway
loosely enforced norm involving customs, practices, procedures that ensure smooth social interaction & acceptance
mores
norm carrying greater moral significance, closely related to core values of the group, involves severe repercussions for violators -some enforced by laws, other not
informal norms
not generally written down, may be unspoken, but understood learned via socialization, imitation, & observation, including observing consequences of a norm violation
non-material culture includes
rituals & customs, signs & symbols, language & gestures, values, norms, beliefs
norms
rules that specify behaviors appropriate or inappropriate in a particular situation; vary greatly across culture & time
beliefs
statements about how the world operates, often reflect a cultures values & norms
material culture
the concrete, physical objects that make up a culture; physical objects with symbolic value -includes things such as food, clothing, cars, weapons, buildings, tools, & kinds of technology
Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis
the idea that language structures thought, & reveals how we look at the world
gestures
the signs that we make with our body, such as hand gestures & facial expressions
how do sociologists approach culture?
they mainly focus on culture closer to home, usually in the same societies to which they belong
American values
tolerance & fairness, individualism, competitiveness, youth, thin women and tall muscular men, material wealth, consumption/consumerism
signs or symbols
visual images that are used to meaningfully represent something else
culture includes
-physical objects to which people attach meaning (material culture) -rituals, customs, signs, and symbols, gestures, language, norms, beliefs, & values (non material culture)
culture
-the total, or entire way of life, for a group of people -the part of learned behavior that is shared with others -the groups knowledge that is stored & passed on from one generation to the next
example of American folkway
-wear formal attire to a wedding -dont laugh in certain situations -clap at the end of a play -say goodbye before hanging up the phone
taboo
a norm engrained so deeply that even thinking about violating it evokes strong feelings of disgust, horror, or revulsion for most people
language
a system of symbols that allows people to communicate with one another -shapes communications & perceptions & how we see things
