Title: In this unit, you will learn
1Culture
- In this unit, you will learn
- What culture means.
- How and why geographers study culture.
- How and why cultures change over time.
2Culture
- Rhetorical Question What are some organized
events that occur regularly in your community? - These events make up the culture of an area,
which is the focus of this next unit.
3Culture
- Culture Culture includes all the features of a
people's way of life, including those patterns of
human knowledge, beliefs and behaviors that are
learned and transmitted to succeeding
generations. - Examples?
- Language, religion, architecture, clothing,
economics, family life, food, the arts,
government - Peoples beliefs, institutions, shared values,
technologies and skills.
4What about here?
- Take a few minutes and list in your notes some
shared cultural activities or traditions for each
of the following - Prior Lake or Savage
- Minnesota
- The United States
5Cultural Traits
- Cultural Traits activities and behaviors common
to groups of people - Universal traits are those that all people share,
like learning math or how to read, or learning to
walk and speak - Varied traits are those that differ based on
location, but are considered correct in that
location (e.g. in the US teens can acquire a
drivers license at age 15, in Australia not until
they are 18)
Also, some cultures have rites of passage bar
mitzvahs and bat mitzvahs, for example while
other cultures have none of which to speak.
6What about here?
Copy the chart into your notes and fill it in
Government Example democratic system, elected
officials at local, state and national levels
religion
education
language
economy
housing
food
clothing
7Video Culture What is
it?(1248)Video Culture Similarities and
Differences (2700)Video CultureValues and
Beliefs
8Culture regions
The Midwest, of course.
- Culture regions larger areas in which many
people share culture traits - Sometimes a culture region is an entire country,
like Japan, which is very homogenous (almost all
Japanese share the same culture traits) - Sometimes a nation includes many culture traits
and has many culture regions, like the United
States, which is very heterogeneous
9Ethnic Groups
- Ethnic groups are groups of human beings that
share a common culture or ancestry. - Some members of an ethnic group are mostly within
one nation or region, like Japan. - Some ethnic groups are split by borders of
nations, like the Kurds of the Middle East
10Notice the Kurdish cultural region (in red), and
how it is split by the borders of Syria, Iraq,
Turkey and Iran
11What do these words mean?
Anthropology Archaeology Prejudice Ethnocentric
Bias Stereotype Xenophobia
12Vocabulary definitions
- Stereotype over-simplified, commonly held
opinion of a person or group often a composite
of traits generalizations about an entire group - Ethnocentric (ethno cultural group centric
at the center) believing that ones own culture
is superior to others negative if extreme
positive if establishes self-pride - Xenophobia (xeno foreign phobia fear) a
fear of foreigners or things foreign
- Anthropology study of living cultures
- Archaeology study of past cultures artifacts
- Prejudice unreasonable attitude against a group
or culture based on supposed characteristics - Bias personal, distorted judgment that
influences perception one-sided
13Nonverbal Communication Dramas
- On a sheet of paper, answer the following
questions for each of the four scenes - What was Sam feeling?
- How did you know?
- What was Chris feeling?
- How did you know?
14INTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATIONS
15CULTURAL COMMUNICATION QUIZ
16Can you guess the meaning of this Japanese
gesture?
- I'm scared like a bunny
- I've been hearing things about you
- I'm angry
Answer C Im angry!
17The two A -OK gestures (see the photos) that
are so popular in the United States are extremely
rude in many parts of the world.Pick the country
where one or both of these A-OK gestures are
obscene
- BRAZIL
- AUSTRALIA
- SPAIN
- SOME COUNTRIES OF THE MIDDLE EAST
- ALL OF THE ABOVE
Answer E. These gestures may be obscene in all
these countries. Think about how many times a US
President has inadvertently insulted foreign
dignitaries with these gestures!!
18Some Asians may show disagreement by squinting or
sucking air through their teeth
ANSWER TRUE Many Asians find it difficult to
actually say the word no and instead more
comfortably indicate their displeasure or
disagreement with a gesture
19Can you try to guess what this French gesture
means?
a. I don't believe youb. I wish I hadn't seen
thatc. I am looking at a very handsome man
ANSWER A I dont believe you
20In Chile, slapping your right fist into your left
palm is obscene, and an open palm with the
fingers separated means "stupid"
ANSWER TRUE
21You are late for your appointment with your
German boss, then you call him by his first name
and move your chair closer to his desk. Which of
the following might calm him down?
- Ask him about his family
- Ask him about his weekend
- Stick your hands in your pockets
- Apologize for being late and get right down to
business
ANSWER D. If you are thoroughly prepared and
sit ramrod straight in your chair without moving
until he dismisses you, you may leave with your
job intact.
22Can you guess what this gesture means in Iran?
a. Good luck to youb. You will always be number
one for mec. Shove it"
ANSWER C Shove it
23A British professor was a guest lecturer at a
university in an Islamic country. During his
address, he unthinkingly insulted the audience by
displaying a part of his body. What did he show
the audience that was so offensive?
- His teeth
- His left hand
- The sole of his foot
ANSWER C. The Professor's failure to respect
Muslim decorum resulted in a student protest and
newspaper headlines denouncing British arrogance
24In Hawaii, a common gesture for greetings is
called "shaka" and is done by
- Shaking two clasped hands in the air
- Nodding your hair rapidly up and down
- Folding down your three fingers to the palm,
extending your thumb and pinkie holding out your
hand and shaking it
ANSWER C. The "Shaka", while not easy for
"mainlanders" to do at first, is so popular that
it became a trademark of a former Hawaiian
governor.
25In Japan, tapping one's finger repeatedly on the
table signifies agreement and support of a
speaker's statement.
ANSWER TRUE This type of "mini-applause" was
reportedly started in one of the courts of a
Japanese emperor.
26Cultural Change
- Rhetorical Questions
- How does culture change over time?
- What causes culture to change?
- Are cultural changes always positive?
- In part, the answers deal with ethnocentrism,
proxemics, acculturation, innovation, diffusion,
globalization and traditionalism.
27ENTHNOCENTRISM
- People become so familiar with their own customs
that they expect people to behave in a
particular way. - How could the idea of ethnocentrism cause
societal problems? - Should a culture expect other cultures to know
and adapt to their supposed behaviors? - What about proxemics? (simulation)
28PROXEMICS
- DEFINITON A cultures comfort zone for
personal space - Most Americans favor a distance of approximately
19 inches, or just about arms length. - Western Europeans and Americans, a space of 14 to
16 inches is considered non-intrusive. But those
from the U.K. might consider a distance of 24
inches to be more comfortable. - Koreans and Chinese generally prefer at least 36
inches. - In Middle Eastern countries, a narrower distance
of 8 to 12 inches is common, widening the
distance could be perceived as distrustful
behavior.
29ACCULTURATION
- DEFINITION Process in which an individual or
group adopts some of the traits of another
culture - Cultural Traits (activities and behaviors that
people take part in) change through time. - Examples Style of clothing or Women in
non-traditional careers - When groups begin to adopt all of the features of
the main culture, it is called assimilation. - Examples American Indian groups, many immigrants
to the US, even today
30How Do Cultures Change?
- Innovation New useful ideas that a culture
accepts - Diffusion When an idea or innovation spreads
and is adopted - Types of Diffusion
- Expansion Diffusion Information about a new idea
or innovation spreads throughout a society - Relocation Diffusion Cultural traits spread
when people move to new places and take their
culture with them - Hierarchical Diffusion Cultural traits spread
from places of greater size influence to places
of lesser size influence.
31TODAY
- GLOBALIZATION The process in which connections
around the world increase and cultures become
more alike BLENDING OF CULTURES - Example McDonalds!
- TRADITIONALISM Opposite of globalization. It
means following longtime practices and opposing
many modern technologies and ideas. Can lead to
fundamentalism (any movement in which people
believe in strictly following certain established
principles or teachings) - Example Religious fundamentalism Are Iraqis
willing to Westernize?
32Heres a musical example to illustrate how
culture changes
33Earth Town Square
Peter Mayer
34Once,
35we were lonely islands
36divided by horizons
37a hundred thousand
tribes surviving,
38scattered far and wide.
39Hearing only stories,
of distant territories
40peering out
across the miles
41between our shorelines.
42Then,
we harnessed natures forces
43straddled backs of horses,
44waging wars and
crossing borders
45as our numbers grew.
46We bought
and sold
47and traded.
48Oceans were navigated
49and fates entwined by
rails
and roads
50and telephones,
and soon
51we cracked the code of flight
52spoke via satellite
53at the speed of light and now -
54its feeling like a small town
55Monthly World population figures 07/01/04
6,372,797,742 08/01/04 6,379,026,080
09/01/04 6,385,254,418 10/01/04
6,391,281,842 11/01/04 6,397,510,180
12/01/04 6,403,537,604 01/01/05
6,409,765,942 02/01/05 6,415,994,280
03/01/05 6,421,619,875 04/01/05
6,427,848,214 05/01/05 6,433,875,637
06/01/05 6,440,103,976 07/01/05
6,446,131,400
six billion people downtown
56at a little sidewalk fair
57in Earth Town Square.
58There
Germans
selling
Audis
59filled with gasoline
from Saudis
60to Australians
sipping Kenyan coffee
61in their Chinese shoes.
62Argentines
are meeting
Mongols
63over
french
fries
at
McDonalds
64and the place looks strangely tiny when you see
it from the moon.
65And theres music in the park
66kalimbas
and
guitars
67bagpipes
and
sitars
68now
its feeling like a small town
69with 6 billion people downtown
70The Tower of Babel
even Babel cant compare
71to Earth Town Square.
72As,
each hour goes by
73ten thousand more arrive.
74And the din gets louder on
Main Street
75where you can watch
downtown boom
76and wonder if well make room
for everybody there
77in Earth Town Square.
in Earth Town Square.
In earth town square.
78The End.
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