What is Culture?

Throughout this week and with the readings, we’ve been talking about the basis of culture; what it is, where can we see it and how do other cultures evolve. We’ve also been talking about the people who dedicate years, and in some cases, their lives in order to find out how other cultures are different from one another. This whole week has opened my eyes to different ideas of ‘culture’ than anything has really before. Sure, I knew that in others cultures they do different greetings or have different rules for what is ‘appropriate behavior’, but there are so many cultures out there that have completely different ideas of what’s important that it’s amazing to compare them together. The idea of a behavior being appropriate or inappropriate really gave me a glimpse into how our culture became what it is today. As I was talking to one my friends one day about this class, she told me a little fact that the American culture started shaking hands years ago when people had to check whether or not that person was carrying a weapon of some kind. Today we consider it a nice, casual, and an especially polite way to greet someone, but we’ve never asked the question ‘why’ do we do it? “Why” goes along with so many other things in our culture. Why do we eat with utensils? Why do we sit in chairs? Why do we have products to beautify ourselves and why are the people beautifying themselves usually a female? It just boggles my mind that our culture has become what it is, and other cultures seem small or less important than ours. When did we decide that our culture is ‘the’ culture to focus on or to relate to when other cultures are brought in?

Culture is such a broad term and subject that it’s hard to focus on one aspect of culture or a specific culture. The people that dedicate years of research just to focus on one aspect of a different culture are truly remarkable people. When reading the article by Cognan, I was amazed once I had figured out how long he was there. He had been there a year and hadn’t even made any good friends or connections with the tribe, yet he continued on for a couple more years in order to get the research he was there to receive. Understanding a culture and being totally engulfed in it would be an amazing learning experience and an overall thrill. I’m not sure whether or not I would handle it with the greatest of ease… I’ve grown up in a certain household, been taught different things and has learned to always say my ‘please’ and ‘thank you’s’. When going through my everyday activities, it’s amazing to realize how much of it has been shaped by culture. I shower because I’ve been told hygiene is good (well, hygiene is good, but maybe not showering everyday isn’t too bad), I go to school because having an education is valued, and I eat different types of food because I’ve also been told that they’re either good for me or that they just will taste good. So many things are involved in culture that I am looking forward to seeing what else shapes culture and how it affects the people involved. This week was only just the beginning to a long series of ‘eye openers’ that will shape my opinion and my thoughts towards other cultures.