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ANTHONY GIDDENS ● MITCHELL DUNEIER ● RICHARD APPELBAUM ● DEBORA CARR
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Third Edition
Chapter 2: Culture and Society
1

© 2011 W. W. Norton Co., Inc.
What is culture?
• Culture is a set of values, norms, and
behaviors shared by a social group.
• Values are those ideals that a society holds
above all others (e.g., honesty, honor).
• These values are the building blocks of norms,
which are basic rules of social conduct.
• Another part of culture is the material objects
we create.
2

An expanded notion of culture
• Culture also encapsulates the way of life of a
social group.
• Ann Swidler (1986) described a cultural
“toolkit” from which we can choose the
appropriate tools—values, norms, practices—
for any social situation.
• Key point: culture is learned, not instinctual or
inherited.
3

Cultural variation
• Culture varies both across and within societies.
• What is important and seemingly “normal” in
one society may not be in another.
• Even within a society, the dominant values and
norms change over time.
4

What is society?
• Societies are systems of relationships between
people.
• Societies consist of members that share some
sense of common identity and be small (like a
family) or large (like a nation-state).
• Shared culture is important in holding a
society together.
5

Conformity and social control
• Societies need a significant degree of
conformity to function smoothly.
• Members learn norms through the process of
socialization.
• Because people accept the norms and values of
their societies as natural, they largely conform.
• Those who do not conform are subject to
measures of social control.
6

What makes humans different
• Culture versus instinct
• The ability to reason, to think in the abstract,
allowed for the development of culture.
• This included the development of complex
systems of communication and future-oriented
thought and planning.
• Complex thinking also makes humans strong
innovators.
7

Nature or nurture?
• Sociologists today largely agree that the social
environment interacts with biology.
• Even so, we strongly resist the idea that
genetics predetermine an individual’s social
life and potentialities.
8

Nature and nurture
• Sociologists now study how nature and nurture
interact to produce particular behaviors.
• The interest in nurture has led to an ongoing
focus on the importance of socialization.
• Examining cultural variation offers evidence
of the role of the social in explaining human
behaviors and values.
9

Cultural diversity
• Studying diversity is very important for
sociologists; comparative research is common.
• Things to be aware of:
– Ethnocentrism—viewing one’s own culture as
normal and, oftentimes, superior
– Cultural relativism—judging other cultures based
on their own norms and standards
10

Cultural diversity
• Diversity within societies is also important.
• There are the obvious kinds of social groups
(e.g. race, gender, religion) that constitute a
society, but there are also subcultures.
• A subculture is a group whose norms and
values differ from those of the “mainstream.”
11

Diversity today
• In diverse societies like the United States,
studies of assimilation and multiculturalism
are common.
• These studies attempt to understand how
diverse societies (and the individuals in them)
can best function.
• Globalization has led to increased diversity in
most countries.
12

Multicultural knowledge
How many of the following words or phrases can you identify? The United
States is a melting pot, where many cultures live side- by- side. Americans
often share in the cuisines, music, holiday traditions, and even language of
cultures that are very different from their own family heritages. Yet even
within a single ethnic or religious subculture, further subcultures exist, such
as generational subcultures— where people born in the 1990s experience
culture in very different ways than their parents or grandparents. Turn the
page (or ask one of your classmates) to find out the answers.
1. bhangra 9. ushanka
2. bocce 10. sarape
3. acupuncture 11. djembe
4. futon 12. sitar
5. tah deeg 13. LP
6. pierogi 14. kaffeeklatsch
7. jumping the broom 15. getting pinned
8. chuppah
13

Answers
1. bhangra: A type of music and dance that originated in the Punjab region of India, especially among Sikhs.
American music fans may recognize bhangra melodies and rhythms from hip- hop artists including
Beyonce and Beenie Man.
2. bocce: Bocce is a sport similar to bowling, although it takes place outside— usually on one’s lawn or on a
court made of stones or shells. The sport originated in Italy, and literally means “bowls.”
3. acupuncture: A form of Chinese medicine that has grown in popularity in the United States over the past
decade. It involves inserting fine needles into specific points on the body to relieve pain.
4. futon: A thick mattress with a cloth cover, used for sleeping. Although futons are common in college dorm
rooms, they originated as beds in Japan.
5. tah deeg: A much- sought- after delicacy in Persian cooking; it is the crispy layer of browned rice at the
bottom of a pan of cooked rice.
6. pierogi: A boiled dumpling of unleavened dough stuffed with ingredients such as potatos or cheese.
Pierogis can be found at American grocery stores, but originally are from eastern European nations such as
Poland.
7. jumping the broom: A common custom at African American wedding ceremonies. The bride and groom
end their ceremony by jumping together or separately over a broom that is lying in front of the altar.
8. chuppah: A canopy traditionally used in Jewish weddings. It symbolizes the home the couple will build
together.
9. ushanka: A fur cap with ear flaps that can be tied under the chin to protect the ears from the cold. The
ushanka originates from Russia.
14

Answers
10. sarape: A colorful shawl or poncho worn in Mexico.
11. djembe: A large drum from West Africa. Djembe literally means “everyone gather together.” American
popular musicians Ben Harper, Paul Simon, and the Grateful Dead have added the djembe to their
percussion lines.
11. sitar: A long- necked stringed instrument that is plucked. It is used primarily in music from India, Pakistan,
and Bangladesh. Sitar music was widely introduced to the Western world when Ravi Shankar performed
with the Beatles in the 1960s.
12. LP: a long- playing record, also known as a 33 1/3 rpm vinyl record. In the 1960s through the mid 1980s,
this is how most people listened to recorded music. The LP has since given way to CDs and downloaded
music stored in iPods.
13. kaffeeklatsch: An informal gathering of friends to drink coffee and chat, like on the television show
Friends. This is a German word, although the idea is very familiar to Americans.
14. getting pinned. In the 1940s and 1950s, when a dating couple decided they wanted to be “exclusive,” the
boy would present the girl with a “pin”— typically earned for his athletic or academic achievements.
15

Cultural universals
• Social institutions found in virtually all
societies are called cultural universals.
• Language is one of the most significant
cultural universals (others include marriage
and art).
• Languages are complex systems of
communication, which are fundamental to
human social life as they free us from our
immediate environments.
16

Pre-modern societies
• Hunting and gathering societies were the
dominant social form for most of human history.
– Relatively egalitarian, with no class structures
– Cooperative rather than competitive
• Settled agrarian and pastoral societies emerged
approximately 15,000 years ago.
– Somewhat less egalitarian
– More accumulation of wealth and goods; larger groups
17

Pre-modern societies
• “Civilizations” or city-states developed about
8,000 years ago.
– These societies were typically large and had a
significant degree of inequality.
– They were also usually imperial, meaning that the
conquest of other peoples and societies was
commonplace.
18

Industrialization
• Beginning in the eighteenth century in Britain,
mass production, via mechanized factories,
rapidly changed the economy.
• The Western European countries and the
United States were the early industrializers,
experiencing fast-paced innovation
simultaneous with their development as
nation-states.
19

Industrialization and
colonialism
• Early industrializers colonized other countries
for economic gain (and political power).
• Such relationships frequently interfered with
social structures already in place in destructive
ways.
• Though now independent nation-states, these
formerly colonized countries largely constitute
what we call the “developing world.”
20

Modern, industrial societies
• In these societies, greater than 90 percent of
the population lives in urban settings.
• Work is almost exclusively non-agricultural.
• Such societies are often characterized as
impersonal and anonymous, though not all
sociologists agree with this representation.
21

Globalization and culture
• There is virtually no escape from globalization
today as a result of technology.
• Television, the “global economy,”
multinational corporations (MNCs), and
international non-governmental organizations
(INGOs), along with e-communication, have
changed the face of culture the world over,
leading to increased interdependence.
22

Map 2.1 The Exploding Internet, 2008
Essentials Of Sociology, 3rd Edition
Copyright © 2011 W.W. Norton & Company

Response to globalization
• Not everyone is happy with globalization.
• There has been a rise of nationalism, tribalism,
and other forms of protest that is largely a
rejection of Western culture (often seen as
Americanization).
• Part of the response has also been an emphasis on
the importance of local culture.
24

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Chapter 2: Culture and Society

Clicker Questions
1. The goods we consume, from the clothes we wear, to the cars
we drive, to the houses we live in, are all part of:
a. symbolic culture.
b. material culture.
c. modern culture.
d. popular culture.
26

Clicker Questions
2. What is a signifier?
a. A signifier is the name given to the meaning of a spoken or
written word.
b. A signifier is any vehicle of meaning, such as speech, writing,
dress, or buildings.
c. A signifier is the meaning of a symbol.
d. A signifier is an electronic sign.
27

Clicker Questions
3. Computer hackers could be said to be an example of which of
the following?
a. a culture
b. a subculture
c. a society
d. a cultural composite
28

Clicker Questions
4. Which of the following is an example of a cultural universal?
a. the prohibition against incest
b. the right to political protest
c. a concept of individual rights and freedoms
d. the idea of a teenager
29

Clicker Questions
5. What is the position of sociologists on the nature/nurture
debate?
a. Sociologists believe that “biology is destiny.”
b. Sociologists ask how nature and nurture interact to produce
human behavior.
c. No sociologists today acknowledge a role for nature.
d. Sociologists do not have a position.
30

Clicker Questions
6. What happened to destroy the forms of society (hunter-
gatherer, pastoral, agrarian and traditional/civilization) that
dominated the whole of history up to two centuries ago?
a. cultural relativism
b. the cultural turn
c. globalization
d. industrialization
31

Clicker Questions
7. Which of the following is an example of a cultural universal?
a. the prohibition against incest
b. the right to political protest
c. a concept of individual rights and freedoms
d. the idea of a teenager
32

Art Presentation �ݺ�ߣs
Chapter 2
Anthony Giddens
Mitchell Duneier
Richard P. Appelbaum
Deborah Carr
Culture and Society

Chapter Opener

A woman looks at a dish of worms during the
Taipei Chinese Food Festival in Taiwan.

Members of a 1960s commune pose together for
a group portrait

Harajuku girls stroll down a street in Tokyo, Japan

Globalization and Everyday Life

Papua New Guinean men in traditional clothing and
face paint at the Sing- Sing Annual Cultural show.

Spinach Pierogi

Bocce

Cologne Cathedral, built in the Middle Ages, stands at the
center of Cologne, Germany, and towers over the city,
symbolizing the central role Christianity played in
medieval European life.

Over 90 percent of the people who live in industrial
societies live in cities or towns.

Women waiting in line for food in Calcutta, India

Using the Internet to connect with the world around
them is common among young people across cultures.

W. W. Norton & Company
Independent and Employee-Owned
Essentials Of Sociology
THIRD EDITION
This concludes the Art Presentation �ݺ�ߣs
�ݺ�ߣ Set for Chapter 2
by
Anthony Giddens
Mitchell Duneier
Richard P. Appelbaum
Deborah Carr

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