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Lehman College GEH 101/GEH 501
Spring 2011
Keith Miyake
Cultural Geography
Introduction to Geography
Week 10
Definitions of Culture
Cultivated behavior; learned and accumulated
experience that is socially transmitted
Systems of knowledge shared by group of people
Communicated behaviors, beliefs, values, symbols
Products of action, conditioning for future action
Ch7 cultural geography
Cultural Determinism
Culture determines human nature
People are what they have been conditioned to be,
over which they have no control
Culture of poverty: Moynihan Report
at the heart of the deterioration of the
fabric of Negro society is the deterioration
of the Negro family. It is the fundamental
source of the weakness of the Negro community
at the present time.
Cultural Relativism
Different cultural groups think, act, feel, and know
differently
Peoples beliefs and activities should be understood
by others in terms of the peoples specific culture
Culture is situated within historical context
Rejects superiority and inferiority in favor of
difference
Cultural Ethnocentrism
Belief that ones own culture (or group identity based on
cultural characteristics) is superior to others
View other cultures in terms of ones own
Nationalism/xenophobia
Colonialism
White supremacy
Break
Sign in
Term paper questions?
Term paper due date...
Outlines
Themes in Cultural
Geography
Culture as...
Distribution of things
Way of life
Meaning
Doing
Power
Cultural Artifacts
The material things that express culture
All people produce cultural artifacts
Everyday items: furniture, clothes
Large structures: buildings, cities
How to understand relationship between these
artifacts and the values, livelihoods, beliefs, and
identities of cultures that produce them?
What can the pattern of material artifacts tell us
about the social, economic and political dynamics
of cultures?
Cultural Geographies are as much about the graffiti themselves
as they are about the locations of the graffiti-marked buildings;
as much about the idea of home as they are about the
distribution of housing; and as much about the diversity within
culture as they are about cultures per se. These geographies ask
why and how, as much as where and when.
Source: http://lapd.com/news/headlines/tagging_or_just_hanging_out_--_busted_either_way/
Culture as a Way of Life
The values, beliefs, languages, meanings and practices
that make up peoples ways of life
Rural/Urban, Relaxed/Fast-paced
Religious beliefs and traditions
Expressions of identity
ethnicity, gender, sexuality, age, ability, occupation, etc.
Different ways of life structure the daily practices and
individuals in different places
Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AV9iah71iPQ
Culture as Meaning
How and why landscapes become embedded with
individual and cultural meaning and in turn create new
meanings
Meaning:
individual emotions, experiences and memories
group values, attachments and ideals
Whose meanings are given precedence in these
interpretations?
Cultural hegemony and assimilation
Meaning is connected to place; value ascribed to places
Interpreting Ordinary landscapes  places that we often
take for granted in our everyday life, like our homes and
towns  requires in-depth, often intimate, knowledge of
local history, cultural values and economic structures.
Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ethanbee/2428883258/
Symbolic landscapes  places that are imbued with special
meaning beyond the everyday
civic pride, national identity and global circulation
urban and national political agendas, constructions of
local and national identity, and the global market of image
circulation
Source: http://madhadder.blogspot.com/2010/09/ten-years-ago-todayas-if-it-were.html
Culture as Doing
Living of everyday life
Performing, learning, resisting, moving
Culture affects actions and actions affect culture
Places shape cultures and cultures shape places
What does this mean geographically?
Culture as Power
How artifacts get made, how they get from one place
to another, and who benefits from all this trading and
placing
Power to do things
Power relations organized around politics, gender,
lifestyle, race, ethnicity, sexuality, nationality, etc.
Sites of oppression and resistance, the different scales
through which power relations operate and how
space is manipulated by the powerful and the weak
Components of Culture
Culture trait - Single distinguishing feature of a culture
Culture complex - Group of culture traits that are
functionally interrelated
Culture system - Shared, identifying traits uniting two
or more culture complexes
Culture region - Portion of the earths surface in which
common cultural characteristics prevail
Culture realm - Collective of culture regions sharing
related culture systems
Human-Environment
Interactions
Cultural ecology: Study of the relationship
between a culture group and the natural
environment it occupies
Human Impacts
Cultural landscape: The earths surface as modified
by human action
Relationship between technological advancement and
impact on the environment
Ch7 cultural geography
Human-Environment
Interactions and Ideology
Historical Materialism (Marx): technological
change drives historical progress
technology increases human control over the
environment
technology drives societys economic system
economic system determines political and social life
technology has the potential to be revolutionary if it
can undo uneven economic and social systems by
improving material conditions (overall wealth)
Human-Environment
Interactions and Ideology
Environmental Determinism: belief that the
physical environment explains human cultures and
behaviors
Possibilism: physical environment neither suggests
nor determines what people will attempt, but it may
limit what people can profitably achieve
Choices and constraints are as much cultural,
economic, political, and social as they are
technological; e.g. growing crops in a greenhouse
versus importing them
Cultural Change
Technological, Sociological, Ideological Subsystems
Change through Innovation
Change through Spatial diffusion
Change through Acculturation
Structure of Feeling
How are places structured through cultural practices?
Role of Language
Role of Religion
Role of Ethnicity
Role of Gender
In terms of...
Distribution of things
Way of life
Meaning
Doing
Power

More Related Content

Ch7 cultural geography

  • 1. Lehman College GEH 101/GEH 501 Spring 2011 Keith Miyake Cultural Geography Introduction to Geography Week 10
  • 2. Definitions of Culture Cultivated behavior; learned and accumulated experience that is socially transmitted Systems of knowledge shared by group of people Communicated behaviors, beliefs, values, symbols Products of action, conditioning for future action
  • 4. Cultural Determinism Culture determines human nature People are what they have been conditioned to be, over which they have no control Culture of poverty: Moynihan Report at the heart of the deterioration of the fabric of Negro society is the deterioration of the Negro family. It is the fundamental source of the weakness of the Negro community at the present time.
  • 5. Cultural Relativism Different cultural groups think, act, feel, and know differently Peoples beliefs and activities should be understood by others in terms of the peoples specific culture Culture is situated within historical context Rejects superiority and inferiority in favor of difference
  • 6. Cultural Ethnocentrism Belief that ones own culture (or group identity based on cultural characteristics) is superior to others View other cultures in terms of ones own Nationalism/xenophobia Colonialism White supremacy
  • 7. Break Sign in Term paper questions? Term paper due date... Outlines
  • 8. Themes in Cultural Geography Culture as... Distribution of things Way of life Meaning Doing Power
  • 9. Cultural Artifacts The material things that express culture All people produce cultural artifacts Everyday items: furniture, clothes Large structures: buildings, cities How to understand relationship between these artifacts and the values, livelihoods, beliefs, and identities of cultures that produce them? What can the pattern of material artifacts tell us about the social, economic and political dynamics of cultures?
  • 10. Cultural Geographies are as much about the graffiti themselves as they are about the locations of the graffiti-marked buildings; as much about the idea of home as they are about the distribution of housing; and as much about the diversity within culture as they are about cultures per se. These geographies ask why and how, as much as where and when. Source: http://lapd.com/news/headlines/tagging_or_just_hanging_out_--_busted_either_way/
  • 11. Culture as a Way of Life The values, beliefs, languages, meanings and practices that make up peoples ways of life Rural/Urban, Relaxed/Fast-paced Religious beliefs and traditions Expressions of identity ethnicity, gender, sexuality, age, ability, occupation, etc. Different ways of life structure the daily practices and individuals in different places
  • 13. Culture as Meaning How and why landscapes become embedded with individual and cultural meaning and in turn create new meanings Meaning: individual emotions, experiences and memories group values, attachments and ideals Whose meanings are given precedence in these interpretations? Cultural hegemony and assimilation Meaning is connected to place; value ascribed to places
  • 14. Interpreting Ordinary landscapes places that we often take for granted in our everyday life, like our homes and towns requires in-depth, often intimate, knowledge of local history, cultural values and economic structures. Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ethanbee/2428883258/
  • 15. Symbolic landscapes places that are imbued with special meaning beyond the everyday civic pride, national identity and global circulation urban and national political agendas, constructions of local and national identity, and the global market of image circulation Source: http://madhadder.blogspot.com/2010/09/ten-years-ago-todayas-if-it-were.html
  • 16. Culture as Doing Living of everyday life Performing, learning, resisting, moving Culture affects actions and actions affect culture Places shape cultures and cultures shape places What does this mean geographically?
  • 17. Culture as Power How artifacts get made, how they get from one place to another, and who benefits from all this trading and placing Power to do things Power relations organized around politics, gender, lifestyle, race, ethnicity, sexuality, nationality, etc. Sites of oppression and resistance, the different scales through which power relations operate and how space is manipulated by the powerful and the weak
  • 18. Components of Culture Culture trait - Single distinguishing feature of a culture Culture complex - Group of culture traits that are functionally interrelated Culture system - Shared, identifying traits uniting two or more culture complexes Culture region - Portion of the earths surface in which common cultural characteristics prevail Culture realm - Collective of culture regions sharing related culture systems
  • 19. Human-Environment Interactions Cultural ecology: Study of the relationship between a culture group and the natural environment it occupies Human Impacts Cultural landscape: The earths surface as modified by human action Relationship between technological advancement and impact on the environment
  • 21. Human-Environment Interactions and Ideology Historical Materialism (Marx): technological change drives historical progress technology increases human control over the environment technology drives societys economic system economic system determines political and social life technology has the potential to be revolutionary if it can undo uneven economic and social systems by improving material conditions (overall wealth)
  • 22. Human-Environment Interactions and Ideology Environmental Determinism: belief that the physical environment explains human cultures and behaviors Possibilism: physical environment neither suggests nor determines what people will attempt, but it may limit what people can profitably achieve Choices and constraints are as much cultural, economic, political, and social as they are technological; e.g. growing crops in a greenhouse versus importing them
  • 23. Cultural Change Technological, Sociological, Ideological Subsystems Change through Innovation Change through Spatial diffusion Change through Acculturation
  • 24. Structure of Feeling How are places structured through cultural practices? Role of Language Role of Religion Role of Ethnicity Role of Gender In terms of... Distribution of things Way of life Meaning Doing Power