E-LESSON-6 SOCIOLOGY-1

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B.A.English 2 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL INTRODUCTION TO INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY-1 SOCIOLOGY Course Code: BAQ109 Semester: First SLM Unit : 6 E-Lesson: 6 www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109)

INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY OBJECTIVES INTRODUCTION 33 After studying this unit, you will be able to: To comprehend the meaning of Culture and its To understand about culture and civilization characteristics in detail. To know more about Cultural Lag, Culture and Each society has its own culture, but Civilization and Cultural Invasion. which is distinct. All these different elements related to the study of culture have been explained in this chapter. www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQQ110099) ) INASlTl ITriUgThEt OarFeDrIeSsTeArNvCeEd AwNitDh OCNUL-IIDNOE LLEARNING

TOPICS TO BE COVERED 4 CULTURE: MEANING AND INTRODUCTION TO CHARACTERISTICS SOCIOLOGY CULTURE AND CIVILIZATION DIMENSIONS OF CULTURE https://mindseed.org/dimensions-of-culture/ www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109) All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

CULTURE 5 Culture is the characteristics and knowledge of a https://in.pinterest.com/pin/567383253028533312/ particular group of people, encompassing language, All right are reserved with CU-IDOL religion, cuisine, social habits, music and arts. \"Culture encompasses religion, food, what we wear, how we wear it, our language marriage, music, what we believe is right or wrong, how we sit at the table, how we greet visitors, how we behave with loved ones, and a million other things,\" Cristina De Rossi, an anthropologist at Barnet and Southgate College in London, told Live Science. The word \"culture\" derives from a French term, which in turn derives from the Latin \"colere,\" which means to tend to the earth and grow, or cultivation and nurture. \"It shares its etymology with a number of other words related to actively fostering growth,\" De Rossi said. www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109)

Culture is the attitudes and behaviour that are characteristic of 6 a particular social group or organization. A way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular http://www.basicknowledge101.com/subjects/culture.html group of people at a particular time in History. That complex All right are reserved with CU-IDOL whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society. The tastes in art and manners that are favoured by a social group. All the knowledge and values shared by a society. A highly developed state of perfection and having a flawless or impeccable quality. Cultured is characterized by refined taste and manners and good education. www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109)

MEANING AND CHARACTERISTICS 7 Attributes of Culture Sociologist George Murdock (1940) has enumerated the following attributes of culture: 1. Culture is learnt: None of us is born with culture, nor do we acquire it through heredity. We need to learn the norms and values, beliefs and practices, which constitute our culture. It is through the process of socialization that culture is learnt and inculcated. 2. Culture is transmitted: Just as no society is static, no culture remains stagnant. It is passed on from one generation to the other. 3. Culture is social: Evolution of culture takes place only through groups of people interacting with each another Social norms, values and institutions evolve in groups. All these are contained within the culture which tends to be essentially ‘social’. 4. Culture is ideal: “Culture does not include individual norms or actual behaviour rather; it is a blueprint of what that behaviour should be”. 5. Culture is gratifying: Humans tend to satisfy the biological needs such as hunger and thirst, and social needs like security and companionship through culture. www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109) All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

8 6. Culture is adaptive: The physical environment in which people live makes certain demands for adjustment upon them. A culture can survive only if it can provide ways to meet people’s needs in a changing environment. 7. Culture is integrative: For any society to survive it is necessary that its culture has some degree of integration. In normal conditions, those sharing a common culture, feel a sense of unity and solidarity, and to that extent, culture is integrative. www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109) All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

Characteristics of Culture 9 Kroeber and Kluckhohn have provided a composite view of culture by pointing out some of its fundamental characteristics: 1. Culture is that product of social interaction, which is uniquely human. 2. Culture includes all the accumulated knowledge, ideas, values, goals and material objects of a society that are shared by all members of the society and that have been passed from one generation to the other. 3. Each member of a society learns culture during socialization. 4. It provides each member of a society with ways of satisfying biological and emotional needs in a manner which is approved by the society. 5. Each human society develops a culture which is distinct from other cultures. 6. Culture and society are in a constant state of flux. It changes according to the circumstances. www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109) All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

CULTURE AND CIVILIZATION 10 Culture refers to the characteristics of people. It is seen as the sum total of their ways of life. This gets passed down from one generation to the next. Culture of a society is apparent through its artifacts, lifestyle, music, painting, literature, etc. Civilization refers to a society which has an advanced state of social development, for instance, it has complex legal, religious and political organizations. Civilization, is also the total of culture, industry, government and science of a society. Many cultures can exist within the same civilization. A civilization, apart from having an advanced stage of development, also, displays science, religion, art, political and social organizations at a high level. Civilizations are thought of as superior culture. When a particular culture reaches an advanced stage and writing is also used to a great extent, it can be termed as a civilization www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109) All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

DIMENSIONS OF CULTURE 11 These four dimensions are- 1. Individualism: Collectivism - this looks into the relationships individuals in a society have with others. The emphasis in on what degree, values of individualism and collectivism are given by society. There are some societies, where stress is on high individual ranking, individual rights and individualism. Bonds with other members in society are not as cohesive. For example- United States, Australia, etc. There are other societies where in contrast, individualism has a low ranking, instead, they are more collectivist, stressing on close relations among members. Focus is on extended families and collectives. Members are from their birth, integrated into strong cohesive in-groups 2. Uncertainty Avoidance: This looks into the need of individuals to avoid having uncertainty regarding the future as well as work relationships. Those societies having high uncertainty avoidance ranking are rule -oriented societies.Whereas those societies having low ranking for uncertainty avoidance display higher tolerance for uncertainty as well as ambiguity www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109) All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

DIMENSIONS OF CULTURE 12 3. Power Distance (strength of social hierarchy): The emphasis in this is the extent to which those members in a society who are less powerful, accept and expect the unequal distribution of power. 4. Masculinity: Femininity (task-orientation versus person-orientation)- Masculinity, according to Hofstede is a society where gender roles are very distinct.Men in the society are supposed to be more tough and the women more modest and tender. Femininity refers to that society where the gender roles overlap. Men and women, both are supposed to be tender, modest, as well as concerned about quality of life www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109) All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

KEY WORDS/ABBREVIATIONS 13  Culture- ideas, customs and behavior of a group of people  Cultural diffusion- spread of cultural beliefs and activities  Acculturation- process of cultural change  Assimilation- process by which minority culture starts resembling the majority culture www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109) All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

Learning Activity 14 1. From your everyday life, identify any five forms of material culture and non material culture. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. With examples from your day to day life, explain assimilation, acculturation, diffusion and cultural pluralism. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109) All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS 1. It maintains that societal change takes place when societies borrow cultural traits from one another. 15 (a) Diffusion (b) Acculturation (c) Cultural invasion (d) Assimilation 2. Example of Non material culture is: (a) Food (b) Architecture (c) Values (d) Tools of Communication 3. Example of Material culture is: (a) Norms (b) Knowledge (c) Beliefs (d) Food Answers: 1.(a) 2.(c ) 3.(d) www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109) All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

SUMMARY The first comprehensive definition of ‘culture’ was given by Anthropologist Edward B. Tylor. He defined it as 16 “that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, customs and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society”. Diffusionism developed in the early part of the 20th century. It maintains that societal change takes place when societies borrow cultural traits from one another. It is a process of change whereby two cultures meet at a given point in time and interact with one another, and as a result of which elements and traits are borrowed and they get diffused. Assimilation : According to Horton and Hunt, “The process of mutual cultural diffusion through which persons and groups come to share a common culture is called assimilation”. When different cultural groups come into contact initially they are quite hostile but gradually they assimilate elements from each other. Their separate identities are merged into one identity. Culture lag refers to the period of maladjustment when the non-material culture is struggling to adapt to new material conditions. It is the time (or gap) between a new material invention and appropriate adjustments in the non-material culture. www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109) All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION 17 1. Who gave the first definition of culture? (For more information see SLM) Ans: The first comprehensive definition of ‘culture’ was given by Anthropologist Edward B. Tylor. 2. When was cultural diffuisonism developed? (For more information see SLM) Ans: Diffusionism developed in the early part of the 20th century. 3. What are the different dimensions of Culture? Ans: These four dimensions are- 1. Individualism: Collectivism - this looks into the relationships individuals in a society have with others. The emphasis in on what degree, values of individualism and collectivism are given by society. There are some societies, where stress is on high individual ranking, individual rights and individualism. Bonds with other members in society are not as cohesive. (For more information see SLM) www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109) All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

REFERENCES 18 1. Giddens Anthony: Sociology, Polity Press, Ed.2, London 1999. 2. Schaefer Richard: Sociology, McGraw-Hill, 2005. 3. Horton and Hunt: Sociology, McGraw-Hill, Kogakusha Ltd. 4. Leslie, Larson, Gorman: Sociology, Oxford University Press, 1998. 5. Bogardus E.S.: Sociology, The Macmillan Company, 1950. 6. www.allaboutreligion.org/cultural-pluralism-faq.htm 7. www.definitions.net/definition/cultural+pluralism 8. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hofstede%27s_cultural_dimensions_theory 9. www.notredameonline.com/resources/intercultural-management/exploring-the-fivedimensions- of-culture 10. https://en.m.wikibooks.org/wiki/Thai_Civilization/Culture_%26_Civilization www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109) All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

19 THANK YOU For queries Email: [email protected] www.cuidol.in Unit-6(BAQ109) All right are reserved with CU-IDOL