Chapter 2

Becoming Aware

Cultural norms

GIVING A GREETING

What I want to communicate

GIVING A GREETING

BEHAVIOR, WORDS

Cultural norms
Ideal acceptable marginal unacceptable deviant |- - - - - - -| - - - - - - - ||- - - - - - - -| - - - - - - - |

a NORM
Ideal acceptable marginal unacceptable deviant

Cultural norms
Ideal acceptable marginal unacceptable deviant |- - - - - - -| - - - - - - - ||- - - - - - - -| - - - - - - - |

Cultural norms: SIAS teacher dress

Ideal acceptable marginal unacceptable deviant |- - - - - - -| - - - - - - - ||- - - - - - - -| - - - - - - - |

Behavioral norms

Norm = what is normal Norm = what most people do What is considered correct behavior Usually learned by observing parents, other adults, or friends Usually enforced by peer pressure

Cultural norms for saying Thank you

In China

In USA

Thank Thank Thank Thank Thank Thank Thank

you you you you you you you

What is Culture?

Culture is all the ways we live together

Learned Shared by a group Shapes our identity

What is Culture?

Culture is the total accumulation of beliefs, customs, values, behaviors, institutions and communication patterns that are shared, learned and passed down through the generations in an identifiable group of people (page 24)

3 Functions of Culture?
Culture is the system we use 1. to communicate, 2. to cooperate in society, 3. to co-interpret experiences.

What is Culture?

Culture is a system of meanings

Outer Form & Meaning

BEHAVIOR, WORDS
MEANING

Outer Form & Meaning

INNER MEANING

Meanings cannot be known directly.

Outer Form & Meaning

OUTER FORM
MEANING

Meanings cannot be known directly. They are expressed in visible or audible forms like words or gestures.

Outer Form & Meaning

CULTURAL FORM MEANING

But the outer forms which express meanings change from culture to culture.

What is Culture?
One metaphor (symbol) for culture is

An Iceberg

Surface Level, Objective Culture Manmade things, institutions, customs Only a small piece of the iceberg

OBJECTIVE CULTURE

Objective Culture is the visible culture: customs, behaviors, social institutions, language, skills, manmade items.

Subjective Culture Unseen Most of culture is below the surface. Feelings, attitudes on how things are and should be in society

SUBJECTIVE CULTURE

Subjective Culture is the invisible culture: beliefs, values, language structure, worldview

What is Culture?

Another metaphor for culture is????

Computer Software!

Just like computers, we may look the same on the outside but on the inside, our software is culturally different! As humans, we are fed information from birth We are programmed by our home culture We can always add to our programming, but can not take away

This is NOT an EASY task!!

Culture is something that we often take for granted (assume it is always there)! We dont usually pay attention to our culture.

Does a fish notice the water that it swims in?

Water for the fish, is what Culture is to us!

How we see other cultures

We see other cultures through the meanings of our own culture

We become frustrated when we cant understand another culture through our cultures meanings

Homework

For everyone
If you have not turned in your student info card with your photo, please bring it next class
Look at www.sias2013ccc.weebly.com My new email: gregandjean@gmail.com

Homework- next class

For Morning Classes: Read Chapter 3

For Afternoon Classes Read Chapter 1 Do Assignment 1

HOMEWORK: AFTERNOON CLASSES

Assignment 1:
Working with a partner Write about two examples of culture errors made by foreigners in China. What did they do wrong? What should they have done differently? The assignment should be written and ready to turn in at the beginning of class

Outer Form & Meaning

FORM
MEANING

Outer Form & Meaning

FORM
MEANING

Meanings cannot be known directly.

Outer Form & Meaning

FORM
MEANING

Meanings cannot be known directly. They are expressed in visible or audible forms like words or gestures.

Outer Form & Meaning

FORM MEANING

But the outer forms which express meanings change from culture to culture.

Outer Form & Meaning

FORM
MEANING

and thank you have different language forms but similar meanings. But the meanings are not identical.

Outer Form & Meaning

FORM MEANING

But the outer forms which express meanings change from culture to culture.

Cultural norms: SIAS classroom language put these in order

Ideal acceptable marginal unacceptable deviant |- - - - - - -| - - - - - - - |- - - - - - - -| - - - - - - - |

Beijing dialect Henan dialect Cantonese Tibetan Japanese English Spanish

The Story of the Marmoset

(p 27)

What is Culture?

Culture is a system of meanings Culture is both meaning making & meaning sharing
Meaning making=

Together we shape our world Together we understand our world Through culture we share our thoughts with others and shape their world too

Meaning sharing=