culture + religion quiz Flashcards
(27 cards)
Culture definition
Culture is the characteristics and knowledge of a particular group of people
Components of Culture
Religion
Education
Communication and Language
Family
Economy and Division of Labor
Government and Social Organization
Art
Food/Clothing
Science and Technology
Why is culture important?
Sense of belonging
Influences a person’s way of thinking
Sense of identity and pride
Characteristics of Culture
Shared/Collective
Learned
Integrated/Interrelated
Symbolic
Adaptive
Ethnocentrism
Judging another culture solely by the values and standards of one’s own culture
Basically the belief that your culture is inherently better than other people’s
5 Elements of Culture
Religion
Government
Economy
Social Structure
Expression
Culture: Religion
The ‘foundation’ of culture
-A system of attitudes, beliefs & practices relating to spiritual things
-Creates morals, values, and customs in a culture
Culture: Government
A process for making decisions
-The goal is for the government to make decisions for the people
-3 Main Types of Government:
–Monarchy
—-King/Queen makes decisions based on wants/needs of people
–Democracy
—-The people elect representatives to make decisions on their behalf
–Autocracy
—-One leader makes all decisions with little consideration for the wants and needs of the people
Culture: Economy
The method of allocating resources
-Capitalism
-Communism
-Socialism
-Etc.
Culture: Social Structure
Main purpose is to organize society
-How families are organized/who lives with who
-How we interact with different groups of people based on what society tells us (teachers vs. parents vs. friends)
-Two main kinds of organization
—-Nuclear
—-Extended
Culture: Expression
The way cultures demonstrate communication and individuality
-Language, food, music, dance, entertainment, etc..
What we typically mean when we say “culture”
Discovery
the addition of totally new information into a culture (very rare)
Ex: “discovery” of the New World
Invention
recombination of existing elements within a culture (common)
Ex: changes in technology
Alteration
a minor change within a culture (extremely common)
Ex: clothing, hair styles, musical styles, language trends
Diffusion
movement of information from one culture into another, the mixing of two cultures (fairly common)
Ex: languages, ideas, food
Extinction
when traits leave a culture (fairly common)
Ex: means of transportation, cultural experiences, etc.
Elements religions have in common
Places of Worship.
Values/Morals
Holy Books (Sacred Texts)
Celebrations/Holidays
Higher Power/God/Deity
Calendar
Economy
Dietary practices
Beliefs about afterlife
What is religion
A religion is a unified system of spiritual beliefs and practices related to sacred things
Unified = ?
Sacred = ?
3 components of religion
-Beliefs that some kind of spiritual or supernatural power exists
-Specific beliefs about these powers
-Rituals
Intellectual
-Explains the world around us
-Satisfies human curiosity
-Goes further than science can
Psychological
-Helps people cope with times of stress/trouble
-Explains why bad things happen
-Gives confidence in a more ultimate meaning to life
Social
-Gives morals, values, and rules
-Gives common identity as part of same group
-Solidarity - brings people together
Sacred
Worthy of religious worship; holy
Ex: Holy books, religious figures, religious sites, etc.
Secular
Non-religious in nature, separate from religion
Ex: American public school system
