Culture is a shared set of values and norms between certain groups of people. These values and norms are unconsciously presented in the interactions and communications of the cultural group, which they do on a daily basis. Therefore, the behavior of people on different occasions would reflect their culture in a way or the other. I had the fortunate experience of attending a Thanksgiving lunch with a few American friends of mine last year. It turned out to be a warm and culturally rich experience, which showed a great vision about the cultural values and norms of the Americans, and how they celebrate the occasion of Thanksgiving.
The primary purpose of Thanksgiving Day is to unite together, and give thanks to God for the bounties and blessings that He gave us during the previous year. I made sure to arrive on the time I was expected to, as I knew Americans shows respect for being on time. There were five members in the family, a husband and wife, and their three children. The house was made clean, decorated with hangings and other beautiful accessories like holiday candles, and images of turkeys, and autumn fruits and vegetables, placed on several tables and the walls around the house. Another family, a couple and their two kids, were also invited as guests. Everyone was dressed in their best clothes, and was in a joyful, cheerful mood to enjoy the event. We were gathered around the table, everyone said grace and their respective thanks to God before starting lunch. It felt warm and comforting, sitting together with love, appreciation and concern for each other. The conversation flowed around the table, and nobody was left out. Even the pet of the house, a large hairy dog sat few feet away, enjoying his meal and being a part of th...
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Textbooks in today’s schools still tell the same story that has been handed down from generation to generation. Every year children dress up and put on plays about the famous story of the first Thanksgiving. No one knows the truth though or at least people pretend to not know the embarrassing truth of our “founding fathers.” Textbooks today give the candy coated version of good saintly Englishmen come to a better world and find good neighbors willing to help in their time of need.
When the great holiday of Thanksgiving comes to mind, most people think of becoming total gluttons and gorging themselves with a seemingly unending amount of food. Others might think of the time spent with family and friends. The whole basis of the holiday is family togetherness, fellowship, and thankfulness for blessings received during the previous year.
Samovar, Larry A., Richard E. Porter, and Edwin R. McDaniel. Communication between Cultures. 7th ed. Australia: Wadsworth/Cengage Learning, 2010. Print.
Martin, J. N., & Nakayama, T. K. (2013). Intercultural Communication in Contexts (6th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.
What is culture? Culture is such a complex concept that it is not defined by one simple thing. When studying the culture of a particular group of people we look at their beliefs, fashion, art, music and even food. By simply trying food from a particular culture we can learn much about its history and even geography. Recently I had the opportunity to try authentic Peruvian cuisine. Not only did I get to try new food and get to learn about a new culture, I also got to be able to compare it to my own Colombian culture.
As culture is being learned and transmitted from one generation to the next, there is the question as to how it is being learned? And does it change? Banking on the simplified definition of (Samovar, Porter, & McDaniel, 2012) culture is learned through communication. This entails social interactions among people with common understanding of symbols, shared values and beliefs, and rules as a product of reciprocal information processing (Lustig, 2006).
Culture often means an appreciation of the finer things in life; however, culture brings members of a society together. We have a sense of belonging because we share similar beliefs, values, and attitudes about what’s right and wrong. As a result, culture changes as people adapt to their surroundings. According to Bishop Donald, “let it begin with me and my children and grandchildren” (211). Among other things, culture influences what you eat; how you were raised and will raise your own children? If, when, and whom you will marry; how you make and spend money. Truth is culture is adaptive and always changing over time because
Within the United States there is a huge diversity of cultures. Culture is many different things, it is a tradition, it is the values and beliefs passed down from generation to generation, and culture is the identity of any country. Culture helps to identify one cultural group from the other. Although we may live in the same country,city, or state we still differ from one another by the way we dress, our beliefs, language, traditions, music, art, food, religion, and politics.
Martin, Judith N., and Thomas K. Nakayama. Intercultural Communication in Contexts. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2013. Print.
The United States is a country with a diverse existing population today; this country is known as a melting pot of different cultures, each one unique in its own respect. Culture; differentiate one societal group from another by identification beliefs, behaviors, language, traditions, Art, fashion styles, food, religion, politics, and economic systems. Through lifelong, ever changing processes of learning, creativity, and sharing culture shapes our patterns of behavior as well thinking. The Culture’s significance is so intense that it touches almost every aspect of who and what we are. Culture becomes the telescope through which we perceive and evaluate what is going on around us. Trying to define the perplexing term of culture with varying component of distinguishable characteristics is difficult to restrict. Presenly, culture is viewed as consisting primarily of the symbolic, untouched and conception aspects of human societies.
Samovar, L. A., Porter, R. E., & McDaniel, E. R. (2009). Culture and Communication. Boston: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Kroeber, A. and C. Klockhohn, Culture: A Critical Review of Concept and Definition New York: Vintage Books, 1989.
Culture is the totality of learned, socially transmitted customs, knowledge, material objects and behavior. It includes the ideas, value, customs and artifacts of a group of people (Schaefer, 2002). Culture is a pattern of human activities and the symbols that give these activities significance. It is what people eat, how they dress, beliefs they hold and activities they engage in. It is the totality of the way of life evolved by a people in their attempts to meet the challenges of living in their environment, which gives order and meaning to their social, political, economic, aesthetic and religious norms and modes of organization thus distinguishing people from their neighbors.
unknown. (n.d.). The relationship between Culture and Communication. Retrieved November 20, 2010, from jrank.org: http://encyclopedia.jrank.org/articles/pages/6491/culture-and-communication.html