Social Norms: A Cultural Analysis

Culture is an enormous part of life itself, but how much does it really affect one’s life? Culture is a part of one’s daily life, and some may describe it as just the way things are. People have different opinions on things because of their experiences when going about their lives. Since culture plays a role in how people act, it can tremendously influence the way a person is able to see something versus how another person see the exact same thing. One thing culture influences is the norms for someone, also known as social norms. One person’s norms can be different from another because of the environment they live in. For example, in “Colliding Worlds,” by Pico Iyer, Iyer sees Los Angeles as a very chaotic place—cars, people, signs, and buses

This quote shows how he sees Los Angeles as a hectic place compared to where he grew up. The different environment makes him think that the city is very busy, but to another person, perhaps a local from Los Angeles, may think it is a quieter day compared to other days they have seen. Another example is if one person finds a certain activity exciting, such as going on a cruise ship for the first time in their life. They might be super excited and full of joy because it is their first time and cannot await all the things they can experience on the ship, but another person can find it completely boring because they have been on cruise ships everyday since

The western thinking of education only includes what is taught in school, but in other cultures, people can see more than just that. For example, in Robert Lake’s essay, “An INdian Father’s Plea,” he states that his boy’s learning, “goes beyond the basics of distinguishing the difference between rough and smoother, square and round, hard and soft, black and white, similarities and extremes” (90). Lake sees education as much more—different religions, rituals, and ways of his tribe also contribute to his son’s education. Lake believes education is not limited to what is just learned in a classroom; education can be stretched to everything that can be learned in life. Lake’s culture values all kinds of learning rather than just the things taught in a classroom. Lake also adds to his argument, saying, “All of these influences together make him somewhat shy and quiet—and perhaps ‘slow’ according to your standards” (91). Lake can see from the teacher’s point of view but is trying to get the teacher to see from his cultural perspective because their cultures are different, thus valuing different things. People can view education differently because of their culture, but learning is still a way of learning—it just depends on how it is perceived. An example of different perspectives on learning is in modern California. The Fairfield-Suisun School District has the Common Core learning in