Non-Material Culture Essay

Identify and define the seven basic elements of non-material culture.

Non-material culture in itself is a groups way of thinking, therefore in this essay I will be discussing their language, gestures, values, norms, sanctions, folkways, and mores. When we think of language one doesn 't normally think of it as being based on where you are located and what group of individuals you are enclosed in, therefore we wouldn 't assume it to be part of a non-material culture. Think with me for a moment living in the United States the majority of United States citizens speak English some with an accent and others with no accent, thus even though we all live in the same country we really don 't speak the same language, for instance if I said to you

Since I have discussed the rights and wrongs of how one should act in ones culture and in society, I would like to take a minute and discuss folkways. Folkways is an informal type of behavior, for instance how one would act in Las Vegas or in New Orleans during Mardi Gras. It is not how we would typically act when out in a social environment around our own culture but sometimes on must let loose and release their in inhibitions. Thinking of this part of non-material culture elements, we must also think of what may be considered abnormal for me may be considered normal for you. Being that I am a lesbian my social norms are a little more refined, because I choose not to allow others to judge for what I am but who I am. When I was younger I was looked upon as a freak, or a broken person, because I didn 't find the opposite sex sexually intriguing, however I am not broken I just have a different way of looking at things which is what my mother told me when I came out to her. In early years this would have been considered a taboo amongst other things like a man dressing in womens clothes or a man getting their sex changed because they aren 't comfortable in their own body. Folkways are considered