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Strengths and weaknesses of symbolic interactionism
Strengths and weaknesses of symbolic interactionism
Strengths and weaknesses of the symbolic interactionism
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As human beings we are very active creatures. It is very rare we sit absolutely still with no movement at all, in fact to do so would be considered strange in most social contexts. These movements are not however sporadic, they are in fact highly controlled, practiced skills. Even when remaining relatively still, for example, to rest or sleep, we have still been taught the required skills to do so, whether it’s how to sit on a chair or lay on a bed, these are very ordinary, everyday techniques that we take for granted and perceive as something natural, but often they are technique’s we have been taught to do.
Marcel Mauss in his work Techniques of the Body (1934) is regarded as the first piece of work to outline a systematic anthropology of the body (Synnott 1993). It aims to show evidence that most everyday body techniques differ between people raised in different environments, as they have a different way of life that requires a different set of skills. According to Mauss all ordinary activities such as walking, running, swimming, resting are not just techniques we are naturally equipped with but are instead culturally acquired. The aim of this paper is to critically assess Mauss’ argument that techniques of the body constitute culture. This will be done by looking at what is defined as culture in the context that Mauss refers to. An analysis of Mauss’ examples of “body techniques” given in his paper will then begin, whilst also drawing on current examples. Mauss’ work will then be compared to other writers in the field of ‘the body’ such as Elias and Goffman.
The notion of culture that Mauss refers to is one conceived as a corpus of knowledge and information that is passed through generations through practical application (In...
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...its members to adhere to it could be established that it does in fact hold a huge influence over the way and nature we use our body. Culture through its system of symbols, that are structurally formed, through habitus, serves to teach us how to behave in order to become a fully fledged member of our given society. These symbols are further reinforced through the intuitions of family and education, the media, fashion and perceived societal norms. This affects the many ways in which we use our body, from the technique of walking through to sleeping, whilst also helping us to classify our social identity of gender and age. It is only through learning, continual practice and adhering to constant self control of one’s self, that we are able to do this successfully making every action we make a taken for granted “gymnastic art, perfected in our own day” (Mauss 1934:456).
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
2. The body as a subject is evincing humanity beyond cultural construction and linguistic formulation.
"Whereas animals are rigidly controlled by their biology, human behavior is largely determined by culture, a largely autonomous system of symbols and values, growing from a biological base, but growing indefinitely away from it. Able to overpower or escape biological constraints in most regards, cultures can vary from one another enough so that important portion...
historically derived and selected) ideas and especially their attached values; Culture systems may, on the one hand, be considered as products of action, and on the other as conditioning elements of further action.”
Cultures are infinitely complex. Culture, as Spradley (1979) defines it, is "the acquired knowledge that people use to interpret experiences and generate social behavior" (p. 5). Spradley's emphasizes that culture involves the use of knowledge. While some aspects of culture can be neatly arranged into categories and quantified with numbers and statistics, much of culture is encoded in schema, or ways of thinking (Levinson & Ember, 1996, p. 418). In order to accurately understand a culture, one must apply the correct schema and make inferences which parallel those made my natives. Spradley suggests that culture is not merely a cognitive map of beliefs and behaviors that can be objectively charted; rather, it is a set of map-making skills through which cultural behaviors, customs, language, and artifacts must be plotted (p. 7). This definition of culture offers insight into ...
Bourdieu further argues that practices involve “a logic made to dispense with concepts”(1977, 116) but should not be described as logical processes. It is, instead of abstract logic, but body movements and actual practice should be analyzed with an investigation on the connection between body movements and classificatory system. The “language of the body”, according to Bourdieu, is more ambiguous to be analyzed than linguistic schemes(1977, 120).
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.
Culture can be defined as “A pattern of basic assumptions invented, discovered or developed by a given group as it learns to cope with its problems of external adaptation and internal integration that has worked well enough to be considered valid, and therefore to be taught to the new members as the correct way to perceive, think and feel in relation to those problems”. Schein (1988)
In relation to the relationship between social class and the self, part of the habitus is the attitudes towards body. It is believed that the attitude a person has towards their body is an indication of social class and is defined by the person’s habitus. “Working-class attitudes to bodies are marked by the demands of getting by in life and the temporary release from the dem...
In an effort to understand childhood and adulthood, or even other aspects of man’s life, a lot of aspects, tools and methods can be used. Amongst these are cultural institutions which form core aspects throughout someone’s life either consciously or unconsciously. These are usually elements within a culture which are supposed to be imperative or are customarily valued by the members as their identity (Cicchetti & Cohen, 1995).
Kroeber, A. and C. Klockhohn, Culture: A Critical Review of Concept and Definition New York: Vintage Books, 1989.
Culture is the whole system of ideas, action and result of the work of human beings in the frame work of the life of the community. Culture includes everything that is reserved, and his sense of hu...
Culture is an important concept in anthropology. Culture is defined as, "sets of learned behavior and ideas that human beings acquire as members of society. Human beings use culture to adapt to and transform the world in which they live." (LS:512). Culture has been used in anthropology to understand human difference, but within this understanding there have been benefits and drawbacks to the ideas of culture. Finally, the study of language and humans as symbol using creatures helps us have perspectives on different parts of the world. All anthropologists share a certain reliance on culture to have a starting point in understanding human experience as a whole.
Learning is the most essential part of communication it shows that you can process multiple ideas at once and not judge but seek to understand where another person’s ideas are coming from as well. People have their own reasons and narratives that shape what they believe to be their goods and why they protect these goods. Each person’s goods are representative of their culture. Culture is a collection of ones history learned styles, patterns, and perceptions that continu...
In the end, what we learn from this article is very realistic and logical. Furthermore, it is supported with real-life examples. Culture is ordinary, each individual has it, and it is both individual and common. It’s a result of both traditional values and an individual effort. Therefore, trying to fit it into certain sharp-edged models would be wrong.