LESSON 2:

DEFINING CULTURE AND SOCIETY FROM

THE PERSPECTIVES OF ANTHROPOLOGY
AND SOCIOLOGY
• A. Definition of Society

Society -is a group of individuals sharing a

common culture, geographical location, and
government.
Human beings are considered to be naturally inclined to
establish societies, since it is in interacting with others that
they are able to ensure their survival by establishing
mutually beneficial relationships with one another.
It enables individuals to acquire necessary survival skills,
maximize their potential, and share resources.
The classic definition of society is based on E.B.
Taylor's concept which states that society is "that
complex whole which encompasses beliefs,
practices, values, attitudes, laws, norms, artifacts,
symbols, knowledge, and everything that a person
learns and shares as a member of society."
A society is characterized by the presence of the
following elements:
a) social solidarity, whereby members of the
community live together for mutual benefit
b) shared identity and culture among members that
serve as basis for their patterns of action and
behavior
c) a common language;
d) a large population and the ability to sustain
succeeding generations members
e) definite geographical area
f) political, economic, and social organization.
B. DEFINITION OF CULTURE

Culture is one of the important bases that define

and influence society.
It refers to the set of beliefs, ideas, values,
practices, knowledge, history and shared
experiences, attitudes, as well as material objects
and possessions accumulated over time and shared
by the members of society.
Components of Culture
1. Technology- The combination of objects and rules
2. Symbols- Anything that represents something
else; the very basis of human culture
3. Language- The organization of written or spoken
symbols into a standardized system.
4. Values- Are shared beliefs about what is good or bad; the
type of values held by a group determines their character
5. Norms- shared rules of conduct.
* Folkways
* Mores
• Folkways are norms that describe socially acceptable
behavior but do not have great moral significance
attached to them.
• Mores are norms that have great moral significance
attached to them that when violated endangers society.
(e.g. dishonesty, fraud, killings)
• Culture helps to explain human social behavior.
• Culture may be material or non-material.
• Material culture consists of tangible things. (technology,
architecture, fashion, food)
• Non-material culture consists of intangible things.
(values, language, beliefs, traditions/practices, political
system, etc.)
C. Aspects of Culture
a. Dynamic, flexible, and adaptive
b. Shared and contested (given the reality of social differentiation)
c. Learned through socialization or enculturation
d. Patterned social interactions
e. Integrated and at times unstable
f. Transmitted through socialization/enculturation
g. Requires language and other forms of communication
Subculture is a part of the dominant group but differs from it
in some important aspects.(e.g. China town, youth groups,
Circus people, military, police, lawyers, etc.)
Counterculture is a subculture deliberately and consciously
opposed to certain central beliefs of the dominant culture.
(e.g. goth, punk, prison counterculture, gangs)
CULTURE IS LEARNED SOCIETY FUNCTIONS AND
THROUGH MAINTAINS SOCIAL
ENCULTURATION& ORDER THROUGH SOCIAL
SOCIALIZATION. INTERACTION.

Enculturation - the process Patterns of Social Interaction:

of acquiring and internalizing 1. Exchange
culture 2. Cooperation
Socialization- the process of 3. Competition
learning and accepting social 4. Coercion
behavior, values, beliefs, 5. Conflict
norms, and language.
D. ETHNOCENTRISM AND CULTURAL RELATIVISM AS
ORIENTATIONS IN VIEWING OTHER CULTURES (RESPONSE TO
VARIATIONS)

Ethnocentrism- diminishes or invalidates "other" ways of life and

creates a distorted view of one's own. As a result, this could affect
individual behavior and relationships with other cultures.
Extreme forms of ethnocentrism have led to wars or colonization.
William Howard Taft, for example, once referred to the Filipinos as the
Americans' "little brown brothers" who needed to be supervised by
the United States of America in establishing a society and
government that approximates "Anglo American standards."
Cultural Relativism- recognizes and accepts the cultural
differences between societies.
This view believes that every aspect of a culture can be
justified by the context in which the culture has been
formed.
Interaction between members of different societies is more
likely to succeed if everybody is aware and is respectful of
cultural diversity.