Defining Culture Section 1

UNDERSTANDING
CULTURE, SOCIETY
AND POLITICS
Ms. Marjorie U. Condino

MET 2: DEFINING SOCIETY AND CULTURE FROM
THE PERSPECTIVES OF SOCIOLOGY
AND ANTHROPOLOGY
SECTION I. The Dynamics of Culture

SECTION II. Culture as a Complex Whole
CONTENT STANDARDS
The learners demonstrate an understanding of:
1. Culture and society as anthropological and sociological

concepts; and
2. Perspectives in/approaches to the study of culture
and society
PERFORMANCE STANDARDS
The learners:
1. Demonstrate a holistic understanding of culture and

society
2. Values cultural heritage and express pride of place
without being ethnocentric
WHAT DO
YOU THINK?
CAN SOCIETY EXIST
WITHOUT CULTURE? WHY
OR WHY NOT?
SECTION I. The Dynamics of Culture SECTION II. Culture as a Complex Whole
 The Dynamics of Culture  Culture as a Complex Whole

1. What is Culture 8.Elements of Culture: beliefs, symbols,
2. Cultural Universals and Particulars language, values, norms and law
3. Material and Non-Material Culture 9. Aspects of Culture
4.Cultural Diversity 10. Society ad Culture
5. Subculture and Counterculture 11. Culture and Individual Freedom
6. Culture Shock
12. Globalization
7. Ethnocentric and Cultural Relativism
WHAT IS CULTURE?
1. WHAT IS CULTURE?
 Basically characterized as the people’s way of life

which is shared by other people living in a certain
cultural region.
 A certain society can have a multicultural

environment
 Occupies a large domain in the life of

man.
2. CULTURAL UNIVERSALS AND PARTICULARS
 It was the anthropologist George

Murdock in 1945 who distinguished
between cultural universals and cultural
particulars.
 Cultural universals are the things

that all cultures have such as the need
for interaction, utilization of resources
and leadership.
 Cultural particulars are the specific

practices that distinguish cultures from
one another.
THINK ABOUT THIS…

Describe the Filipino
culture as a whole
3. MATERIAL AND NON-MATERIAL
 Material culture are those physical or

material things that people create which
reflects their different cultural orientation.
 Material culture are reflections of the

varying way of life of the people.
MATERIAL CULTURE
 Examples: food, clothing, mobile phones,
computers, pencil
3. MATERIAL AND NON-MATERIAL
 Intangible human creations which does not

exist in the material world but can be
transcended through the human intellect and
human actions.
NON-MATERIAL  Examples: philosophy, norms, values,

CULTURE customs and norms
4. CULTURAL DIVERSITY
 Sociologists use the term “cultural

diversity” to capture the cultural variety that
exists among people who share some physical
and virtual space.
 Cultural diversity exists even inside the

same social setting.
4. CULTURAL DIVERSITY
 It will be helpful for us to consider the

concept of cultural capital in order to
fully appreciate the idea of cultural
diversity.
 3 types:
1. Objectified Cultural Capital
2. Embodied Cultural Capital
3. Institutionalized Cultural Capital
WHAT IS CULTURAL
CAPITAL?
4. CULTURAL DIVERSITY: CULTURAL CAPITAL
The cultural knowledge that serves as
currency that helps us navigate culture
and alters our experiences and the
opportunities available to us.
4. CULTURAL DIVERSITY: THREE TYPES OF CULTURAL CAPITAL
1. Objectified Cultural Capital
 Refers to all material and non-material culture

that a person has or has a direct access to.
2. Embodied Cultural Capital

 Refers to all kinds of material and non-material objects
that have been internalized by the people in conscious
or unconscious manner.
 Learned by man through the process of

socialization.
1. Institutionalized Cultural Capital

 Consists of all material and non-material culture that
everyone considers as desirable in a give social setting.
 Example: career, academic qualifications and

profession
5. SUBCULTURE AND COUNTERCULTURE
 Subculture shares some parts of

the mainstream cultural
tradition but differs it in at some
points.
SUBCULTURE
5. SUBCULTURE AND COUNTERCULTURE
 Counterculture refers to the kind of

subculture that goes against the
mainstream culture.
 Resentment or contradiction
COUNTERSUBCULTURE
6. CULTURE SHOCK
 Culture shock is that feeling of

unusual uneasiness and mental
stress because of an experience of
another culture which is
contrary to one’s home culture.
WHY CULTURE
SHOCK HAPPENS?
6. CULTURE SHOCK
 This happens because of the

presence of cultural diversity and
subcultures.
7. ETHNOCENTRISM AND CULTURAL RELATIVISM
 Ethnocentrism is a point of view in which people use their

home culture as the standard for judging the worth of
another culture.
 This is the reason why other people belonging to a particular cultural

orientation see other people’s culture as inferior to their
own.
However, there are some people who see other

cultures as superior to their own, this is called
reverse ethnocentrism.
 Cultural Relativism is a point of view that sees all

cultures to be equal with each other.
 There are no such thing as superior or inferior culture.
 A culture must evaluated using its own context and not the
context of other cultures.
 Cultural Relativism is a point of view that sees all

cultures to be equal with each other.
 There are no such thing as superior or inferior culture.
 A culture must evaluated using its own context and not the
context of other cultures.
QUESTIONS:
1. Do you think you are ethnocentric?
2. If you are ethnocentric, how
ethnocentric you are?

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UNDERSTANDING

Ms. Marjorie U. Condino

SECTION I. The Dynamics of Culture

1. Culture and society as anthropological and sociological

1. Demonstrate a holistic understanding of culture and

 The Dynamics of Culture  Culture as a Complex Whole

 Basically characterized as the people’s way of life

 A certain society can have a multicultural

 Occupies a large domain in the life of

2. CULTURAL UNIVERSALS AND PARTICULARS

 It was the anthropologist George

 Cultural universals are the things

 Cultural particulars are the specific

THINK ABOUT THIS…

 Material culture are those physical or

 Material culture are reflections of the

 Intangible human creations which does not

NON-MATERIAL  Examples: philosophy, norms, values,

 Sociologists use the term “cultural

 Cultural diversity exists even inside the

 It will be helpful for us to consider the

1. Objectified Cultural Capital

 Refers to all material and non-material culture

2. Embodied Cultural Capital

 Learned by man through the process of

1. Institutionalized Cultural Capital

 Example: career, academic qualifications and

 Subculture shares some parts of

 Counterculture refers to the kind of

 Culture shock is that feeling of

 This happens because of the

 Ethnocentrism is a point of view in which people use their

 This is the reason why other people belonging to a particular cultural

However, there are some people who see other

 Cultural Relativism is a point of view that sees all

 There are no such thing as superior or inferior culture.

 Cultural Relativism is a point of view that sees all

 There are no such thing as superior or inferior culture.

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