SOCI 1F90 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Cultural Relativism, Linguistic Determinism, Cross Necklace
11 May 2015
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Document Summary
Culture: a complex collection of values, beliefs, behaviors, and material objects shared by a group and passed on from one generation to the next. Material culture: the tangible artifacts and physical objects found in a given culture. Non-material culture: the intangible and abstract components of a society, including values and norms. Values: beliefs about ideal goals and behaviors that serve as standards for social life. Norms: culturally defined rules that outline appropriate behaviors. Folkways: informal norms that suggest customary ways of behaving. Mores: norms that carry a strong sense of social importance and necessity. Law: a type of norm that is formally defined and enacted in legislation. Sanctions: a penalty for norm violation or a reward for norm adherence. Ethnocentrism: the tendency to view one"s own culture as superior to all others. Cultural relativism: appreciation that all cultures have intrinsic worth and should be evaluated and understood on their own terms.
