SOCI 210 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Culture Of Quebec, Sociological Perspectives, Post-Capitalism
3 May 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
January 25th
Exam: only focus on the first two weeks of the course
We will not be asked about culture
So only look at the first two slides (everything before today)
Sociological perspectives and sociological methods
Focus on the main ideas, perspectives, and sociologists (no dates, studies, examples, etc.)
Understanding is more important than memorization for this course
Canadian and Quebecois culture
Politicians like to talk a lot about threats to culture
Stephen Harper talked about both honour killings and Islamic fundamentalism as a
threat to Canadian culture
Charter of Values sought to protect Quebecois culture
When pressed on what they mean by Canadian and Quebecois culture, politicians commonly
do’t ko hat to sa
There is no straightforward definition of what culture is
This makes it is difficult concept to study
We need understand it and then approach it from a systematic perspective in order to
study it properly
Toda’s letue ill oside just hat ultue is
In so doing, it will present one of the most basic concepts in sociology
From a functionalist point of view, culture is something very real that we need to protect
because it binds all the organs of society together
Defining culture
Culture is a central concept in sociology but is also used more popularly
Popular Definition: a way of life
The fist uestio is, hose a of life?
Who is in charge of defining this way of life?
Is culture something that everybody shares?
Do all Canadians share the Canadian culture?
A sociological definition: “haed eliefs, alues, ad paties
Culture is applied when large numbers of people share it
Usually applied to national, ethnic, religious, and other types of community
Goig talk of gloal ultue
More intensive interaction between people
It is not to say that it is actually present, or that it is real
Whenever we see groups of people who share some kind of common understanding of shared
history, shared belief systems, shared values; we can talk about a particular culture
From this perspective, we can have hundreds of different cultures in Canada
We could have subcultural groups that share a certain common understanding of life,
and they all have something common with one another
Debate: is there one unifying Canadian culture, or Quebecois culture, etc.?
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Elements of culture
Culture is an umbrella concept that includes numerous elements
Language: Hee i Quee, he e’e talkig aout ultue, e’e usuall fousig o
language
Not only in Quebec
In many places, your culture is defined through your mother tongue
Your parents are primary socializers and communicate the basics of your culture to your
through your language
That language in itself becomes something that unites groups of people
Religion: Another very important element of culture
Marx predicted that religion would be dying out in the future
With the rise of capitalism and once we transition into post-capitalist societies, he
thought that religions would die
In many parts of the world, this is not the case
Some societies are becoming more religious than ever
Or, more conservative than ever
I Noth Aeia, eligio a e a ipotat pat of people’s idiidual lies, ad it
can also bring groups of people together
Provides perspectives on the meaning of life
Technology: Cultures also include knowledge about how to use particular technologies to
extract our needs from the environment
Transportation, communication, food, production
Nowadays, we talk about subcultures that exist solely due to the internet
You have different people in different locations that have a shared experience
because they communicate online
They have a shared platform
This is what sustains them as a cultural entity
Subculture versus counterculture:
Subculture: a subculture is a culture within a culture
Counterculture: a counter culture is a culture that rejects the idea of being a part
of the bigger culture
Rejects either some kind of unifying culture or some major norms in that
mass culture
E.g., hipsters are a good example of a member of a subculture because
you are still a part of mainstream society
This subculture is promoted through the consumption of certain
items
But hipsters are not rebels
They do not reject the overall idea of Canada
E.g., hippies in the 60s because they explicitly rejected certain major
ideas within the North American culture of the 60s
Against militarism, consumerism, and capitalism
The lines can be blurred between subcultures and countercultures
Textbook stresses values, beliefs, norms as more fundamental components of culture
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Exam: only focus on the first two weeks of the course. So only look at the first two slides (everything before today) Focus on the main ideas, perspectives, and sociologists (no dates, studies, examples, etc. ) Understanding is more important than memorization for this course. Politicians like to talk a lot about threats to culture. Stephen harper talked about both honour killings and islamic fundamentalism as a threat to canadian culture. Charter of values sought to protect quebecois culture. When pressed on what they mean by canadian and quebecois culture, politicians commonly do(cid:374)"t k(cid:374)o(cid:449) (cid:449)hat to sa(cid:455) There is no straightforward definition of what culture is. This makes it is difficult concept to study. We need understand it and then approach it from a systematic perspective in order to study it properly. Toda(cid:455)"s le(cid:272)tu(cid:396)e (cid:449)ill (cid:272)o(cid:374)side(cid:396) just (cid:449)hat (cid:272)ultu(cid:396)e is. In so doing, it will present one of the most basic concepts in sociology.
