SOC 1100 Chapter Notes - Chapter 3: Culture Shock, Medieval Commune, Cultural Learning

• School: University of Guelph
• Department: Sociology
• Course: SOC 1100
• Professor: Deanna Behnke- Cook

Document Summary

Culture is a way of life: culture is shared by members of a society, culture shapes how we act, think, and feel. Culture is a human trait: although several species display a limited capacity for culture, only human beings rely on culture for survival. Culture: the ways of thinking, the ways of acting, and the material objects that together from a people"s way of life. Nonmaterial culture: the ideas created by members of a society material culture the physical things created by members of a society. Culture shock: personal disorientation when experiencing an unfamiliar way of life. Culture relies on symbols in the form of words, gestures, and actions to express meaning. The fact that different meanings can come to be associated with the same symbol (e. g. , a wink of an eye) shows the human capacity to create and manipulate symbols. Societies create new symbols all the time (e. g. , new computer technology has sparked the creation of new cyber-symbols)