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Society and Culture. What is a society?. a shared, learned, symbolic system of values, beliefs and attitudes that shapes and influences perception and behavior -- an abstract "mental blueprint" or "mental code." A shared perception of reality Commonly known as “Commonly known as”
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What is a society? • a shared, learned, symbolic system of values, beliefs and attitudes that shapes and influences perception and behavior -- an abstract "mental blueprint" or "mental code." • A shared perception of reality • Commonly known as • “Commonly known as” • Common sense • “They say” • “Everybody knows”
Ways of Knowing • We “know” lots of things. How do we know: • It’s hot outside • Veggies are good for you • Opposites attract • Smoking causes cancer
Everyday Ways of Knowing • Tenacity/Tradition • It’s always been true • You eat Turkey on Thanksgiving • Tied to prior held beliefs • Beliefs are hard to change • Flat Earth Society • What if knowledge has changed but beliefs haven’t? • Women belong at home, not in the workplace • I never advertised before, why should I now?
Everyday Ways of Knowing • Authority • Someone (who should know) says so • Doctor diagnosis • Mommy says so • What if that person is wrong? • Again, hard to change and may not consider new information
Everyday Ways of Knowing • Intuition or Logic • Truth is self-evident • Common sense • What if two individuals’ common sense tell them different things? • Politics • Religion
Problems with “Everyday” Ways • Filters how we process info • False premise; Illogical reasoning • Selective observation; expectations • Everyday ways of knowing can even lead to conflicting ideas about “truth” • Absence makes the heart grow fonder • Out of sight, out of mind
Why bother with societies and cultures? • Humans are weak • Societies are mutual support pacts
Let’s build a society • An individual • Two people • More than two… • Or twenty… • Or twenty million • 1st purpose of a society: reduce friction between people in the society • 2nd purpose: separate one society from others
Early Human Culture Small groups of around 25 Gatherer/hunters Nomadic Limited possessions more permanent settlements Became tribes xenophobia
End of the Ice Age • About 12,000 BCE • The high grasslands began to dry out • Tribes migrated down into the river valleys looking for food • Tigris/Euphrates • Indus • Yellow • Nile
