American Culture

1. How can an understanding of the complexities of culture help us make sense of the day-to-day world which we live? Give an example from your life to illustrate your answer.

American culture has been referred to as a “melting pot.” Different cultures have added their own distinct aspects to society, making America a diverse country. Despite the plethora of cultures, certain norms, mores, and folkways are evident in American society. These ideas are vital to the function and stability of America. They provide guidelines for what is acceptable and not. In virtually every society, there are people who engage in deviant behavior and do not abide by the values that the rest of society follows. Theorists have debated if people are socialized into acting this way and if it is a social or personal problem. The sociological study of culture focuses on norms, mores, and folkways.

Contemporary American culture is defined as common themes of political attitudes, religious beliefs and news events that lead trends during the present time. Today, we see contemporary American culture portrayed in many more ways than that. We see it through art, music, and literature. In literature, for example, The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas by Ursula Le Guin, contemporary American culture is portrayed throughout. The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas represents contemporary American culture by portraying the exploitation of others, the symbolism of Americas political systems and oppression of the lower classes, and the lacking of moral responsibility.

Culture is a very vital part of the world as we know it today. There are very many different cultures all around the world. In the USA, we have a mix of all the different cultures and and family values. From the original Native Americans that inhabited America to the Middle Eastern people in Afghanistan. These people groups have brought their language, food, values, and customs with them.

The United States is an immense country, with many residents and citizens descending from immigrants who have influenced many customs, traditions, behaviors and ways of life. Unlike many old world nations, the United States does not have a homogenous population or a traditional homeland. However, American culture can be interpreted as being largely based in Western Europe with influences from the Native Indians, Africans, Asians, and elsewhere.

Culture is one of the diverse and quick changing phenomena. The American culture has been changing with time. However, despite the change and evolution of the culture, the rich elements of the culture have been passed through the generations (Colby, 597). In late 19th Century and early 20th Century the American culture was more concrete and focused on ethnicity background. The whites, the blacks, the natives, and the Latinos all brought their culture in their lives. The American people then tried to incorporate these cultures which by mid 20th century became synonymous with the American people. The blend of these cultures became rich and inspiring. During the time, the American became so much involved in overseas activities. In that way the American culture began to spread (power of persuasion, 7). Looking back at the time and the current times, the culture can be stated as relatively correlated. America is currently involved actively in overseas activities. The American culture is still blended just like the culture of the late19th Century and early 20th Century. American culture still influences other cultures in the world because America has a strong involvement in overseas activities.

The book “The Yin and Yang of American Culture A Paradox” by Eunice Yinter. The book is quite interesting to read, and learning the views of a person born and raised in Asia was very revealing. It can be difficult to determine other people's views of Americans from casual observation. Five of the virtues listed as Yang in the book seem true to me and related to each other. These virtues are: dreaming the impossible, frontier spirit, daring to be yourself, individual merit, and competitive spirit.

How does one define American culture? Is it the freedom and equality? The mixed religions and races? Is it a compilation of all cultures of the world? All of these qualities do define American culture. Although the nation’s forefathers established the cultural roots of the United States of America, its culture has changed over time. American culture is something unique and highly dynamic. The American culture developed as a result of immigrant settlers from all points of the world bringing in their own culture to this nation. The diversity, both culturally and ethnically, comprise the nation, but at what point does all this diversity become a problem? America’s cultural identity of freedom, equality, and diversity could soon be modified to the extreme by a massive influx of new immigrants who could become the majority of the nation. America, known for its cultural diversity, is on the verge of losing its cultural identity due to lack of restrictions with regards to immigration, the nation’s accommodating mentality towards immigrants and their culture, and racial stereotype inclination among people in the country.

Culture is one the most important aspects in a society. A person’s culture influences their life from the day they are born to the day they die. It has a major impact in every indivuaduals life. Culture impacts the decision of what a person is named, to the language they speak, how they speak, how they dress, how they look, what they believe in, what they value, and so much more. Culture is what makes the world unique. America is known for its variety in different cultures. The nation is known for its opportunity of prosperity to every. It’s one of the few nations where thousands can say they came with nothing but the clothes on their back and the “American dream” in their hearts and successfully can say they “Made it in America”.

Between 40,000 and 12,000 years ago, hunter-gatherers migrated from Asia to the Americas. They began migrating all over the americas. The North American cultures were less developed than those in South America and Mesoamerica, but the people of North America did establish complex societies. Some of these societies were able to organize long-distance trade and create magnificent buildings. The land from Oregon to Alaska was rich in resources. The most prime of these resources was the sea. Some tribes hunted whales using 15 person canoes. As well as the sea, the coastal forest also provided many different foods. In some coastal tribes families showed their wealth by hosting elaborate ceremonies called potlatch. In the ceremony the host family would give food, drink, and gifts to

This essay will outline how in today’s society, culture influences our personal identity, our actions, and media. Culture is a primary factor in our lives but it is also how we respond to the culture and identity we are exposed too.

American culture refers to the traditions and practices of the people of the United States. Culture comprises of the nature of buildings, religion, music language and marriage. The population of the United States is more than 320 million people making it the most culturally diverse country in the globe. Books such as Crabgrass Frontier, Manifest Destination and Muscular Christianity are important sources of information about American culture. This paper is a reflection on the methods that these books use in providing information about the evolution of the US culture. The paper examines the relationship between these three sources and ways they challenge or inform an understanding of the American society during the late 19th and early 20th century. There is an analysis of the efficiency of the issues tackled by these books in influencing the contemporary discourse surrounding American culture. The major argument of this paper is that Crabgrass Frontier, Manifest Destination and Muscular Christianity provide reliable information about the evolution of the US culture and they supplement each other through the use of relevant examples.

The concept of culture is something that defines many aspects of one’s life. From physical objects to different ways of thinking, culture adds significance to human life and makes groups of people distinct from one another. Culture is essentially a group of people who come together with similar interests and points of view. According to the Center for Advanced Language Acquisition of the University of Minnesota, “culture is defined as the shared patterns of behaviors and interactions, cognitive constructs, and affective understanding that are learned through a process of socialization.” From a more sociological perspective, culture is a way in which people come together in order to fulfill their needs. These shared patterns and ideas identify the members of a culture group while also distinguishing those of another group.” Culture is one of the things that sets the United States apart from the rest of the world. Not that the rest of the world is not cultural, but the circumstance here is different. Many people of different cultural backroads come to this country in search of a better life. As a consequence, the United States has become a place where many cultures merge together like a colossal pot soup.

When people think of missions, they think its missioners going out to help the poor by giving them money, food, or something materialistic. Missionary’s primary goal should be to bring honor to God. Missions are not just providing materialistically but it’s a way to grow relationally. We aren’t meant to bring out the great potential in God’s creation, by being relational to our selves, with others, and with the rest of creation for we all have a broken in spirit.

The television is also a very important aspect of popular culture that affects the American Identity. Watching television is such a common part of contemporary society, that most Americans adopted it as a part of their daily routine and watch television for at least an hour a day. Stanley Crouch, a poet, music and cultural critic, writes that whenever people pretentiously and proudly announce, “I don’t watch television,” they should follow it up with “I don’t look at America either” (Masciotra 79). Television has become a part of many people’s lives. When the mass population watches the same TV shows, movies, etc. they can all relate to each other, and thus unite them as an American. We look to TV shows to see how other people like us act