First Connection to the U.S. Culture: My husband became very busy with his studies. He spent most of his time in the library while I was taking care of our apartment and our children. After two months, I became pregnant with my daughter. I was very bored sitting at home and I had the same feeling when I went outside because I could not speak even a single English word beyond numbers. Therefore, I was not able to stay alone at home for the whole day, particularly when my kids went to school; nor was I able to go out, mostly because of my limited English. While I was in this dilemma, I got to know an African American girl who drove my kids to school daily. She was the first American girl that I met. She was like a third gift to me. Fortunately,
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.
Before describing the dominant culture in the United States, we first need to know what culture is and what a dominant culture is. Culture is the life style people choose. This includes language, religion, values and norms that a group of people accept without thinking about it. Now that we know what culture is, what is a dominant culture? The dominant culture in a society is the established language, religion, behaviour and norms that are proper to a certain culture. This is the dominant culture. Most often, dominant culture is the most powerful culture in a country and has the most powerful people or the most people associated to the culture.
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.
Culture is a big part in today’s society. Everyone is worried about the culture, as they follow it to avoid being judged by others. In the memoir, tuesdays with Morrie, by Mitch Albom, culture plays an important part in the story. The way Peter, Mitch’s brother, and Morrie, Mitch’s college professor, act when faced with disease or even death in Morrie’s case. Culture looks down on how Morrie reacts to his “life sentence”, as Morrie should not be happy, excited, and so open with everything. On the other hand, Peter is more culturally accepted, but not fully accepted, as he separates himself from his family and friends during his illness. The way our judgmental culture negatively affects society and how one acts is shown through this
Coming to the United States as an immigrant may be a daunting experience. If your first visit/arrival is to the north-eastern part of the country you may be welcomed with different customs and traditions (religion, food, music, dressing, language, family life and so on) by the more liberal society compare to the down-south where religious-conservatism is the order. On my flight, flying from Lagos, Nigeria to New York, I was a bit apprehensive because I sat next to an old white American lady. What caused my apprehension, I don’t really know but my fear quickly dissipated due to the kindness and politeness of this woman. She was always there for me anytime I need help, even before I could ask. It had an impression on me that American people must be very kind.
Both Native American culture and Colonial American culture, expressed strong beliefs in a divine creator, or creators.
In an attempt to define diplomacy, this paper has considered various competing definitions of culture each. This question has been widely debated in the fields of literature and philosophy. In this paper, a holistic definition of culture that includes several aspects of cultural products (values, traditions, religion, social structure, literature, education, science, art, music, etc.). UNESCO, in its Declaration Universal on Cultural Diversity of 2001, reaffirmed that "culture has to It is regarded as the set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and typical of a society or social group emotional "and that" it includes, in addition to art and literature, lifestyles, ways of living together, value systems, the traditions and beliefs."(MONDIACULT,
Of all the countries on the planet, nowhere is the vast array of world cultures more evident than in the United States. For most people, their ancestors came to this country in search of opportunity and a better life for their families. Fueled by motivators such as famine and dictatorship, emigrating to America meant saying goodbye to the only life they had ever known. Adjusting to a new setting and the changes that come with it is hard, especially when the new setting is a melting pot of unfamiliar customs. However, a change in location, regardless of the distance traveled, generally does not transform someone into a new person. Each of us is born and raised within a culture most likely reflecting the beliefs of our parents and other family members. As our first teachers, our parents are responsible for influencing the way in which we see the world and our place within it. As the only way of life ever known, these cultural beliefs often determine the way we view factors such as religion, nutrition, and even healthcare. As healthcare professionals, nurses today are faced with the responsibility of providing not only the safest and highest quality of care possible, but also ensuring the care provided is culturally acceptable and in sync with an individual 's health beliefs.
The definition of homogeneous accruing to the Merriam-Webster dictionary is as follows: “1) Of the same or a similar kind or nature. 2) Of uniform structure or composition throughout a culturally homogeneous neighborhood.” When I think of the United States I think about Americans. The fast food, the red solo cups, Target, the national anthem, and unabridged politeness. Why am I mentioning all these things? Because the American culture is something that is embedded in the world. They are words that anyone who has ever heard of America associates it with. However, when looking at the United States, one must take into account the cultures values, language, ethnicity and religious system of that society. If I had to present the society of the United States I can say that I would probably present American society as a
It is so exciting when a student finds out they are going to go to another county to attend school. They think about all the fun they will have making new friends and seeing new things. They make plans and see movies that will help prepare them for their new country. Sometimes this is helpful and sometimes it is not helpful. One student from my country watched movies and bought the clothes that would make him fit into American culture but he had watched vacation movies from the 1950s and was stuck wearing plaid shorts and Hawaiian shirts and plastic sandals all fall semester. He warned his friends to wait until they get to their school to buy clothes like everyone else is wearing. This was good advice but not every bit of good advice
Born in New York City with a family that emigrated from Morocco, I grew up (and currently live in) a predominantly Hispanic and African-American neighborhood. Inevitably, I frequently felt that I wasn’t quite connected with either my own culture or the cultures of my school peers, teachers, and community.
During colonial times, America was home to multiple cultures despite the considerable differences between one another. Native Americans and European colonists coexisted incongruously because neither wanted to adapt to the other’s customs. As a result, the two groups had different views of what American culture was to reflect. The natives believed that land belonged to everyone for the use of agricultural, while the English colonists viewed America as a land of personal opportunity and economic profit through native exploitation.
I do believe that there is such a thing as American culture. I know it’s hard to see America as having it’s own culture because the US is considered a melting pot, and so many different cultures contribute to our everyday lives, but the US does have it’s own culture. Just as other cultures influenced the United States, the US has also influenced other cultures.
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 United States of America being the third largest country in the world with more than 315 million inhabitants, consists of multicultural societies with ethnically diverse population. Since there are a lot of foreigners, the US culture has evolved in such a way accepting and tolerating other foreign cultures. US is very much influenced by protestant work ethics according to which people believe in themselves and their efforts to attain the goal of self-actualization and success. The rich diversity in the culture brought by foreigners, prevailing values of protestant ethics, hard work etc. have helped US to emerge as a superpower in the past years. Nearly every religion had its impact on US culture in one way or the other. The