Anthropological Perspective

Summary

This lecture explores the anthropological perspective on the self, emphasizing the impact of culture on personal development. It defines culture as a complex system of human behavior, thought, and material traits, highlighting how Filipino culture has evolved through colonization. The talk delves into the material, cognitive, and normative components of culture, discussing social norms, folkways, and mores. It also addresses cultural change mechanisms such as borrowing, discovery, and invention, and the spread of culture through assimilation, acculturation, and amalgamation, ultimately shaping individual and societal identity.

Takeaways

• 🌐 Culture is defined as the customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group, significantly impacting a person's development, beliefs, viewpoints, and behavior.
• 🎨 The Filipino culture is colorful due to the rich history influenced by various colonizing countries, shaping the self-concept and contributing to a better citizen and individual.
• 🔍 Anthropology is the scientific and philosophical study of human life, focusing on physical, cultural, and existential features to understand humanity's place in the world.
• 🤔 The concept of modern anthropological science is that humans create culture through active interaction with the environment, being both creators and carriers of culture.
• 📚 British Anthropologist Edward Taylor defined culture as a complex whole including knowledge, beliefs, art, morals, law, custom, and other acquired capabilities.
• 👗 Culture encompasses material, cognitive, and normative components, such as the use of tangible items, social norms, and customs that shape an individual's self.
• 👖 The material component of culture includes tangible items like clothing, technology, and tools, which are part of Filipino culture due to cultural borrowing.
• 📜 Social norms are divided into formal and informal norms, with formal norms being written and having strict punishments, while informal norms are customary behaviors without specific sanctions.
• 🏡 Folkways are customary behaviors in society with little concern for violations, whereas mores are highly mandatory norms with severe consequences for violators.
• 🔄 Culture has always existed alongside society, evolving through borrowing, imitation, discovery, and invention, employing a trial and error method.
• 🌱 Cultural change occurs due to societal evolution, with gradual changes in tribal societies and rapid changes in industrialized or urbanized societies.
• 🌐 Mechanisms of cultural change include cultural borrowing, discovery, and invention, with the菲律宾s (Note: The transcript seems to have a typo here, possibly referring to 'Philippines') experiencing significant cultural borrowing from Spanish and American influences.
• 🌈 Ways of spreading culture include assimilation, where a new culture replaces an old one, acculturation, where new and old cultures coexist, and amalgamation, creating a new blend of cultures.

Q & A

What is the anthropological definition of culture?

Culture is defined as the customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group, which greatly impacts a person's development, beliefs, viewpoints, and behavior.

How does the script describe the impact of culture on the self-concept?

The script suggests that culture influences the self-concept by shaping beliefs, viewpoints, and behaviors through various cultural influences and factors.

What is the main concept of modern anthropological science regarding the idea of man?

The main concept is that man creates culture through active interaction with the environment, and is considered a creator and carrier of culture.

Who is Edward Taylor, and how did he define culture?

Edward Taylor was a British anthropologist who proposed that culture is a system of human behavior and thought, obeying natural laws and thus can be studied scientifically. He defined culture as a complex whole including knowledge, beliefs, art, morals, law, custom, and other capabilities acquired by man as a member of society.

What are the three major components of culture as mentioned in the script?

The three major components of culture are the material, cognitive, and normative components.

Can you explain the material component of culture with an example?

The material component of culture pertains to all tangible materials inherited from previous generations, such as the use of ballpens, papers, and modern objects like jeans, cellular phones, and computers.

What are formal and informal social norms, and how do they differ?

Formal social norms are written down with strict rules and punishments for offenders, like laws and school admission requirements. Informal social norms are understood customs or standards of behavior without precise recording or specific sanctions for violators, such as the disgrace associated with out-of-wedlock pregnancy in some rural communities.

What is the difference between folkways and mores in the context of social norms?

Folkways are general rules of customary and habitual ways of behavior with little concern for violation, like not taking food with bare hands during meals. Mores are special folkways deemed necessary for societal welfare, embodying cherished principles with severe punishments for violators, such as laws against abortion.

How does the script explain the existence of culture?

Culture exists as a result of human efforts to improve their status in life and endure existence for future generations, through borrowing, imitation, discovery, rediscovery, and creation of new things.

What are the mechanisms of cultural change mentioned in the script?

The mechanisms of cultural change include cultural borrowing, discovery and invention, and the trial and error method in adopting new cultural items.

Can you provide an example of cultural borrowing from the script?

An example of cultural borrowing is the adoption of the Filipino's mode of dressing and speaking, which is mostly influenced by the Spaniards and Americans due to colonization.

What are the different ways of spreading culture mentioned in the script?

The ways of spreading culture mentioned are assimilation, acculturation, and amalgamation.

How does the script describe the process of assimilation in the context of culture?

Assimilation is the process of embracing a new culture and regarding it as part of the existing culture, where similar overlapping cultures are replaced with the new one, such as the replacement of traditional Filipino clothing with Spanish-influenced attire during the Spanish period.