10.21 Intro to Material Culture

What are the two main categories of culture?

Material culture and nonmaterial culture.

What is material culture?

Artifacts, tools, clothing, and transportation.

What does nonmaterial culture encompass?

Rituals, values, norms, symbols, and language.

What is the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis?

The hypothesis that language is culturally determined and shapes our interpretation of reality.

What is the difference between micro and macro values?

Micro values are individual or group beliefs about right and wrong; macro values are collective cultural values.

What is the definition of norms?

Formally and informally established standards of behavior.

What is a master status?

A status that dominates other statuses and determines a person's general position in a society.

What is the difference between ascribed status and achieved status?

Ascribed status is assigned without regard for unique talents; achieved status is earned through one's own efforts.

What is ethnocentrism?

Evaluating or judging a different culture based on one’s own cultural norms.

What are cultural universals?

Patterns or traits that are globally common in all societies.

Give an example of a cultural universal in society.

Families, hierarchy, gender roles, or language.

What does cultural relativism mean?

Assessing a culture by its own standards rather than one’s own cultural standards.

What are the three types of identities mentioned?

Personal, social, and cultural identities.

What is the significance of language in culture?

Language is fundamental to a shared culture and important for cultural capital.

What are taboos?

Social prohibitions against certain behaviors, such as incest, murder, theft, and suicide.