SY101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Ethnocentrism, William Graham Sumner

• School: WLU
• Department: Sociology
• Course: SY101
• Professor: Greg Bird

Document Summary

Sy 101 greg bird september 26th 2016. Culture refers to the symbolic and learned aspects of human society. The sum of traditions, practices, languages, symbols, beliefs, values, ideologies, and material objects that create a sense of similarity amongst a group of people. Co(cid:373)(cid:373)o(cid:374)se(cid:374)se notio(cid:374)s of (cid:862)culture(cid:863) i(cid:374) ca(cid:374)ada: high culture: the sum of traditions, practices, languages, symbols, values, ideologies, and material objects that are associated with the upper class. Judged in relation to the culture of the majority (popular culture). Social distinction: ethnic culture: the sum of traditions, practices, languages, symbols, values, ideologies, and material objects that are associated with a cultural minority group. Judged in relation to, and often from the perspective of, the ethnic culture of the majority (ethnocentrism). 3 biases in commonsense notions of culture: culture is relative, culture creates social differences, culture is exclusive. Everyone is both the product and the producer of culture.