SOCI 1001 Chapter 6.1: 6.1 Sociology
13 Feb 2017
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Document Summary
Defining culture from a sociological perspective: culture is used to describe almost everything in a society. It is a characteristic not of individuals, but of groups. Culture is a way of understanding differences between groups and similarities within groups. Culture is an aspect of social life that is different from nature or biology: material and nonmaterial. Nonmaterial: art, customs, traditions, language: culture: three parts. A shared system of beliefs and knowledge (a system of meaning and symbols) A set of values, beliefs, and practices. Culture as a system of meaning and symbols: every society is full of symbols. Symbols: something that communicates an idea while being distinct from the idea itself. Red heart implies love, green traffic lights tell you to drive. Less obvious: a car flying around off-road makes you think about freedom and excitement. Culture is a system of collective meaning. The meaning that people give to the symbols says a lot about their societies.
