Question

Read the definitions of "culture" provided at the website below. You may also wish to research additional definitions or interpretations. In the space below, respond to the questions:

In your own words, how would you define "culture"?
Can you be part of more than one culture? Why or why not? How do you participate?
Web Resource:
"What is Culture?" The Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition (CARLA). University of Minnesota. (short answers)

Answer 1

In my own words, culture is the shared ways a group of people think, communicate, and behave: the beliefs, values, customs, language, stories, arts, and everyday practices that shape how members make sense of the world and relate to one another. Culture is learned and passed on, influences what people consider normal or important, and changes over time.

Can you be part of more than one culture?
- Yes. Culture is layered and overlapping (for example: family, ethnic, national, religious, professional, age-group, and online communities), so people commonly belong to multiple cultures at once.
- You participate by practicing the behaviors, using the language or symbols, observing rituals and holidays, following norms and values, and interacting with others in those groups. In daily life this looks like code-switching between languages or styles, celebrating different holidays, following workplace norms, and adopting tastes (food, music, fashion) from different cultural groups.