Understanding Society and Culture

Society is a social construct of which there is no one definition. Let us look at

several definitions of society.

 All the social relationships found among human beings.

 A group of people who have mutual interests, certain forms of

interaction, characteristic relationships, shared institutions and a
common culture.

 A concept that describes how people who live together as a group

develop a commitment to a shared set of norms for living and
interacting.

 A group of people who have developed certain social structures that

prescribe appropriate behaviours and relationships.

 Relationships and arrangements in a group which represent ways of

ensuring that members remain loyal to its purposes, shared aims
and values by attention to consensus building; for example, through
the concept of society as a moral police.

 A set of relationships and arrangements in a group which are

constantly changing and re-configuring how social life is organized.

 Certain norms, values and behaviours characteristic of a people

who live in a place and shaped that space.

 The set of social relationships that an elite group or groups have

organized and try to maintain against the competing interests of
other groups.

 An ideal that we are always striving to achieve in our relationships

and arrangements for social life; e.g. the ‘good’ society.
  A social system where members share a common history, heritage,
language and social institutions, and which occupies a defined
geographical space.

The Social

 The social is the totality of explanations describing how people interact

and make meanings of their experiences. It is a construct with no
existence in itself.

Social Structure

 Social structure refers to the organized patterns, arrangements and

interactions between groups that comprise the various social institutions
and social organizations making up a society.

 Social Institutions include the family, economy, education, religion, and

politics. These are not tangible. Sociologists regard them as a group of
cherished ideas and beliefs that we have as a society and about how we
want our lives organized.

 Social organizations include school, church, political party etc. Social

organizations are tangible. They are the groups or organizations we
form to reflect the ideas and beliefs of our social institutions.

 Society is not homogeneous but rather heterogeneous.

 Society evolves over time. It is not static, it is dynamic.

 Society influences how people behave

 Society socializes us (Primary and Secondary Socialization; re-

socialization).

 Society is stratified.
Functionalist view and Marxist view of society

 Functionalist sociologists tend to view social structure as working in

such a way as to ensure peace and stability. The structures that organize
relationships and interactions make certain that the collective will of
members is satisfied. Undesirable behaviours are discouraged through
social structures such as laws, norms, rules, roles, values and sanctions.

 Marxist sociologists understand society in terms of its social structure

but do not hold the harmonious view of the functionalists. They say that
the structures in capitalist societies are enabling for the wealthy and
coercive for poorer groups. This means that since the economic
structure of the society dominates interaction and relationships, the
interests of the elites are always taken care of. Gross inequalities occur
in society and the poor do not have the power to change societal
arrangements. (Animal Farm, Utopia, Egalitarianism; Communist
Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels).

CULTURE

 “Culture is the accumulated store of symbols, ideas, and material

products associated with a social system, whether it be an entire society
or a family” (Johnson, 1995, pg. 68)

 Sociologists divide culture into material culture and Non-material

culture.

 Material culture (artefacts, artistic creations; culinary skills, processes;

architecture, technologies; family rearing practices)

 Non-material culture (Values, beliefs, ideas)

 The material products of a society are derived from the dominant

underlying values and beliefs of that society.
  The overlap between culture and society occurs at the level of the
importance of values. A society and its culture are rooted in the same
values and beliefs.

 Values are the beliefs that people have about what is right and wrong
and what is most important in life, which control their behaviour
(family/moral/traditional values)

 Cultural values are those collectively held by people in a society.

 A norm is an accepted standard or a way of behaving or doing things

that most people agree with (cultural/political/ethical/social norms)

 Norms are the rules for living that come about from a society’s values
and beliefs.

 Many of the personal and individual decisions we make in our lives are
not very ‘personal’ or ‘individual’ at all. Many of us choose behaviours
from a range of options that conform to what society or social groups
will allow us to do. While conforming behaviours help to maintain order
and cohesion in society, they also sometimes help to perpetuate
undesirable or inequitable practices.

Culture and History

 Plantation society has shaped Caribbean culture (cultural diversity)

 Slavery, colonialism, indentureship (music, customs, languages,

religions, “browning phenomenon”; liberation songs; preference for
foreign products etc.)

How do we learn values?

 We learn values through socialization

 Socialization (Enculturation) is the process through which we learn the

values, norms and behaviours that are acceptable in our society and
culture.
Different types of culture

 Popular culture refers to the music, visual and performing arts,

literature, festivals, cuisine, poetry and artistic and designer creations
that are produced mainly through the efforts of the mass media, and
even foreign mass media.

 Global culture or mass culture refers to the lifestyles and values

promoted through the mass media (ICT’s).

 High culture is an elitist understanding of culture. It refers to values

that promote the best thoughts and ideas that human beings have
developed and perfected. For example, classical music, philosophy,
literature and the arts are thought to represent beauty, intelligence and
truth.

 Subculture is usually a minority group within a culture who hold

different values and beliefs from the mainstream society. However,
people in a subculture can also hold the same values and beliefs of the
mainstream society.

Culture is learned and shared

 People who live together develop symbols that each member has to learn
about and these symbols represent significant shared meanings for
something. Language, gestures, habits, religion, marriage and
aspirations act as symbols for a set of shared meanings and values,
which for people in that society represents their culture.

Cultural Reproduction is the different ways of teaching the culture to

members so that the shared values and norms are constantly being
reproduced.

Cultural Retention results from a deliberate desire to keep traditions alive so

that some groups would be able to preserve their sense of identity.
Cultural Erasure of cultural practices is often a gradual process and usually
stems from an ongoing conflict between traditional ways of accomplishing
tasks in the society and newer methods. The latter may be more efficient and
cost-effective and may save time and energy. The adoption of appliances such
as refrigerators, washing machines, dishwashers, and microwaves, has
contributed to the loss of cultural practices.

Cultural Syncretism—since no society and culture today stand separate and

apart from others, it is reasonable to assume that much of the cultural change
we experience stems from interaction with other cultures.