Notes and Such for a Test I May Fail.

So many definitions, so much confusion

these definitions have a few things in common:

• "groups of people"
• "learned knowledge"
• "shared behavior"
• "held in common"
• "traditions"
• "transmitted from generation to generation"

What is learned, and how?

• speech
• religion
• livelihood
• value systems
• technology
• housing
• foods
• music
• and on, and on, and on...

Let's narrow it down to a few elements

• language

• values, norms, and beliefs

• social activity and interaction

• arts and sciences

Language

• a set of symbols used to assign and communicate meaning
• spoken words
• written symbols
• these enable us to name or label the things in our world so we can think and communicate about them 

Values, norms, and beliefs

Values:

• democracy
• capitalism
• education

Norms:

• how society should conduct its business
• how individuals in society should behave
• norms have the "should" idea
• what is "normal" ? 

Beliefs:

• religion
• faith
• family

Social activity and interaction

groups, organizations, institutions

• Ravens fans
• the Republican Party
• war veterans
• German-Americans
• the Lost Boys of Sudan
• social studies teachers
• the Methodist Church
• marathon runners
• the Directors Guild of America
• Facebook members

Arts and sciences

literature

• novels
• poetry
• plays

performing arts

• dance
• music
• film, television

visual arts 

• drawing
• painting
• photography
• iconography

Lets go pass a test!

Culture - some definitions

• learned, shared behavior that is held in common by a group of people, empowering them with a "way of life"

• systems of knowledge shared by a relatively large group of people

• learned behavior of a group of people, generally considered to be the tradition of that people, transmitted from generation to generation