Society & Culture

UCSPOL Module 2: Lessons 1-4

Franz Sioson
Our Lady of Fatima University – QC (SHS)
 Society
UCSPOL Module 2: Lessons 1
Franz Sioson
Our Lady of Fatima University – QC (SHS)
 SOCIETY

• A society is a group of people

interacting with each other and having
a common culture; sharing common
geographical or territorial domains,
and having relatively common
aspirations.
QUESTION:
• WHAT IS
YOUR
IDEAL
SOCIETY?
 THEORIES ON HUMAN
SOCIETIES
• In his Republic Plato (427-347 BC) laid his standards for an ideal society ruled by
philosopher-kings assisted by equally and intellectually gifted “guardians.”
• In his work Politics Aristotle (384-322 BC) stated that man is self-sufficient and
that those who are unable to live in society and have no needs in life must be
either “beasts” or “gods.”
• According to St. Augustine (354-430 AD) as stated in his City of God he
described society’s ultimate pilgrimage towards the kingdom of God which
is closely identified with the church, the community that worshipped God.
• In his masterpiece Utopia, (1516), Sir Thomas More (1468-1535) coined the
word "utopia" that refers to the ideal, imaginary island nation whose political
system he described
 TYPES OF SOCIETIES
• PRE-INDUSTRIAL SOCIETIES
• HUNTING AND GATHERING SOCIETY
• PASTORAL SOCIETY
• HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY
• AGRARIAN SOCIETY
• FEUDAL SOCIETY
• INDUSTRIAL SOCIETIES
• POST-INDUSTRIAL SOCIETIES
• MODERN SOCIETIES
 PRE-INDUSTRIAL SOCITIES
• During the pre-industrial society, the main economic
activity is food production carried out through the
utilization of human and animal labor. Particularly,
these societies are subdivided according to their level
of technology and their METHOD OF SUBSISTENCE –
the ways by which humans apply technology to meet
their own needs. These are the hunting and gathering
societies, pastoral societies, horticultural societies,
agricultural societies, and feudal societies.
 HUNTING AND
GATHERING
SOCIETY
• Nomadic, migrating in search
for food, water and shelter
• Invented the first tools,
including simple weapons
• Learned how to make use of
fire
• Lived in clans
• Created cave art

• (In the Philippine context:

Hydraulic Societies)
PASTORAL
SOCIETY
• Method of
subsistence:
pastoralism
• Depend on
domesticated herd
of animals to meet
their need for
food.
HORTICULTURAL
SOCIETY

• Method of
subsistence:
raising fruits and
vegetables
• Some practice
slash-and-burn
method or kaingin
system
AGRARIAN
SOCIETY
• Agricultural revolution –
technological changes
occurred leading to
extensive cultivation of
crops and raising of farm
animals.
• Larger populations
• Trade centers emerged
from greater surplus
• Degrees of social
stratification appeared.
 FEUDAL
SOCIETY
Based on ownership of land.
 INDUSTRIAL SOCIETIES
• New economic system – CAPITALISM -
emerged (15th-16th century) that replaced
feudalism
• Industrial societies which rely heavily on
machines powered by fuels in the production
of goods became dramatically increased and
efficient. The increased efficiency of
production of the industrial revolution
produced an even greater surplus than
before. Hence, the surplus was not just
agricultural goods but also manufactured
goods.
POST-INDUSTRIAL SOCIETIES
• More advanced societies, called post-
industrial societies, dominated by information,
services, and high technology, surfaced. These
hallmarks of these societies were beyond the
production of goods. Advanced industrial
societies are shifting toward an increase in
service sectors over manufacturing and
production. These service industries have
been used in government, research,
education, health, sales, law, and banking and
in almost all sectors of society.
 MODERN
SOCIETIES
• Products are sold
in markets in
large quantities.
• Cultural and
liberal growth
• Shift to money-
based economy
 Culture
UCSPOL Module 2: Lessons 2
Franz Sioson
Our Lady of Fatima University – QC (SHS)
 Culture
• Culture is "that complex whole which includes knowledge,
beliefs, arts, morals, laws, customs and any other
capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of
society." (Edward B. Tylor)

• The Cambridge English Dictionary states that culture is

"the way of life, especially the general customs and
beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular
time."
 What is not cultural?
• Even though culture is all about man, it has nothing to do
with his biological characteristics or his natural instincts.
In all, what culture is not is that it does not have anything
to do with nature. The tree, the animals, the sky, sun,
moon, stars are therefore not cultural. However, once man
thinks about nature and even does things to it, create or
alter it, improve or destroy it, that thought or act becomes
cultural.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF
CULTURE
• Culture is learned
• Culture is transmitted
• Culture is adaptive
• Culture is gratifying
• Culture is symbolic
 1. Culture is Learned
• The different habits, skills, values and knowledge are
acquired or learned in the course of a person’s life.
This is what we call enculturation, the acquisition of
knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values that enable
men to become active members of their communities.
QUESTION:
• How do we learn culture?
 How cultures is learned?
• Through language and symbols
• Formal, informal, and technical learning.
• Enculturation
• Acculturation
• Socialization
 2. Culture is Transmitted

• Culture within a social group is transmitted

to succeeding generations through
imitation, instruction and example.
Cultural transmission is the process
through which cultural elements, in the
form of attitudes, values, beliefs, and
behavioral scripts, are passed onto and
taught to individuals and groups
Examples of Cultural
Transmission

• Are the pictures

familiar?
• Can you identify them?

• What (else) Filipino

cultures do you think
are dying/endangered?
 3. Culture is adaptive
• All culture changes. Changes in the environment are
caused by inventions and discoveries. Man is capable of
adjusting to his environment. Adaptation is the process
of change in response to a new environment. It is one
component of acculturation, which relates to the change
in a group’s culture or the change in individual psychology
in response to a new environment or other factors.
Examples of Cultural
Adaptation and
Acculturation
4. Culture is gratifying

• . Culture provides satisfaction for

man’s biological and socio-cultural
needs, foods, clothing, and shelter
and for various relationships with
other individuals and groups.
Culture provides proper
opportunities for the satisfaction of
our needs and desires.
 5. Culture is Symbolic
• . Through culture man can communicate with
other people using language. Symbols must
be understood by all to be an effective tool of
communication; to allow people to develop
complex thoughts and to exchange those thoughts
with others. Language and other forms of
symbolic communication, like art, enable people
to create, explain, and record new ideas
and information.
MAIN TYPES OF CULTURE
 Comment on
our Chat
Window

• Provide
specific
examples
of Material
Cultures in
the
Philippines.
 ELEMENTS OF NON-MATERIAL
CULTURE
• Beliefs
• Values
• Norms
• Folkways
• Ideas
• Knowledge
 BELIEFS
• Beliefs are man’s perception
about the reality of things and
are shared ideas about how
the world and his
environment operate. They
are reflective of highly valued
feelings about the world in
which they live. Beliefs are
influenced by emotions,
attitudes, values, ideology,
and religion.
 VALUES
• Values refer to the broad
preferences of person on
the appropriate courses
of action or decisions he
has to take. Values are a
reflection of a person’s
sense of right and wrong.
A person’s values
sociologically influence
his attitudes and
behavior.
 NORMS
• Norms are society’s
standard of
morality, conduct,
propriety, ethics,
and legality. Norms
vary according to age,
gender, religion,
politics, economics,
ethnicity, or race of
the group.
 • Folkways are fairly weak
FOLKWAYS forms of norms, whose
violation is generally not
considered serious
within a particular
culture. They are the
habits, customs, and
repetitive patterns of
behavior. (No formal
punishment, but
disapproval from others)
 IDEAS
• Ideas comprise
man’s concepts of
his physical,
social and cultural
world as
manifested in
people’s beliefs
and values.
 KNOWLEDGE
• Knowledge can
natural,
supernatural,
magical or
technical. These are
the body of facts
and beliefs that
people accumulate
over time.
PERSPECTIVES/APPROACHES IN THE
STUDY OF CULTURE AND SOCIETY

• Symbolic Interactionism
• Functionalism
• Conflict Theory
• Dramaturgical Perspective
• Ethnomethodology
 SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM
• Symbolic interactionism is a theoretical perspective
that examines the way participants in the socialization
choose and agree on the meaning of symbols. This
perspective holds that humans are symbol-manipulating
and are capable of creative behavior.
• FOR FURTHER READINGS:
• https://www.simplypsychology.org/symbolic-interaction-theory.html
• https://www.thoughtco.com/symbolic-interaction-theory-3026633
 FUNCTIONALISM

• presupposes that every aspect of society is

interdependent and contributes to the total
functioning of society. To The government,
the school and the family are significant
social institutions which proper functioning
would make life in the society meaningful and
productive.
 CONFLICT THEORY
• Conflict is another theoretical perspective, which
originated primarily out of Karl Marx's writings on class
struggles, presents society in a different light than do the
functionalist and symbolic interactionist perspectives.
Conflict theorists note that unequal groups usually have
conflicting values and agendas, causing them to compete
against one another. This constant competition between
groups forms the basis for the ever‐changing nature of
society.
DRAMATURGICAL
PERSPECTIVE
• Dramaturgical
perspective is an
interactionist
perspective that
analyzes human
behavior in much the
same way that a
person would analyze
the presentation of a
play to the audience.
 ETHNOMETHODOLOGY
• Ethnomethodology is a socio-cultural perspective which
emphasizes the process of interaction that uses
interpersonal techniques to create situational
impressions and the importance of perceptions of
consensus among actors.
• Examples:
• “How are you?”
• High Five sign
Aspects of Culture
UCSPOL Module 2: Lessons 3
Franz Sioson
Our Lady of Fatima University – QC (SHS)
 Aspects of Culture
• Art
• Language
• Food
• Government
• Religion
• Education
 ART
• Art is one aspect of culture that includes the expression or application
of human creative skill and imagination. The arts exemplify human
expression influenced by culture and conversely may change culture.
The arts are a vivid manifestation of the person’s creative instinct.
Major components of the arts include literary arts, performing arts,
culinary arts, media arts, and visual arts.
• Example:
• Art and Revolutions/ resistance
• Art as reflection of social reality: songs, tattoos, etc.
 LANGUAGE
• Another aspect of culture is language, a system of
communication used by a particular society. It is the
most important tool of verbal communication and it is
the area where cultural differences play its role. All
countries have different languages. In order to have a
better understanding of different cultures it is
required to have knowledge of their languages as well.
• EX: English, Language Barriers
 FOOD
• Another significant aspect of culture is food. Food is
any substance consumed to provide nutritional
support for the body. It is one of the best ways to
truly experience local culture. Food is a huge deal
when it comes to culture. Nearly every culture has its
own food, and its own customs associated with eating
food.
• “The best way to know culture is through food”
 GOVERNMENT
• Another prominent aspect of culture is government which
refers to the aggregate of persons or groups of persons
exercising control and authority in the society. In most of the
world's countries, national power and authority are allocated to
various individuals and groups through politics, the science of
state and government. Through politics, government leaders
are elected, appointed, or installed by armed force.
Governments have the power to make, interpret, and enforce
the rules and decisions that determine how countries are run.
A distinguishing aspect of culture is the clothing or costume.
Costume is the distinctive style of dress of an individual or
group that reflects their class, gender, profession, ethnicity, or
nationality. The amount and type of clothing worn depends on
physical, social and geographic considerations. Some clothing
types can be gender specific.
• In short, government/ politics legitimizes culture and vice versa.
 RELIGION
• Another particular aspect of culture is religion, a unified
system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things.
Its structural features include a body of ideas, beliefs,
doctrines, rituals, and ceremonies. In the contemporary,
religions are rationalized and systematized theologies and
creeds. Religion can be explained as a set of beliefs
concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe
usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and
often containing a moral code governing the conduct of
human affairs.
 EDUCATION
• Education, the process of teaching or learning, is
oftentimes associated with a place or a building where
boys and girls go almost every day carrying books,
notebooks in order to attend classes and learn from the
teachers. But such definition is limited. Sociologically,
education is a social process wherein an individual is
socialized and learns culture.
• Formal and Informal
• Enculturation and Acculturation
ETHNOCENTRIS
M AND
RELATIVISM
UCSPOL Module 2: Lessons 4
Franz Sioson
Our Lady of Fatima University – QC (SHS)
 PRIMARY CAUSES OF CULTURAL
SIMILARITIES
• BIOLOGICAL SIMILARITIES
• NECESSARY PREREQUISITES FOR SOCIAL BEING
• PSYCHIC UNITY OF MANKIND
• GEOGRAPHICAL ENVIRONMENT
A. BIOLOGICAL SIMILARITIES

• This means that all people in

the world have the same
biological needs, namely
food, clothing, shelter, and
health care.
 B. NECESSARY PREREQUISITES
FOR SOCIAL BEING
• Society must fulfil some requirements
in order to function, such as replacing
members, teaching new members to
participate, and the need to have
participation in production and
distribution.
 C. PHYSICAL UNITY OF
MANKIND
•All human beings are alike
in having similar ranges of
emotion – the need for love,
security, and language.
 D. GEOGRAPHICAL
ENVIRONMENT
• The geographical environment is
characterized by certain limitations
such as limited food, limited source
of energy, and other delimiting
factors of the people’s environment.
 FACTORS ATTRIBUTED TO
CULTURAL DIVERSITY
• Though men all over the world have the same
biological needs, they differ in ways in meeting
them. Each culture adapts to its environment.
• b. Differences in geographical characteristics
like climate, topography, or soil condition.
• c. The absence or presence of natural resources.
 ORIENTATIONS IN VIEWING
OTHER CULTURES
• ETHNOCENTRISM
• CULTURAL RELATIVISM
 ETHNOCENTRISM
• A feeling of superiority towards one’s own group over other groups.
• This one-sided vision often results in failing to adequately understand
cultures that are different from one’s own, and in value judgments of
preference and thought of superiority of one’s in-group. Thus,
ethnocentrism, the extreme preferential feeling which the individual has
for his own group; that one’s group is more important than any other.
Ultimately, ethnocentrism is an expression of group solidarity with
antagonism towards outside groups. In fact, ethnocentrism is linked to
multiple forms of dogmatism and prejudice, including regionalism,
nationalism, racism, and even sexism and religious discrimination.
 CULTURAL RELATIVISM
• A relatively neutral cultural perspective is Cultural
relativism. This is the principle of regarding the beliefs,
values, and practices of a culture from the viewpoint of
that culture itself. In sociology, the principle is sometimes
practiced to avoid cultural bias, as well as to avoid looking
with arrogance another culture by the standards of one's
own culture. For this reason, cultural relativism has been
considered an attempt to avoid ethnocentrism. Cultural
relativism is related to but often distinguished from moral
relativism, the view that morality is relative to a standard,
especially a cultural standard.
 WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO
PRESERVE OUR FILIPINO CULTURE?
 IMPORTANCE OF PRESERVING
OUR FILIPINO CULTURE
• True Filipino identity and culture will last
• Technological advancements endangered cultures
• National pride
• Tourism and economy
• Strong international influences (e.g KPOP)
• There is no harm in appreciating and practicing
other country’s culture once in a while. What is
harmful and detrimental to our culture is when we
cast our own culture and totally embrace another.
Conversely, any feeling of superiority of our own
culture and disgust of other’s culture would not
promote a healthy and a vibrant international
community.