Culture Part 2

Date: 6 February 2009 (06.02.2009)

Day: Friday

Time: 2.00 p.m. - 5.00 p.m.

Terms of today's lesson on Culture:

1. Ethnic Identity- The relationship that exists between an individual with whom the individual believes he or she has common ancestry based on shared individual characteristics and so on.

2. Enculturation- The process by which an individual learns the traditional content of a culture and assimilates its practices and values.

3. Acculturation- The modification of the culture of a group or individual as a result of contact with a different culture.

We may wonder why we are learning all these terms? Do we apply or practice any of these terms in reality? Our group believe these terms encapsulates what actually happen to us in our everyday lives without us being aware of it unless we go through a thought process of what culture is all about.

Some of us pray to a Supreme Being every morning while some go to the temple or mosques or shrines. This could be due to their beliefs or upbringing. Consciously or unconsciously our beliefs do define or modify our cultural practices. For instance a Chinese of Christian, Buddhist or Taoists beliefs will definitely assimilates these cultural practices differently as in enculturation.

We also assimilate other people's culture and this is fairly common since we live in a multi-racial country. For instance, the Chinese believe that in the Hungry Ghost month, they should stay home at night to avoid offending any ghosts that are wandering on the street. Some of the Indians also believe in this as well. Giving red packets or “ang pow” to the children during Chinese New Year is one of the Chinese cultural practice. However today not only the Malays give green packets during Hari Raya but the Indians also give purple packets during Deepavali. Both the Malays and Indians modify the Chinese cultural practice of giving red packets. This is acculturation in its best form.

Sometimes, we wonder why we have to learn other people cultures besides our own culture. One of the reason is to avoid misunderstandings between the races. If we know what are the do’s and don'ts of a particular race, conflicts that may arise might be avoided. To some extent, cultural issues are very sensitive. Therefore, we have to learn to accept and understand other cultures' sensitivities to avoid any conflicts that can affect the peace and harmony in our country. Some of the culture may seem ridiculous or irrelevant but we must not make fun of them. There is a story behind every cultural practices. These stories may be real or may be a myth but that is not for us to judge. Cultures exist today and we have to respect all cultures as something that is meaningful and a part of a person's ethnic identity.