As a child there was a period of time when I believed I held a level of dominion over my younger brother. The unfinished portion of his dinner was mine the whole time, not just when he decided he couldn’t finish it. In some way he owed an allegiance to me as the guy who slept on the top bunk. This, to me, was a simple cultural reality – older brother, boss brother. On one occasion as we played cards with our cousins, I sat with one looming hand, open and deliberate, resting in my brother's corner of the table. This was an expression of my clear and honest belief that at any time my hand could be filled with anything of my brothers that I desired. When my older cousin accusatorially said to me, ‘what is that hand doing?’ My hand, and cultural beliefs suddenly curled back up into themselves for a moment of self assessment. The climate of thoughts and feelings within me were called into question. The internal cultural adjustment was complete one day when my brother bucked the established norm and ate my extra serve of dinner that was on his plate. I no longer owned my younger brother, in fact he was a person with his own internal culture too. When we think about the concept of culture it is primarily considered to be an element shared within communities. Clearly observed along racial lines, it can also be seen within a formalised group such as a sporting club, educational institution or business. Culture is informed by the shared beliefs and behaviours of multiple members within the group in question. There is another way to think about culture though, and that is the internal culture that we each set for ourselves. Not the internalised culture from our communities, although that certainly is relevant, and also distinct from the concept of our personal identity. There is a pattern of beliefs and behaviours which are purely our own - our own unique internal culture. A culture that informs and guides all of our choices and actions, whether we know about it or not. We can consider the concept of an internal culture by looking at; culture as a broad construct, the difference between identity and personal culture, and how shaping our culture may shape our life. Culture
In every group there are culturally accepted and encouraged ideas and behaviours; there are also culturally unaccepted actions and concepts. These ‘rules’ are not always written down or even spoken about, these are behaviours that exist because - it is what we do. When a sports person responds to individual praise with recognition of their team-mates or coaches - that is their cultural belief directing them. If people work in an office for more hours each week than their contract states - it is because the culture of the business suggests this is how it is done. When another new tattoo is celebrated and admired by friends - this is a cultural value confirming and solidifying its existence. The culture of a group is a composition of all of the behaviours, thoughts, beliefs and activities that exist within the sub-society. It is the what, why and how of the group.
The nature of cultural existence is that it is constantly changing, driven by the experience of individuals within and pressures from without. Exposure to new ideas, technologies and knowledge can force elements of life that are ‘true’ to suddenly become ‘untrue’. At a time when households had only a single phone line, it was culturally expected, as a young person, to speak to a friend’s parent prior to speaking to a friend. Now it would be culturally unusual to call someone’s parent to ask for that permission. In the late Roman republic women did not change their last name at their marriage. At other times in Western history they certainly did. Currently there may be a shift away from the practice again. As cultural ideas shift, so do actions.
Culture is the name we give to all the beliefs and behaviours within a group, and those elements are frequently in a state of flux. Therefore every action or behaviour enacted by an individual or group of people within a culture, can become part of that culture. Each action taken within a group, both reflects, and is the culture, unless the cultural structures reject those behaviours and beliefs. If a teacher in a classroom yells and points their finger at students, then the culture of that classroom is yelling and pointing by the teacher. If the yelling teacher is made to stop yelling and pointing, then that behaviour is no longer culturally acceptable and representative. When people in a society believe a new idea that thin individuals are better than thick individuals, then the culture of that society reflects that change. If other people within the society challenge and argue that thin is not better than thick, then the culture does not shift to include the new idea and beliefs. Every unaddressed belief or action shifts the culture of a group to include that behaviour. Identity and individual culture The interesting idea is that while every person is part of multiple groups, and therefore multiple cultural environments, there may also be a unique individual culture that we each control. A person’s identity is who they are, how they see themselves, and the labels they put on themselves to make sense of their interaction with reality. An individual culture could be considered to be the beliefs and behaviours that both formulate and are expressed from that identity. For example the concept or belief that every challenge in life is also an opportunity, speaks to a culture of attempted optimism and active shifting of perspective. This culture leads to a person thinking ‘my identity is of a resilient and positive person’. Who we are as people is some complex construction of the beliefs and ideas that flow through the cultural environments we live in, and the internal concepts that are clear and bright within our minds. We perceive ourselves as a range of assembled characteristics. Those characteristics reflect the unique and individual cultural climate we have, knowingly or unknowingly, built for ourselves. Much like a cultural group, so too an individual culture:
Whether or not you call yourself patient, if you effectively manage trying, difficult or tiring situations then your personal culture values patience. If you used to eat meat, and now think it may not be the right move any more, then your culture will shift accordingly. If you treat another person with unkindness, and don’t address that behaviour, then your internal culture accepts treating people with unkindness. Shaping our culture Our individual cultures exist whether we recognise it or not. It is both the foundation of how we see the world, and the set of guidelines that show us how to interact with our world. Each person can take action to change their culture; to consider what seems right, to assimilate new ideas, technology and knowledge and make a choice about what kind of internal culture they would like to inhabit. We can all examine our beliefs and behaviours. If we decide that those actions and thoughts do not reflect our culture then they must be challenged. Through these processes we can shape our internal culture and build a climate that helps us to interact with the world in a way that seems most valuable. Your internal culture is happening anyway. Perhaps it is worth your conscious involvement.
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AuthorHigh school teacher Archives
September 2023
CategoriesThemes |