1. Taking my Cultural Arts class this semester has enhanced my understanding of the term culture by giving me broader knowledge of what all culture really contains. Now I realize that culture is not only about the dialects that people use in their language or the types of food they eat or even the types of music they listen to. It so much more and on a deeper level I have come to understand that culture is everything from how people believe they came to be, or how and why they are born including the idea of afterlife to how they live on earth in every sense of the word living. For example, in culture everything is interrelated so everything contained within a culture makes sense and flows as simple as water flows or the grass growing outside. It is literally everything that describes a group of people and its meaning can be very broad. So when culture is being describe it is very important to pay close attention to what part is being described because it could literally be anything.
2. It is interesting how much the ancients have shaped and influenced our belief systems and values. For example, the ancient Mayan’s created a complex calendar known as the Dresden Codex. It was developed from studying the stars and planets including mathematical calculations. These contributions were so advanced these allowed them to determine optimal times to plant and harvest crops and other life events with great success. Similarly, we use a calendar system based on the very same concepts including the concept of the year being 365 days. Interestingly, the Greeks also had great contributions to our systems. More recently, in terms of languages, many contain Latin derived words or meanings and these can be seen in much of the many languages across the world. Their love for learning about the cosmos and mathematical concepts has also helped with how we view and shape our worlds. For example, many architectural building from the Greeks were created using mathematical concepts and cosmic alignments. Buildings like banks and federal buildings are similarly built and reflect a since or order that people want in government or places where they have a monetary interest.
3. Reflecting back on times when I have been challenged to try something new like different foods from different cultures, I am sorry to say my immediate response was always negative. I was so closed minded to other foods that I did not realize what all I was missing out on. It was not until I was older and started living around more cultures that I began to get curious of what they ate and wondered how it tasted. Food is probably one of the biggest ways I experience other cultures. Growing up, respect was a big issue and so I always try to maintain this when dealing with other cultures. One of the biggest concepts that seem to define cultures is their religious beliefs. So I always try to find out what they believe in and determine the level of that belief and respect that as much as possible. It is so funny, for example, when I know people that are very religious I try my hardest to be on my best behavior! This includes no curse words, not that I curse a lot but I try extra hard to not let one slip. So almost unconsciously this flows into my experiences when dealing with other cultures.
4. The modern Yoruba of Nigeria seems to be similar to my culture in that they have a high regard to women. In my culture, women are considered the heart of the home and extremely important in bringing up the family. This also includes praying for the family’s needs and success. The Yoruba mothers are said to be very important as well and communicate with spirits. They also seem to regard family in a very high way. In my culture family is everything and the wisdom of our women and visions or dreams are highly regarded and taken with total seriousness. It is very common for my culture to pray as a group for something we want or believe in. Like the Yoruba, we are very tight nit and have a high regard of higher powers. Through praise and worship we feel we become closer to our God.
5. After studying different cultures I feel that the Hopi tribe from Arizona is most different from my culture. Interestingly, this tribe’s location is actually very close to me but still very different from what my culture believes. The Hopi people believe in, kachinas many spirits. They believe these spirits work in various ways through nature. Though they have a high regard for their family, what they worship and how is very different. It is evident the kachinas are the embodiment of their culture. In my culture, we believe in one God and God is the creator of all things. When we pray we pray to only God. Studying this culture and comparing it my own has taught me that as human we all tend to believe in a higher power and that there is something more intelligent than us.
6. Studying the universe contributes an array of constant information. As new discoveries are made it brings us closer to connecting a puzzle of ourselves, humanity. Many cultures connect the stars and planets with life on earth and live according to those constant factors. That intelligence in itself should be considered a huge step. As we learn more, hopefully this gives us insight to how we can better preserve our planet and create new ways of living as we grow in population. For example, if hard evidence was found showing we need to do something in particular to preserve our planet, this would enable us to fix the problem immediately without a lot of scrutiny from a lot different people. Global warming appears to really happening but it has never been taught to people enough to make them aware that it a serious phenomenon. It is almost as though it is a conspiracy.
