Cantor, Mauricio, and Hal Whitehead about culture

When it comes to the lives of each and every person, the subject of culture is very important. This is due to the fact that a person’s culture can reveal a lot about them. We may fully comprehend a person from all of their distinctive views thanks to the culture. Therefore, it is possible to think of culture as some of the social norms that exist in modern society. They might also be described as the social behaviors that people in a certain area display. Because of this, the idea of culture is one of tremendous importance and centrality in the field of anthropology as a whole. Culture therefore forms the main range of some of the phenomena that are realized as a result of learning the social behavior of any individual who is staying in the societies. When analyzing the culture of any individual, one will have to consider some of the universals of culture. This will encompass things to do with behavioral aspect of human beings. Issues such as language, kinship, arts, music, rituals, marriage, cooking, shelter personality and gender roles will be included under this comprehensive category (Barajas-Gonzalez, Gabriela and Jeanne 123). These things are evidently found in almost all the societies which consist of human beings.

Language/ communication

As an American with some Irish origin, I tend to fully understand both of these two languages. I am able to use them to send my desired message without any problem. Our family members are very fluent when it comes to speaking in English as one of the best language to use so far. Apart from speaking fluent English, we have also had the chance to know how to speak Gaelic. This is the official language that is spoken by those who come from Ireland. Each and everyone in the family understand ninety percent of English and can speak it fluently. We also conduct our daily communication in English despite the fact that some members such as my mother prefers to speak in Gaelic. Most of the people who are around us also speak much English and that makes communication to be much easier (Gustavo et al., 54)

Our culture also provides for some special language for those who have difficulties in speaking. There is the use of the American Sign Language which is a language on its own. Unlike the other languages that we use as Irish and English, the American Sign Language is usually seen as a visual language that the normal person cannot just use if they are communicating to each other. The family provides for this kind of language since there are some people who will not speak in the normal way. These family members will have to use the shape of their hands, the motion and direction of the hands. In most cases, they usually prefer facial expressions and even body language for them to fully understand each other something which is significant when two or more people of the same type are speaking to each other.

Family Personality

The personality or character of an individual will largely depend on the surrounding environment. One of the key things that I have seen in the family is the fact that people have been trained to be independent. This is a culture that has been manifested in the lives of the family members. Each and everyone needs to have that secretive lifestyle and wants to be on their own. So we grow up knowing that this is the goal that will matter in life. In most cases, this is seen in the spirit of our ancestral spirit who believed that each and everyone must have that desired freedom. They believe that if they were able to fight for their freedom from the British therefore, there is nothing that they cannot do.

The family also has a very strong belief on working hard. They believe that nothing comes on a silver plate and that one must strive and fight for everything that is available. This is a culture that has greatly entered into the blood of every family member. We believe in hard work for very huge rewards at the end of the day. Almost everyone knows and understands that the only thing that can be equals to success is working hard and smart. Despite the fact that many of us prefers to spend most of our times with the family, we still have the taste for working extremely hard. This forms the best part of our culture and it is usually a motivation after we have earned whatever we had desired to have in our lives.

Gender Roles

Our family culture is more based on the issue of division of labor. This means that our responsibilities will be done according to the gender of a person. There are tasks that the family designs for the women. Others are strictly allocated for the male counterparts. This is how simple the family culture has divided the lines of duty. Some of the major duties that are there are usually so much related to agriculture. Our family prioritizes that most of the farm productions are to be carried out by the males who have grown to an age where they can now take responsibility (Miguelina et al., 26). However, not all the agricultural related tasks are performed by the male. There are some things that my mother and sisters can do. Marketing of the produces is usually carried out by the female counterparts. They usually search for clients to sell the domestic household products to. These will include the products such as honey and even eggs.

Our neighbors have also formed a very important part of this culture. They are able to help us with labor or even the desired equipment during a given season. This tie has been contributed by the religion, marriage ties, church issues and even political perceptions. Even though some of the blue-collar jobs were left for us males to handle, the situation has greatly changed. We can now share our offices with our female counterparts. This is aided by the fact that it is our culture that what a man can do then a woman can do better. This has really encouraged the females who think that they are therefore also able to do the same. The family also does not believe in permanently giving employment to most of the female gender. They will therefore be employed on seasonal basis. The kind of wages that they get is also different from that of the males. They are usually awarded at a rate lower than that of the males (George et al., 60)

Economic system

The economic system of my family has turned out to be based on the family economy. This is because it has become a culture that the family is used as an economic unit. This means that we concentrate on much production just for our own benefits. Most of the production that is there is just for the utilization by the members of the family. Most of the agricultural products that we deal in are just for consumption by the family members. This is because the whole processes will take place within this family. The size of farm that we cultivate is very small and can only accommodate consumption rather than disposal into the market. What is to be produced is as a result of the decision by our parents who were well conversant with the periods and the kind of product to be produced for the benefit of the households.

Religion

There are so many religions that one can fully subscribe to at any one point. However, my family is deeply rooted on the Christianity religion. All the members of the family attend to the Seventh Day Adventist Church with our worship day set to be on Saturdays. Everyone in the family is usually prepared for this day. In most cases, this is the day when we can have some full rest and off from our normal activities (Pezzella et al., 78). We believe in this culture and every force that comes with it. The family believes in the existence of one supernatural being that created the heavens and earth. We believe that there is God and His trinity. We believe in God the Son, the father and the Holy Spirit. The family also believes in the death of Jesus and baptism through emersion into water. We also believe in the core principles of our religion.

Political Aspect

Just like the external environment, the family must also be managed well. This means that there must be someone who will now head the family. As per our culture, things may be different at this time. This is because the family is managed in a strange. At the initial years, it was evident that the father was the head of the family. The culture has slightly changed since now in a one parent family, the leader becomes the parent who is available. However, if both parents are there then the father is the head of the family and will conform to all the political functions of the home. They will ensure that everyone in the house is heading in the correct direction.

Kinship ties

The family strongly recognizes the power of kinship ties. This is because we have the father EGO side and that of the mother. There is therefore no much distinction between these since there are also some other members of the family. We have the uncles, aunts, nieces, nephews and even the cousins in this same hierarchy (Rebecca, et al., 71). These are people who are strongly related by blood. Our family has that culture of classification which has provided for a term that is used to call a given person such as the brother of the father or the mother. The children must also stay protected at all times. The parents must ensure that they conduct everything in the appropriate manner.

Conclusion

In order to ensure that I have learnt my family and our culture well, I will have to consider some of these universals as seen above. They will enable me to fully understand my roots before I embark on my future. I will therefore consider language, personality, gender roles, family occupation which entails our economic system, kinship system, class, political influence and even our established religion.

Works cited

Barajas-Gonzalez, R. Gabriela, and Jeanne Brooks-Gunn. “Income, neighborhood stressors, and harsh parenting: Test of moderation by ethnicity, age, and gender.” Journal of family psychology 28.6 (2014): 855.

Carlo, Gustavo, et al. “Rural Latino/a Youth and Parents on the Northern Great Plains: Preliminary Findings from the Latino Youth Care Project (LYCP).” Rural Ethnic Minority Youth and Families in the United States. Springer International Publishing, 2016. 165-183.

Germán, Miguelina, et al. “An experimental test of the Bridges to High School intervention on harsh parenting and early age intercourse among Mexican American adolescents.” Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology 23.3 (2017): 362.

Holden, George W., et al. “Disciplinary practices, metaparenting, and the quality of parent-child relationships in African-American, Mexican-American, and European-American mothers.” International Journal of Behavioral Development (2017): 0165025416687414.

Pezzella, Frank S., Terence P. Thornberry, and Carolyn A. Smith. “Race socialization and parenting styles: links to delinquency for African American and White adolescents.” Youth violence and juvenile justice 14.4 (2016): 448-467.

White, Rebecca, et al. “Neighborhood Qualification of the Association Between Parenting and Problem Behavior Trajectories Among Mexican‐Origin Father-Adolescent Dyads.” Journal of Research on Adolescence 26.4 (2016): 927-946.