By Rojina Kandel
According to Wikipedia culture is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities and habits of the individuals in these groups. Culture is often originated from or attributed to a specific region or location. Humans acquire culture through the learning processes of enculturation and socialization, which is shown by the diversity of cultures across societies.
Culture is an integral part of human life, and its significance may be observed from several perspectives: as a powerful means for people to adapt to the environment they have to live in, as a crucial point for people to organize their lives and to follow the already established norm; and as a vital ability to comprehend and interpret people and events around. Haviland, Walrath, and Prins (2007) admit that, “a culture is essentially a maintenance system to ensure the continued well-being of a group of people” (p.40) and underline its significance due to the possibility of survival in society. In fact, culture is that integral issue that makes human life possible because humans are able to comprehend, define and realize what and why is required. “People are born with a propensity to learn the knowledge and behaviors of the group they were born into from observation, interaction, and communication with members of that group” (Peoples and Bailey, 2008, p. 36), this is why these very ways will be crucial considering the role of culture in human life.
Usually, culture exists in a stable form that allows people to rely on the same grounds and requirements to adapt to the necessary environment. Many anthropologists admit that culture is a very significant point for people to survive in this world, it’s not a surprise that they regard adaptation as one of the most essential ways of how culture influences human life (Peoples and Bailey, 2008). The next strong way how culture may influence human life is its ability to organize properly the relations between people and the norms according to which these people have to live. “Human beings, in being born, are- uniquely among living creatures-cast into the world of culture” (Richardson, 2001, p.1). Humans belonging to one concrete group is an inherent feature that can hardly be avoided, so people have to organize their lives, interests, and duties in accordance with the norms set by the culture.
This way of cultural influence on human life implies all those values, expectations, and relations which have to be used by an individual in order to communicate, cooperate, and properly express personal thoughts and ideas. With the help of cultural awareness, people realize what actions are acceptable in this society and what actions have to be avoided; people learn how to develop relations with relatives, friends and strangers; and finally, people understand what steps have to be taken to achieve the purpose set.
It’s a well-known fact that culture is the only responsible item that helps people perceive and analyze the events which happen to them. In other words, “Culture provides a filter or screen that affects how we perceive the world through our senses” (Peoples and Bailey, 2008, p.36). Generally, culture should be regarded as “an integral composed of partly autonomous, partly coordinated institutions” (Valsiner, 2000).
Hence, it can be said that culture has a great impact on human life cause; culture is a powerful and essential means used by people to be adapted to surroundings to interpret personal understanding of this world, and to organize personal thoughts and actions.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect People’s Review’s editorial stance.
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