Art and Media as Aspects of Culture

Definition of Culture

Culture stands out as the collective manifestation of human intellectual achievement at any given point in time. It is like a mirror of the inner beliefs, ideals, aims, and spiritual state of a society. One society, however, can have more than one culture (competing cultures, for instance, or sub-cultures that conflict with one another in terms of values and ideals, art and expression). Thus, to speak of society as having one culture is to speak generally and broadly. Nonetheless, in generic terms, culture encompasses the beliefs, values, behaviors, and objects that together form a people's way of life. It is a bond in the sense that people of like-minded culture tend to come together, and it is a divider in the sense that people of different cultures tend to separate. For those united by it, they form a collective identity with shared experiences and histories.

Moreover, culture is both enduring and ever-changing, because people are always changing; inputs and outputs are changing, and so what is valued and professed is always changing too along with the expressions of these values and ideals. However, culture is enduring because the values and ideals are always existent; they transcend time and space; what the ancients valued and held as an ideal in one place can still be held as a value and an ideal thousands of years later in an entirely different place. Culture represents both a kind of moral compass for the individual and a kind of collective consciousness of society; it is responsible for shaping perceptions, for guiding interactions, and for helping to establish a sense of belonging and continuity.

My personal definition of culture aligns closely with this overall sense of what culture is and what it represents. To me, culture represents the beliefs and values that form the core principles and moral standards guiding individual behavior. It is something that speaks to the rules defining appropriate behavior within a given society. Culture reflects the movement of society—the direction in which it wants to go. A good culture shows a society moving in positive directions; a bad culture shows a society falling apart. Culture is transmitted in many ways—leaders, media, family, schools, churches—they all transmit it. It is also passed on from one generation to the next, and it is often expressed in various forms such as literature, language, art, politics, economics, religion, and rituals.

To gain more perspective, I asked two friends, Smith and Wesson, about their interpretations of culture. Smith views culture as "something that grows out of the past to shape the present—an idea about the way things were, are, and ought to be; something people can rally around, accept, or reject; it is up to them." This perspective emphasizes the unifying and also divisive aspects of culture, suggesting it as a social glue that binds individuals into communities or that breaks them apart.

Wesson, on the other hand, sees culture as "a mosaic, a picture full of a thousand parts, where each part represents a unique tradition, belief, or practice that collectively defines a society." He believes that culture is not one thing but many, influenced by both internal and external forces. Wesson's view highlights the diversity of culture, recognizing that it is not monolithic but rather very diverse.

In reflecting upon these definitions and my understanding of culture, I believe that four critical aspects define culture: traditions/customs, values/beliefs, language/communication, and arts/literature/media. Traditions and customs are the rituals and practices that define a society's way of life, from food and festivals to dress and dance. They offer a sense of identity and continuity, linking the past with the present. Values and beliefs are the core principles and moral standards that guide behavior and decision-making within a culture. They shape our worldview and influence how we interact with others and our environment. Language is a means of communication but also a key cultural component that shapes our thought processes and perceptions and what we feel. The idioms, narratives, jokes, and stories we tell are full of cultural significance.

Art, literature and media all represent the expressions of a culture's deepest thoughts and feelings, captured through various mediums such as music, painting, and writing. If we study them we can get really good insights into a culture's history, values, and aspirations.

To gain yet more perspective on this matter, I researched various definitions of culture online. One definition that resonated with me is from the renowned cultural anthropologist, Edward Tylor. He described culture in this way:

"Culture, or civilization, taken in its wide ethnographic sense, is that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society."