Cultures Different Cultures Are Very

Cultures Different cultures are very interesting to examine, not only for comparison purposes, but also for the way in which various traditional aspects of such cultures influenced individuality. Education for example would influence a person's future hopes and expectations, whereas a lack of opportunity may cause a person to feel trapped and unhappy in a life that was imposed rather than chosen. The two cultures that I am to examine here include the Japanese and the ancient Greek culture.

Ancient Greece According to Fisher and Harlan, men, women and children all had specific roles in ancient Greece. The man was for example the head of the family and the house. Much like the traditional roles in Western society today, most Greek men worked during the day. Their work mostly constituted business or farming. At home, men received a great amount of respect. He had a particular room in the house where he took his dinners with entertainment, while women and children had their food in another room.

Men had the most responsibility in Greece and were therefore considered most important in Greece. Women in ancient Greece spent a lot of time in the home, not being allowed to go to the Olympics, the marketplace, or the city streets. Their most important roles included having children, running the household, and managing slaves, if they had them. Poor women did the house work themselves. Peasant women were responsible for the work in the fields. Gender roles were embedded since childhood in ancient Greece.

Boys were regarded as more important than girls, and received formal education from the age of 6. A healthy mind and body were important for boys, and promoted by participating in a variety of sports. They began to train for their future jobs at 16. Those who wanted to join the army however began their training at 7. Soldiers entered the army at 20. Popular jobs for boys included business and Olympic athletes. Boys were expected to have a healthy mind and body.

They were taught to have healthy bodies by participating in gymnastics -- this included wrestling, running, jumping, and throwing the javelin. At age 16, boys began to train for their future jobs. If they wanted to be in the army, they would have started training at age 7 and entered the army at age 20. Other popular jobs were those of businessmen and Olympic athletes. An interesting aspect of ancient Greece was its various states, each with its own specific version of education and tradition.

Sparta for example considered war as the most important aspect of education. While reading and writing were part of education, these were far subordinate to physical excellence (Ellie Crystal). Also interesting is the fact that this training included both boys and girls, with men and women far less segregated here than in many of the other Greek states. In most Greek states, girls were taught household tasks and how to run a home.

Specifically, they learned to cook, clean and weave, as well as secret songs and dances for religious festivals. In rare cases, mothers taught their daughters reading and writing. At 15, girls were expected to marry men their fathers chose for them. Interestingly, this was only the fate of wealthier girls. Peasant girls chose their own husbands when working in the fields (Fisher and Harlan). Japan According to Tomoko Shimoda, the traditional Japanese family is regarded as very important, also with specific roles for women, men and children.

Although Western influence has standardized education and emancipated women, they are still generally regarded as mostly active and highly important in the household. Women maintain the family finances and care for the children, while the role of men is to be engaged in work, which mostly constituted the family business. Both girls and boys are educated, although boys are steered towards taking over the family business while girls are taught housekeeping and accounting skills. In the past, marriages were generally arranged, like in ancient Greece.

This is no longer the case, but a strong commitment to family is still regarded as extremely important. Effect of Individual Personality and Development Both the Greek and Japanese system appear to dictate somewhat rigid roles for both males and females. This would probably have some effect upon future dreams and expectations. Young people are told the limits of what they are to do. In the Greek culture, it seems that boys had considerably more choice than girls. They had several career opportunities to choose from.

Girls may grow up to resent the men in their households for being revered as all important, and for having much more freedom than they did. This is particularly so if they were as intelligent as the.