American Culture Essays (Examples)

American Culture

America is the land of contradictions: fast-food restaurants with low-carb menus; prefabricated pizza parlors next to organic juice stands; "Trading Spouses" and "Trading Spaces." With an income disparity as large as most third-world nations, the United States has clearly become a land of contrasts. Nowhere was this contrast as clearly visible as in the last presidential election. Perhaps more than any other in recent history, the 2004 results elucidated the currently conflicted character of the nation: America is divided into two camps: the red and the blue. During the election, news stations broadcasted what many citizens already knew: the country is divided, and these divisions characterize American culture. Rural America is almost uniformly politically conservative and Christian, at least according to the ways people in "red" states voted. More homogenous than our urban centers, rural America demonstrates a view of American culture that conflicts sharply from what we…

American culture is the result of different social forces mixed together to create something unique: a society which is based on impermanence and change, always looking to the future for something better. There is always something better, something that will help create the perfect society just around the corner, about to hit the market. Because of this view that the future will be better than the present, Americans are rarely content with what the present has to offer. People are willing to sacrifice what they have now for the promise of a better future. This causes people to become fixated with the future at the expense of the present. In short, American culture is in a constant state of dissatisfaction, always seeking something better and never realizing how good things are right now.

endell Berry, in his 1977 book The Unsettling of America described how he viewed American society. He…

Wendell Berry, in his 1977 book The Unsettling of America described how he viewed American society. He found that American society was the result of a mix of different social forces which have created a society where average Americans are detached from their home, work, and geography so they turn to technology to create a better future. Berry claimed that mankind has made himself the arbiter of all things, and therefore is able to shape the future to his liking. This idea is at the very heart of American culture, from the earliest days Americans have always felt the need to create something new out of what they saw as untamed wilderness. Because the United States of America started from nothing, everything had to be created. This gave birth to two ideals which have become the basis of American society: Americans can built the future and the future will be better than the present.

But these ideals come with an unexpected paradox, because Americans can make a future which is better than the present, no one is satisfied with the way things are, they always want something better, they always long for that next better thing. The future becomes the goal and the present becomes just something Americans have to get through so they reach the future. This creates a certain amount of impermanence in American society. Because the future will be better, whatever needs to be done, however destructive, can be justified in order to create the future. In this way Americans are destroying the future in order to create the future, thereby creating a never ending journey toward a future that is impossible to achieve. American culture risks being in a constant state of transition, never achieving the goal of permanence, but always moving toward a future that is just out of reach.

The result of this paradoxical society is what George Will described in his article Comfort as "social hypochondria:" a society which is completely dissatisfied with the state of their being, even though it is better than anything that has come before. And he is right, Americans are constantly complaining about the inadequacies and injustices of a society that is wealthier and freer than ever before in human history. But because Americans are fixated on the future and how much better it will be, they must find "wrongs" in the present to "fix," no matter how small or insignificant. And Americans are helped along in their hypochondria by the intellectuals, lawyers, politicians, and media who all profit from the wrongs in society that must be "fixed." American society is change, but if Americans do not decide what they want to change into, the future will never be attained. A vague concept of a brighter future cannot be all that America stands for, if Americans are ever to be rooted in their culture they need a focused goal, something concrete which can be attained.

American culture and the consumption (patterns) of American youth in television, film, and other entertainment venues

Mommy I want that!" hen discussing how American culture 'corrupts' children, the first words to come to mind are usually four letter words, or words pertaining to highly sexualized scenarios. Yet the culture of American capitalist cultural consumption is if anything more omnipresent and equally damaging to American children. It has created a legacy of conspicuous consumption of unnecessary consumer products over the course of the past, present, and future of American television and culture. It is likely to continue to affect the minds of children, creating a generation who believes they are what they buy, rather than what they believe -- "Generation Bling! Bling!" As the generation to come after Generations X and Y are often called. Identity is being reduced to a commodity rather than a real culture of art, literacy, and…

Works Cited

Rotunda, Ronald. "The FTC Report on Hollywood Entertainment." The Federalist Society. 2003.  http://www.fed-soc.org/Publications/practicegroupnewsletters/PG%20Links/rotunda.htm 

Hennessy, Patrick. "Burger Off TV ads: Fighting Flab in Children." May 31, 2004. SMH.  http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/05/30/1085855439912.html?from=storylhs

American Culture and the institutionalization of the 'sage' in the American political discourse -- are sages necessary?

According to the philosopher Plato, the ideal form of governance was not a raucous democracy, along the lines of the ancient Athenian state or polis. Nor would the ideal form of government take the guise of a modern republic, where popular sentiment was judiciously filtered through the wisdom of elected officials. Instead, under Plato's system of the rule of the philosopher-sage, the popular will and all disseminated knowledge by the media, would be controlled by oligarchs. Plato advocated not the rule of those not of high birth, but those who knew best, namely a tribe of philosopher kings or sages.

Frank Fischer and Brian Martin, in their recent analysis of the failures of the American political system do not offer as radical a solution as the ancient Greek. However, Frank Fischer's analysis does…

Works Cited

Fischer, Frank. Citizens, Experts and the Environment. Durham: Duke University Press, 2000.

Martin, Brian. Confronting the Experts, 1996.

American Culture and Values

American culture highly regards individuality compared to many other cultures. For this reason, it is more difficult to distinguish the dominant values, beliefs, and traditions of American life, because the lives of Americans differ so much, depending on their race, class and beliefs. Tracy Ore, John Langston Gwaltney and Lillian ubin each add a unique perspective to the values that dominate our culture.

Ore makes an excellent point when she says that Americans categorize each other by race and culture. In many cases, race and culture work closely to create significant distinctions among groups within a larger society.

Often, race plays a part in establishing separate cultural groups. In the United States, people are disturbed when they are unable to classify someone based on their race. If it is unclear what race someone is, they will ask one another, "What are you?" (Ore, p. 1)

According…

References

Gwaltney, John. Drylongso: A Self-Portrait of Black America. New York: The New York Press.

Ore, Tracey E. The Social Construction of Difference and Inequality: Race, Class, Gender and Sexuality. New York: Mayfield Publishing Company.

Rubin, Lillian B. Families on the Fault Line. Nee York: Harper Collins.

American Culture and Values

Food advertising is even worse, because while a parent might be able to avoid the toy store, in the grocery store he or she is subject to food masquerading as a toy. The only possible resistance is not taking the child shopping, which forces the parent to deprive the child of a parent-bonding experience where he or she could teach the child about budgeting and nutritional food.

The AAP study also notes that advertisers are aware that children and adolescents are more susceptible to advertisements for unnecessary goods, thus they are more often the targets of product placement ads ("Children, Adolescents, and Advertising,"AAP, 2006). Then, once consumption patterns are established early on in life, they can be difficult to eradicate. "By the time we reach adulthood, unhealthy food practices can be embedded in our subconscious mind and we must work hard to overcome these ingrained behaviors. Since rooting out bad…

Works Cited

Beder, Sharon. '"A Community View', Caring for Children in the Media Age."

Papers from a national conference, edited by John Squires and Tracy Newlands, New College Institute for Values Research. Sydney, 1998, pp. 101-111. "Children, Adolescents, and Advertising." 24 Sept 2007.  http://www.uow.edu.au/arts/sts/sbeder/children.html#RTFToC1 

Dora the Explorer Cereal." The Breakfast Bowl. Jun 2006. 24 Sept 2007.  http://breakfastbowl.blogspot.com/2006/06/dora-explorer-cereal.html 

Martin, a. (2007). "Kellogg to Phase Out Some Food Ads to Children."

Any other expression of love is considered to be abnormal and therefore not legally valid. In the past, interracial marriages were illegal because they did not conform to the national standard of legitimate love. Many of the normative behaviors we take for granted were at one time forbidden: such as women being able to vote or own businesses.

Although minorities have become more visible in American culture recently, a dominant culture is still assumed to be the correct one. Males are by default the norm so that doctors are sometimes called "female doctors." When we see an African-American or a Jewish comedian on television, that person plays up his or her ethnic identity in ways whites are not expected to do because being white is the norm.

A often feel that people like me who are Native American possibly experience the most outsider status of any other ethnic or cultural…

References

Wise, T. (2007). Op-Ed: Assimilation Blues: Immigration and the Dysfunctions of the Dominant Culture. Civil Rights. Retrieved Jan 31, 2009 at  http://www.civilrights.org/library/features/op-ed-assimilation-blues.html

Culture and the Ipod

American Culture and the IPod

Apple first introduced the iPod in October 2001, beginning what many would consider an enormous revolution in the music industry. While music had been previously made available on MP3 players, the iPod became the first product that was also linked to computer software designed to help consumers both manage and purchase files. In fact, by the end of 2001, consumers had the option of loading their entire music collection from compact discs into iTunes, and carrying up to 1000 song files on their iPod (Apple, 2011).

The iPod irrevocably changed the way we purchase, store, and listen to music. Prior to 2001, most consumers purchased and stored music on compact disks, but iTunes allowed anyone with a computer and CD drive to transfer all of these music files to their computers. iTunes also enabled users to organize music files, create playlists,…

References

Apple. 2011. The Complete History of the IPod. Web. October 25, 2011.

 http://www.apple.com/pr/products/ipodhistory/ 

Ian Paul. Apple's New iPods: What Critics Are Saying. PC World. 2010. Web. October 25, 2011

 http://www.pcworld.com/article/205002/apples_new_ipods_what_the_critics_are_saying.html

American Culture

American society is an amalgamation of diverse cultures, and American cultural norms and behaviors reflect a wide range of beliefs. Cultural standards in the United States can be fairly predictable, however. For example, when two friends greet each other, they will shake hands or hug, depending on the closeness of the friendship and the gender of the persons involved. Generally females are more prone to displays of physical affection in public such as hugging or kissing. Also, casual words of greeting such as, "Hi! How are you doing?" are common when friends greet each other. Strangers who meet for the first time will usually shake hands and smile at each other. Younger people use different slang and body language than their older counterparts but the basic rituals are the same.

In a grocery store check out line, sometimes people will avoid making eye contact or speaking to strangers.…

Our country is very young and may be compared with an adolescent who feels he is powerful and at the same time is unsure of himself because he is still a child. Then there are many immigrants from many countries, and on the whole people here do not remain situated in any one location for any great length of time; they move from place to place rather frequently, thereby not establishing roots and without a feeling of permanence and stability. Also, because of this country's great size and heterogeneous population, resulting in various kinds of customs, habits, and living conditions in general, tension and unrest are bound to grow, and friction and violent reactions, often of a criminal nature, frequently follow. No group is immune to the effects of such sociological phenomena." (p.18)

It is for this reason that while on the one hand our culture is powerful and influential,…

References

David Abrahamsen. The Psychology of Crime. Columbia University Press New York. 1960

Larry L. Naylor: Cultural Diversity in the United States. Bergin & Garvey. Place of Publication: Westport, CT. 1997

Richard Nelson Current: What Is an American? Abraham Lincoln and "Multiculturalism." Marquette University Press. Milwaukee, WI. 1993

It is important to keep progress as an enduring goal for culture and society because it keeps people more aware, more interested, and more interesting. Without goals of progress and technology, people have little to strive for, and that is not good for society or the individual. Progress is more than technology, it is progress in the values of society, and it may be here that progress has undergone change. I believe many aspects of society are no longer based on progress or positive growth, and that is seen in negative areas of society, such as lack of respect for others and the need to make money and achieve over all else.

For the most part, I do agree with many of the impressions and assessments of immigrants and experts. Americans do not understand much of other cultures and societies, and they often make generalizations or "arrogant" assumptions about other…

However, in addition to being part of the Americanization process, this has also sparked hostility and anti-American sentiments as well, for some Canadians who believe Canadian culture is being lost to the United States. Demonstrations in front of American enterprises, boycotts of American iconic products like Coca-Cola, and even vandalizing McDonald's outlets have all been a part of this effort to not succumb to Americanization.

Mechanisms Underlying America's Influence on Canada

There are several mechanisms underlying the Americanization of Canada, and thus affecting its political processes and outcomes. These, Craig, Douglas and Bennett state, are similar to the mechanisms involved in internationalization and globalization of consumption. Increasing foreign travel, to America, is one such mechanism. This increases direct Canadian exposure to American customs, lifestyles and mores. This mechanism has been in place for generations, with the expansion of railway systems being one of the first transportation improvements that facilitated easy…

Works Cited

"Canada: History." Encyclopedia. World News Digest. Facts On File News Services, n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2009. .

Canadian Industry Statistics (CIS).21 Sept. 2009. Canada Statistics. 11 Nov. 2009 .

Canadian International Merchandise Trade. Nov. 2008. Statistics Canada. 11 Nov. 2009. .

Canadian Tourism Performance 2006. 2007. Canadian Tourism Commission. 11 Nov. 2009 .

How is the white wedding (think of the dress and so much more) constructed in American Culture? What does it mean- what does this wedding symbolize? How does the construction of the wedding differ for men and women? For same sex couples?
The white wedding, and the significance of an elaborate wedding that symbolizes purity, is a relatively recent cultural development, but one which has spawned an entire industry. Even women who have liberated lives covet the image of innocence, of being a princess for a day, as suggested in the essay “The Trouble with Charlotte.” As many problematic products such as makeup and clothing have coopted the language of choice to be marketed to women who might lead independent career-driven lives, but who still long for the traditional symbolism of dependency. Women are sold a white wedding as a special day for themselves, as if the groom’s worthiness did…

Lewis, a. (2007). The American Culture of War. New York: outledge

Lewis offers the reader a wealth of strong research in the book, "The American Culture of War." The bulk of the book is dedicated to offering a critical look at American military policy and practices since 1945 stretching to the choices made in Iraq, up until 2005. In this book, Lewis offers his opinions and concerns about the All Volunteer Force and possible alternatives to this solution. Lewis opens the book by proposing and defining a term known as the "American Way of War" and uses this view as a means of accounting for the strange and bold choices that have been made in military strategy and methods in the last half a century. Lewis offers a historical account of each major and minor war that the U.S. has had involvement in during this time period, and he offers…

References

Lewis, A. (2007). The American Culture of War. New York: Routledge

global society is made up of many different cultures, ethnicities, religions, and languages. All of these differences are makes our world so vastly unique, yet it is also these same differences which unite us into one nation. In order to properly understand and learn from one another, it is often important to note some of these differences and similarities amongst cultures. The United States of America, in particular, is known as a melting pot with immigrants from all of the over the world. In 2008, there were approximately 1.7 million Filipino immigrants in the U.S. (Terrazas and Batalova). This made them the second largest immigrant group in the U.S. after Mexican immigrants (Terrazas and Batalova). With such a large emigrant population, it is crucial to distinguish some of the cultural similarities and differences of these U.S. emigrants, especially Filipino's. Both cultures are similar with regards to the relationships they maintain…

Van Campen, K.S., and Russell, S.T. (2010). Cultural differences in parenting practices: What

Asian-American families can teach us (Frances McClelland Institute for Children,

Youth, and Families ResearchLink, Vol. 2, No. 1). Tucson, AZ: The University of Arizona.

orks Cited

Baumgarten, Linda. (2002). hat Clothes Reveal: The Language of Clothing in Colonial and Federal America: The Colonial illiamsburg Collection. New Haven, CT: Yale University

Press.

Bilhartz, Terry D., and Elliott, Alan C. (2007). Currents in American History: A Brief History of the United States, Volume 1. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe.

Crunden, Robert Morse. (1996). A Brief History of American Culture. Armonk, NY: M.E.

Sharpe.

Fisher, John Hurt. (2001). "British and American, Continuity and Divergence" in the

Cambridge History of the English Language: English in North America, Eds. Hogg, Blake,

Algeo, Lass, and Burchfield. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Grigg, John a., and Mancall, Peter C. (2008). British Colonial America: People and Perspectives. estport, CT: ABC-CLIO.

Horsman, Reginald. (1981). Race and Manifest Destiny: The Origins of American Racial Anglo-

Saxonism. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Jandt, Fred Edmund (2007). An Introduction to Intercultural Communication: Identities in a Global Community.…

Works Cited

Baumgarten, Linda. (2002). What Clothes Reveal: The Language of Clothing in Colonial and Federal America: The Colonial Williamsburg Collection. New Haven, CT: Yale University

Press.

Bilhartz, Terry D., and Elliott, Alan C. (2007). Currents in American History: A Brief History of the United States, Volume 1. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe.

Crunden, Robert Morse. (1996). A Brief History of American Culture. Armonk, NY: M.E.

Ethnography

The 1990's were the bubble years, the dot.com era, or whatever euphemism suits to describe the booming years of Silicon Valley, all Street and Internet businesses. They were years that created millionaires literally overnight. Businesses that began in basements and garages by college kids, suddenly appeared on the trading boards of the Stock Market Exchange. It seemed that anything to do with computers turned to gold. American life became high-tech. Suddenly everyone had cell phones, from professionals to soccer moms and teenagers. And personal computers became a fixture in American homes. The Information Superhighway was up and running and Americans were encouraged, not only by advertisers, but even by the government to travel it. It was "American" to log-on and surf the eb. The computer world was the darling of all Street and the express train to wealth and happiness for the American public. Moreover, it was an era…

Works Cited

Chait, Michael. Dot-com Era Start-Ups Still Feeling Woes. September 20,  http://ecommerce.internet.com/news/news/article/0%2C%2C10375_1467101%2C00.html 

Oberberck, Steven. Fidelity Executive Looks Back on Dot-Com Crash at Salt

Lake City Lecture. Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News; 10/27/2001; Pp.

Kahn, Jeremy. What You Can Learn From the Dot-Com Crash.

Music on American Culture and Values

Over time, music has molded the American culture and its values in a variety of ways. In this text, I will highlight the various ways in which both music and radio have shaped American values and culture. In so doing, I will identify my favorite genre/type of music in an attempt to highlight the impact the music I listen to has had on American culture and social behavior.

How the American Culture and Its Values Has Been Shaped by Music and adio

In the words of Eldridge (2008), "by the close of the 1930s, twenty-eight million households (and seven million cars) boasted at least one radio set, with most tuned-in to a network or local station for an average of five hours a day." In that regard, it would be correct to point out that radio has played a critical role in the growth…

References

Bob & Hanger, J. (2012). The Silent Generation: 1925 -- 1945. Bloomington, IN: AuthorHouse.

Eldridge, D.N. (2008). American Culture in the 1930s. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.

Keith, M.C. (2008). Radio Cultures: The Sound Medium in American Life. New York, NY: Peter Lang Publishing, Inc.

values of American culture. Specifically, it will connect this theme with two or more of the following: American energy consumption and foreign policy. Many writers (American and foreign) have commented on the core values of American culture, using terms like "rugged individualism," "individual freedom," "self-reliance," "pioneer spirit" and "democracy." Do you see a theme here?

AMERICAN CULTURE

Americans have always been noted for their loved of individual freedoms and their self-reliance. This tradition began before the Revolutionary War, when America stood up for her rights as a colony of England. Americans have been called "rugged individualists" who embody a "pioneer spirit" because we demanded our rights then, and we continue to do so today in a wide variety of areas, and all you have to do is turn on the television or read a newspaper to see some of these core values which are exhibited every day in our culture.…

5). While divorce can lead to safety for children and adults caught in violent and abusive relationships, it can also lead to increased violence down the line. Studies indicate that children who grow up in abusive situations often tend to become abusive themselves as adults, and this means that abuse and violence could continue to grow in our culture as these children grow up and continue the ongoing cycle of abuse and violence.

eligion

Another bedrock of American culture is religion, and divorce goes against many religious teachings. The freedom to worship any religion we please is a foundation of the country and our culture, and religious worship tends to go down in divorced families. Fagan and ector continue, "eligious worship, which has been linked to health and happiness as well as longer marriages and better family life, is less prevalent in divorced families" (Fagan, and ector). This means that…

References

Butler, Ian, et al. Divorcing Children: Children's Experience of Their Parents' Divorce. London: Jessica Kingsley, 2003.

Cozort, Larry a. "Is the Tax Court Becoming a Divorce Court? The Answer Could Change How the Innocent Spouse Rules Are Interpreted." Journal of Accountancy 195.2 (2003): 35+.

Doherty, William J., et al. "Why Marriage Matters: Twenty-One Conclusions from the Social Sciences." New York: Institute for American Values, 2002.

Editors. "Divorce Statistics." Divorce Magazine. 2005. 5 Nov. 2008. http://www.divorcemag.com/statistics/statsUS.shtml

Jazz dance is an integral part of American history. The various types of jazz dance all come from a fusion of African and European traditions, which is why jazz dance symbolizes American culture itself. According to Tilton's film Jazz Dance, jazz dance first evolved in the Deep South and spread as far as Europe before returning home to America. Jazz dance is not monolithic, and it is important to recognize the differences between types of dancing such as tap and swing in order to understand the contexts in which the dances were or are used. For example, some dances became popular in theater, while others were more comedic. Jazz dance might not seem to have a political or even an economic dimension, but it certainly does. The impact of jazz dance on American society has been felt on almost every dimension including political, economic, and social realms. In particular, jazz…

References

Hill, Constance Valis. Tap Dancing America. New York: Oxford University Press, 2010.

Nalett, Jacqueline "Jazz Dance History." Retrieved online:  https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&ved=0CEcQFjAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.uh.edu%2Fclass%2Ftheatre-and-dance%2F_docs%2Fnalett%2FJACQUELINENALETTJazzDanceHistory2.doc&ei=6F2AUtW0C8aG3AXtpIC4BA&usg=AFQjCNHhplX8I-J6Tc2cChANwl32kdS0oQ&sig2=SCTcAFKh_ZPTxob_htvq6Q&bvm=bv.56146854,d.b2I 

Stearns, Marshall and Stearns, Jean. Jazz Dance: The Story of American Vernacular Dance. Da Capo, 1994.

Tilton, Roger. Jazz Dance. [Feature Film]. 1954. Retrieved online:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-DPiVVQJlY

Chicano/Mexican Culture History In the United States: Conflict and Assimilation in the Contemporary American Society

American society is described by many historians and social scientists to be a "melting pot" of cultures, and pseudo-societies of people with different races and nationalities. This is because throughout the years that America had been established as a stable political and economic society, a sudden influx of migration occurred, resulting to the arrival of numerous displaced people from all over the world. The surge in immigration in the United States are caused by the two world wars, which happened in during the early 1920s (World War I) and 1940s (World War II).

In effect, there has been immigration of German Jews, Asian nationals, and even the country's nearest neighbors, Spanish-speaking nationals from Central and South America. Among these Spanish-speaking nationals were the Mexicans, who were forced to leave their country to find better opportunities…

Bibliography

Douglas, M. (1990). Thrown among strangers: The Making of Mexican culture in frontier California. Berkeley: University of California Press.

Saldivar, J. (1997). Border Matters: Remapping American Cultural Studies. Berkeley: University of California Press.

Salvador, R. (2003). Are Chicanos the same as Mexicans? Iowa State University. Available at http://www.public.iastate.edu/~rjsalvad/scmfaq/chicano.html.

Tatum, C. (2001). Chicano Popular Culture. University of Arizona Press. Available at  http://www.uapress.arizona.edu/samples/sam1406.htm .

Black Experience in American Culture

This is a paper that analyzes the black experience in American culture as presented by Hughes, Baldwin, Wright and Ellison. It has 20 sources in MLA format.

African-American authors have influenced American culture as they have come forward to present issues that the society would rather have forgotten. Authors such as ichard Wright alph Ellison, Langston Hughes and James Baldwin have come under fire as they have written about the racial and biased experiences throughout their life [Capetti, 2001] and through their narratives they have forged a link between the past, the present (themselves) and their future (the unborn generation).

These literary works are an effort on their part to prove to their nations that regardless of the perceived realities their existence and lives have valuable. The slave past some of these authors have had created a void in their lives that at times left…

Reference:

1] Sundquist, Eric J. who was Langston Hughes? Relevancy: 100; (Commentary) 12-01-1996

2] Buttitta, Anthony. "A Note on Contempo and Langston Hughes." London: Cunard, 1934. 141.

3] Langston Hughes on Scottsboro. College Literature, 10-01-1995, pp. 30(20). Vol. 22

4] Okafor-Newsum, Ikechukwu, of Dreams Deferred, Dead or Alive: African Perspectives on African-American Writers.. Vol. 29, Research in African Literatures, 03-22-1998, pp. 219(12).

Vietnamese American Culture

Cultural Phenomena of Vietnamese American Culture

The assessment of a patient can be critical to the nursing process. The culture phenomena that a nurse may face can be critical to a proper diagnosis in many cases as well as the overall quality of care. One of the most fundamental phenomena is communication, which includes language, but also includes social organizations, time, environmental control, and biological variation. These factors represent distinct phenomena that can be identified and various cultural barriers can be mitigated through training. Although each individual may be different, culture is a powerful force in one's life and can predict many individualistic tendencies.

Social Organization

The social organization in the Vietnamese American culture is different from the mainstream culture in several ways. One is example is that Asian-American patients in mainstream mental health systems have greater premature dropout rates, shorter duration of treatment, fewer positive outcomes,…

Works Cited

Fancher, T., Ton, H., Le Meyer, O., Ho, T., & Paternti, D. (2010). Discussing Depression with Vietnamese American Patients. Journal of Immigrant Minority Health, 263-266.

Hongyun, F., & Laudingham, M. (2012). Mental Health Consequences of International Migration for Vietnamese Americans and the Mediating Effects of Physical Health and Social Networks: Results From a Natural Experiment Approach. Demography, 393-424.

Smith, E., & Pham, C. (1996). Doing business in Vietnam: A cultural guide. Business Horizons', 1-47.

Jonathan Edwards Exemplifies American Culture in "Sinners in the Hand of an Angry God"

In his 18th century sermon, "Sinners in the Hand of an Angry God," the puritan preacher Jonathan Edwards make it clear that mere humans enjoy a brief corporeal existence only by virtue of a loving God who benevolently tolerates them. For instance, Edwards states, "There is nothing that keeps wicked men at any one moment out of hell, but the mere pleasure of God." In this context, American culture in the late 18th century can be regarded as being the result of the cumulative effects of Puritanism on the consciousness of the people who were trying to carve out a meaningful existence in the wilderness. One of the more interesting points made by Edwards, though, is just how fleeting this divine allowance is and how it can be revoked at any time if God so wills…

Works Cited

McMichael, George, and James S. Leonard, eds. Anthology of American Literature. 10th ed. Vol. 1. Boston: Longman, 2011. Print. [ISBN: 978-0205779390].

African-American people from a qualitative perspective. The literature review will provide a brief background on African-American people and leading health problems they face along with a brief inclusion of census data to create a general picture of health from the perspective of an African-American person. One African-American man was interviewed. His answers provide a means of generating a construct that will be used to draw conclusions for nursing practice and standard of care development.

African-American People: Literature Review

A website called: 'Dimensions of Culture', examines cultural patterns existent in many African-American communities. Those that recently immigrated from Africa show an even different culture compared to African-Americans that have lived in the United States for generations. One common cultural pattern experienced by African-Americans is the 'Black' Experience, which is diverse, representing a wide array of skin tones and backgrounds. The next is the social structure. The social structure often takes on…

MEDIA (MIS) EPSENTATIONS OF CHINESE-AmericanS

Culture

Media (Mis) epresentations of Chinese-Americans

Media (Mis) epresentations of Chinese-Americans

In the west, representations of people who are outside of the standard or norm, (white, middle & upper class, male) are not represented with accuracy. Chinese-Americans are one such group that doese not often receive an accurate or dynamically real representation of the spectrum of the culture or the people within it. Media representations in the west of Chinese-Americans are limited to a few stereotypes, generally. Some of those stereotypes include that all Chinese people practice and have mastered martial arts, and that all Chinese have exceptional intelligence in mathematics, sciences, and technology. Another media stereotype of the Chinese is that they are all short of stature, particularly poking fun at short men. Chinese men are often stereotypically represented as geeks or nerds -- exceptionally "book smart," but lacking in coolness and social skills.…

References:

Cheng, J., Hsieh, C., Talgo, S. (2012). Media Representations of Asians. University of Michigan, Web, Available from:  http://sitemaker.umich.edu/psy457_tizzle/home . 2013 March 04.

Kwak, A. (2004). Asian-Americans in the Television Media: Creating Incentive for Change. Boston College Third World Journal, 24(2), 395 -- 420.

Wo, E. (2012). Beyond the Color Line: Asian-American Representations in the Media. Claremont Colleges Scripps Senior Thesis, Paper 114, Available from:  http://scholarship.claremont.edu/scripps_theses/114 . 2013 March 06.

These films. Swing Vote (2008), The Queen (2006) ules of Engagement (2000) The Quiet American (2002) and Jarhead (2005) clearly support this hypothesis and build on the idea that art reflects life and life reflects art.

esources

Boggs, C. & Pollard, T. (2006) The Hollywood War Machine: U.S. Militarism and Popular Culture Boulder CO: Paradigm Publishers

Bellah, .N. Madsen, . Sullivan, W.M. Swidler, A. Tipton, S.M. (1991) Good Society

New York: andom House.

Fishman, J.M. Marvin, C. (March 2003) Portrayals of Violence and Group Difference in Newspaper Photographs: Nationalism and Media Journal of Communications

Gianos, P.L. (1999) Politics and Politicians in American Film. New York: Preager Publishing

Giglio, E. (2005) Here's Looking at You: Hollywood, Film & Politics. New York: Peter Lang Publishing.

Klenotic, J. (2007) Chapter 5 "Staying in the Moment: Hollywood, History, and the Politics of 9/11 Cinema." In Constructing America's War Culture, Conroy T. & Hanson, J.…

Resources

Boggs, C. & Pollard, T. (2006) The Hollywood War Machine: U.S. Militarism and Popular Culture Boulder CO: Paradigm Publishers

Bellah, R.N. Madsen, R. Sullivan, W.M. Swidler, A. Tipton, S.M. (1991) Good Society

New York: Random House.

Fishman, J.M. Marvin, C. (March 2003) Portrayals of Violence and Group Difference in Newspaper Photographs: Nationalism and Media Journal of Communications

criminal justice and American culture. Specifically it will discuss jail time served by Blacks, Hispanics and whites, and the lawyers who prosecute them. The statistics indicate that African-American men, especially between the ages of 25 to 29, are incarcerated at a higher rate than either Hispanics or whites. There are several factors that are associated with these statistics, including where these young men grow up, their income, and their education, among others. There is also the issue of racial profiling. This paper will look at these statistics and attempt to answer the question of why these young men serve more jail time than other American men do.

In most areas of violent and non-violent crime, African-American men are more represented in American prisons than any other race. Some people may feel African-Americans are more prone to crime and violence, but many studies point to several other factors in criminal activity.…

References

Editors. (2009). Demographic characteristics of persons convicted of felonies in State courts, by offense, 2004. Retrieved 21 May 2009 from the Bureau of Justice Statistics Web site:  http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/html/scscf04/tables/scs04201tab.htm .

Editors. (2009). Homicide trends in the United States. Retrieved 21 May 2009 from the Bureau of Justice Statistics Web site:  http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/homicide/race.htm .

Editors. (2009). Mean length of felony sentences imposed in State courts, by offense and race of felons, 2004. Retrieved 21 May 2009 from the Bureau of Justice Statistics Web site:  http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/html/scscf04/tables/scs04207tab.htm .

Goldman, D.S. (2004). The modern-day literacy test?: Felon disenfranchisement and race discrimination. Stanford Law Review, 57(2), 611+.

gambling/poker and culture. Poker, and gaming in general, permeate our culture today. The World Series of Poker is a huge event when even a decade ago it was barely known on a world scale, and poker players are the new "role models" for many in society. What does this say about our society and culture that reveres people whose only skill may be based on luck and a turn of the cards? It says a lot about our culture and what we worship, and that may be frightening to contemplate.

"The game [poker] exemplifies the worst aspects of capitalism that have made our country so great."

-- Walter Matthau

First, it is necessary to define poker. Poker is a card game, played in casinos for pleasure and hopefully profit. There are many different games of poker, from Texas hold 'em to Seven-card stud. Each game follows a different format, but…

References

Alvarez, A. The Biggest Game in Town. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books, 1983.

Chick, Garry. "Writing Culture Reliably: The Analysis of High-Concordance Codes." Ethnology 39.4 (2000): 365.

Editors. "Gamblers Anonymous." GamblersAnonymous.org. 2009. 24 Oct. 2009.

.

It is noticeable, however, that despite illustrating the image of 'good life' among American consumers, it seemed that these ads were catered only to white Americans, which are often depicted as belonging to the elite to middle social classes. Further analysis also showed that apart from the under representation of minorities in these ads, white American women were the 'staple' elements contained in an ad. Although some of the ads appropriately use a woman -- that is, usage of a woman to advertise a food product -- there were also instances in some ads, specifically car ads, wherein women seemed to be objectified. Car ads are classic examples of the objectification of women in advertisements, wherein oftentimes, association between the cars advertised and woman depicted are inevitably linked together, creating the impression that a car is a want that needs to be achieved, in the same way that the consumer…

Heitage Assessment: Indian, Chinese and Ameican Cultues

In using the heitage assessment tool, thee (3) cultues wee consideed and compaed: Indian (autho's cultue), Chinese and Ameican.

Indian

The autho's cultue is highly influenced by ual Indian cultue, as s/he was aised in India until s/he was 25 yeas old. Because of this late influence of Ameican cultue, my Indian cultue has emained stonge within me. This is eflected in the autho's lifestyle, which stictly adheed to taditions and values held impotant by the Indians. Raised a Catholic, the autho is actively involved in the Chuch and paticipates in activities like Bible eading and celebating eligious holidays. The autho's stong Catholic Indian identity is also eflected in he social cicle, which pimaily consisted of Indians shaing the same cultual identity as he and pacticing Catholics.

Howeve, when talking about health maintenance, the autho mixes the influence of Indian cultue with the…

references to documents in history." ICCROM Working Group 'Heritage and Society.' Available at:  http://cif.icomos.org/pdf_docs/Documents%20on%20line/Heritage%20definitions.pdf

merican popular culture has also infected our dietary choices although in my case, it has encouraged me to think much more critically about what I put into my body. Ironically, the poor suffer the worst in that regard because fast food restaurants are concentrated in their neighborhoods (

Kasser, 2003). Meanwhile, fast food is much more expensive than quality food and it only perpetuates obesity and diabetes. I have sworn off all merican fast food, largely because of my continual exposure to its effects on those who eat it regularly. I cringe to think that people still eat McDonald's, especially knowing how much fat, sodium, and artificial flavorings are in their imitation of real food. The mass consumption of meat is also destroying the environment. Knowing what I do about fast food has turned me off to it completely and the fact that merican popular culture pushes it so hard…

American popular culture has also infected our dietary choices although in my case, it has encouraged me to think much more critically about what I put into my body. Ironically, the poor suffer the worst in that regard because fast food restaurants are concentrated in their neighborhoods (

Kasser, 2003). Meanwhile, fast food is much more expensive than quality food and it only perpetuates obesity and diabetes. I have sworn off all American fast food, largely because of my continual exposure to its effects on those who eat it regularly. I cringe to think that people still eat McDonald's, especially knowing how much fat, sodium, and artificial flavorings are in their imitation of real food. The mass consumption of meat is also destroying the environment. Knowing what I do about fast food has turned me off to it completely and the fact that American popular culture pushes it so hard has influenced that decision on my part. It is the exact opposite of the way that corporate marketing departments want me to react. Rather than sell me on the latest bun-free chicken burger that uses slabs of pre-fabricated and reconstituted chicken, KFC has only ensured that I will never patronize any of their "restaurants" ever again. American popular dietary culture has actually driven me to make healthy dietary choices. I now make sure to cook my own food and take it with me so that I am never so hungry that I am tempted to set foot into a McDonald's or KFC for any reason.

American retail culture has also turned me off to shopping entirely in much the same way that American fast food culture has influenced my decision-making

Workers are employed in fisheries, mining, and defense industries while the farmers work in the agricultural collectives. Standards of living are defined by the family background as to the political and ideological heritage. The children of revolutionaries (those who died in the Korean War) are given special educational opportunities at an elite school called the Mangyndae Revolutionary Institute. However, the children and descendants of those who were in collaboration with the Japanese or the "exploiting class" are considered to be 'bad elements' in the society.

North Korea supports equality in aspect of the genders. The employment of women is expected and demanded by the South Korean government and those working with children under the age of four are expected to put the children in permanent nurseries if there is no family to take care of them while the mother works. However, the women are paid less than are men and…

Bibliography

Edgell, Alvin G. (2003) Globalization and Cultural Encounters 2003

International and Third World Studies Journal and Review Vol. XIV 2003 Dept

Political Science Kent State University.

Opondo, Patricia a. (2000) Cultural Policies in Kenya 2000 May 1 Arts

Popular American Culture

The analogy of the tail-wagging-the-dog has never been more prevalent than in the expression of contemporary angst, vision and dreams popularly embraced by American film and music. Where both mediums were once the looking glass through which society could admire its best qualities and endeavor to rise above its worst ones, the passage of time and the resultant re-invention of personal values have transformed them into templates for destructive behaviors predicated on greed, loss of identity and desperation.

SEX

What ever happened to commitment and fidelity? The themes of early movies and songs revolved around the premise that for every woman there was just the right man, a romantic journey of discovery that was as happily anticipatory as the final destination itself was secure and ever-lasting. One needs only to look at America's dismal, 50% divorce rate to question the validity of those early promises, a disenchantment…

Popular Music and Identity

Sound Clash-Popular Music and American Culture

Identifying through music is fantastic and creates social movements. People find music to be liberating, relaxing, and calming. Identifying oneself through music a person is able to have direct experiences in their body. This allows a person to place them self in an imaginary cultural narrative. Popular music has been analyzed as though it is a classical composition, which makes the analysts neglect the improvisational and performative aspects of popular music. Analyzing how audiences respond to popular music and how they identify with this kind of music is vital. This would allow people to better understand how different people identify with certain popular songs. Theodor Adorno viewed popular music as a culture industry, which is designed to appeal to society by creating a false need for entertainment. Simon Frith views popular music as a complex world where that values and…

References

Adorno, Theodor W, and George Simpson. On Popular Music. Institute of Social Research, 1942. Print.

Frith, Simon. "Music and Identity." Questions of cultural identity (1996): 108-27. Print.

Hill, S., and B. Fenner. Media and Cultural Theory. London: Bookboon. Print.

Appendix