Human Culture - A new interpretation

Culture is a very popular word in everyday speech, and it means as many things as we may choose it to mean. There is even a whole social science devoted to the study of cultures the world over. What part of reality does culture denote? Is it something natural, or just a convenient term to refer to various aspects of human activity?

An easy way to understand the cultural aspect of our lives is to examine the way we go about doing things. Culture is the way of doing things . From such details as table manners, to very broad and general issues like how we organize our life, how we go about our work, and so on. The manner, or way something is done is what separates one society from another, or one culture from another.

From how people get married, to how they interact with each other, culture pervades all aspects of our lives - both personal and social.

It should be obvious that the way we do certain things affects the results as well. This is what makes culture a significant aspect of our life.

The term culture is not therefore a blanket seal of approval to all that we do. It is more of a reminder to us that the way we go about our life and work influences the results too.

We live our lives not in isolation, but in a mesh of culture. Whether it is our private life, or our social interaction, the seal of culture puts its stamp on everything we do. Even when we while away our time and do nothing, for there are many ways of doing nothing.

This article first appeared here.