Furthermore, culture represents the sum of many parts, or is in other words cumulative. The accumulation of knowledge, beliefs and skills and the passing of these on over the years through language, has led in part, to our present-day culture. Murray Knutilla effectively summarises this cumulative feature of culture:
“Cultural phenomena must be understood as the cumulative outcome of the creative efforts of generation after generation of humans.”(Knutilla 1996)
Finally, culture is diverse and incredibly complex. In her studies Ruth benedict provides a wealth of information on a number of diverse cultures, where acceptable forms of behaviour and practices vary according to each culture. In her book Benedict maintains that the concept of culture as opposed to instinct is more suitable for understanding “flexible” human actions and personalities. (Benedict 1935). Thus, culture can be linked to virtually all aspects of human existence in a social context
and can be viewed as something that is shared, learned, cumulative, diverse and complex ( Ernest L. Schusky and T. Patrick Culbert, 1967 in Knuttila, 96).
So, it is accepted that humans are essentially cultural, for very little complex behaviour is innate in a human being. A human develops social patterns of behaviour and action in order to solve its problems and meet its needs and it is the way humans deal with their needs and drives that distinguishes human societies from animal ones. Animal societies tend to be static, as animals have been genetically programmed to deal with their basic needs and drives. Their conduct and behaviour appears to be automatic and tends to be controlled by instinct. For example, the food gathering method of animals such as squirrels are incredibly similar. This is down to the fact that such complex behaviours are unlearned and passed on genetically. Human societies however, tend to be dynamic. Scientific growth, social differentiation and industrialisation are all examples of this dynamism and learning from experience. Compared to animals, humans possess unique physiological characteristics that have ensured human survival, progression and dynamism. The human brain is large and complex, with a highly developed cerebral cortex that provides us with the capacity for thought, reason, the ability to work things out and the development of solutions to our needs and problems.
In addition to this, we have been able to develop complex patterns of communication. The use of complex languages and symbol systems is not only because of our incredible brain, but also our flexible vocal capacity, which allows us to vocalize a huge number of sounds. Although animals do communicate through sounds, smells and physical gestures, they lack the necessary vocal apparatus and brain capacity to communicate in varied and complex ways. As a result, their language is either non-existent or rudimentary. Furthermore, animal communication is mainly controlled by instinct as opposed to the use of gestures and symbol systems.
The sophisticated patterns of communication that humans use are not only unique, but enable the fundamental sociological process known as Socialization to take place.
Socialization is a major sociological concept that provides the link between the individual and their Society. In broad terms, Socialization is the ongoing social learning process that is necessary for human existence and development. It includes everything from the transmission of culture to the acquisition of a personality. At birth, a human is completely helpless. It is not capable of fending for itself and cannot survive without help for the first few years of its life. An infant child therefore needs to learn how to behave in its surrounding culture. This Social learning occurs in every social environment and most of our social experiences have an impact on what and who we are. Socialization involves a number of different agencies such as institutions, groups, locations, organizations and social and cultural settings and can be characterized by two phases; primary and secondary socialization. The first phase takes place during the first few years of life and includes the acquisition of basic knowledge and the learning of behaviour such as table manners. This primary socialization is characteristic of ‘Gemeinshaft’ bonds (where emotional depth is present in the relationship) and the family is the main agency. Within the family, infants are taught various roles and statuses and other behavioural patterns.
Secondary socialization occurs when human beings begin to participate in more complex social interactions and is typical of ‘Gesellshaft’ bonds (more self-controlled, fleeting relationships with a rational exchange between another person). As children begin to mature, they start to develop more complicated patterns of language in new institutions such as the school, peer groups and the media. They begin to learn their society’s values, norms, beliefs, roles and institutional structures and symbols. It is important to note that while the patterns of socialization are repeated to some degree and continuity occurs, cultural values and norms often change gradually over time because each generation innovates.
Although social learning contributes in large part to our personality characteristics and behavioural patterns, Biology is clearly a factor in understanding the human personality. Humans have basic drives and needs such as eating, drinking and excreting bodily wastes in order to survive. The human personality must therefore be understood through the interaction of biological possibilities and the socialization process which enables us to deal with our various needs and drives.
However, there have been known cases of ‘isolated’ or ‘feral’ children who missed out on the normal socialization process and were consequently ‘unsocialized’. 3 familiar and well-documented cases of 20th century feral children are those of Anna and Isabelle during the 1930’s and Genie during the 1970’s.
Anna had been imprisoned in a second floor room most of her life and had barely been kept alive, receiving very little attention. According to the sociologist Kingsley Davies, when she was finally removed from the room, Anna was suffering from severe malnutrition and could not walk or talk. However about three years after her discovery and after treatment, Anna made considerable progress. She was able to run and talk mainly through the use of phrases and was concerned about keeping clean. Davis compared this case with that of another girl called Isabelle who had also been kept in seclusion and had initially showed little sign of intelligence or ability upon her discovery. Yet, after a year of systematic and thorough treatment, her IQ had tripled (Kingsley Davis, the American journal of Sociology as discussed in knuttila 96).
Probably the most famous case of a feral child is that of Genie. She spent nearly 13 years in almost total isolation and was fed only on milk and baby food. She was eventually found and placed in a children’s hospital. At that time she could not stand straight, chew or see beyond 10 feet. She was inquisitive though and after 7 years her IQ had increased from 38 to 74 although she never developed the normal use of language. Many Researchers believe that a child will have permanent difficulties in learning a language unless they start from an early age. Others argue that children could be mentally retarded from such abuse. So Genie’s case does not resolve the nature-nurture controversy surrounding human development ( Macionis and Plummer 2002).
Nevertheless, the often rapid progress made by the children once freed, highlights the prodigious learning capacity in Humans who require a social environment and social contact with others in order to develop distinctive and recognizable characteristics.
To conclude, culture is a very important notion in Sociology and without it, we would have no language, we would not be able to express ourselves, and our ability to reason and think would be severely restricted. Through the process of Socialization, children or new members of a society learn the way of life or culture of their society. If culture did not exist, then society would not exist and vice versa.
Bibliography
Benedict, R - ‘Patterns of Culture’ (1935) [1965]
Knuttila, M - ‘Introducing Sociology: a critical perspective’ (1996), Part 1
Macionis, J and Plummer, K – Sociology. A global introduction (2002)
