Communication is the process whereby information is being exchanged between different parties.
Communication is the process whereby information is being exchanged between different parties. Mediums such as radio and telephone help facilitate the exchange of information. The process or transmission model of communication assumes that a receiver will interpret a message as intended by the sender. This form of communication model has its own strengths and weaknesses. While it can to a certain extent represent communication practices, it fails to consider the relationship between communication, context and cultural literacy. The process or transmission model describes a model of communication in terms of sender, message and receiver. Based on this model, communication is said to have taken place when a sender, sends a message to a receiver and the receiver, receives the message. Thus this model of communication is also known as the Sender-Message-Receiver (SMR) Model. Schirato and Yell (1996:4) explains the SMR Model using the postal service. First, there will be a parcel which then needs to be addressed, mailed and delivered. Lastly, the same parcel will be received. It is important to understand that in the concept of the SMR Model, the receiver is assumed to interpret the message as intended by the sender. The SMR model is one that is simple and easy to interpret. It is a general concept that can be used to represent communication practices using technologies like
The myths of cultural globalization
The myths of cultural globalization Two powerful scenarios dominate the public discourse about the cultural consequences of globalization. The one very common scenario represents globalization as cultural homogenization (for example Benjamin Barbers McWorld vs. Jihad). In this scenario the culturally distinct societies of the world are being overrun by globally available goods, media, ideas and institutions. In a world where people from Vienna to Sidney eat BigMacs, wear Benetton clothes, watch MTV or CNN, talk about human rights and work on their IBM computers cultural characteristics are endangered. As these commodities and ideas are mostly of western origin, globalization is perceived as westernization in disguise. The other scenario is that of cultural fragmentation and intercultural conflict (encapsulated in Huntington's Clash of civilizations and most recently "confirmed" by the ethnocides in Yugoslavia). But can we really reduce the processes of cultural globalization (i.e. the process of world-wide interconnections) to these two stereotypes? What about the meaning that local people attach to globally distributed goods and ideas? Why do people drink Coca-Cola and what sense do they make of the soap operas they watch? Do they really trade in their century-old lifeworlds for the kinds of Madonna and Bill Gates? And how does the homogenization scenario fit with its
Discuss English band Blur's textual representations of British national identity, and analyse to what extent these representations are ideologically constructed.
DESCRIPTIVE OUTLINE PROPOSITION: Discuss English band Blur's textual representations of British national identity, and analyse to what extent these representations are ideologically constructed. PLAN: 1000 words in five paragraphs, in ordered reasons structure. PARAGRAPH 1 STRATEGY: Problematic nature of national identity. SUMMARY: Discusses the problematic nature of defining national identity by defining the terms identity and culture. Suggests that in terms of cultural identity, the cultural concepts class, gender and ethnicity are the definitive factors. PARAGRAPH 2 STRATEGY: Demise of nation, thus national identity. SUMMARY: Discusses globalisations effect on the concept of nation and on ethnic cultures. States Blur reject the dominance of global culture, thus texts are resistant to the dominant ideologies within our culture. PARAGRAPH 3 STRATEGY: Ideological representations of class and age constructed through semiotics. SUMMARY: Analyses text A and discusses the representational strategies from a semiotic point of view. Explores the ideology of youth that is at work within the text and discusses the irony of this ideology's implications. PARAGRAPH 4 STRATEGY: Blur's paradigm alludes to a Britain of the past, in terms of ideologies. SUMMARY: Briefly discusses the state of Britain's economy in the late, modernist period and concludes Blur are aligning
How can a clash of cultures provoke the breakdown of a relationship? -With reference to "Two Kinds" and "The Young Couple"
How can a clash of cultures provoke the breakdown of a relationship? -With reference to "Two Kinds" and "The Young Couple" "Two Kinds" proves there is no relationship more complex in this world then the relationship between two women - and more importantly - between a mother and a daughter. The relationship between a young girl the guiding force in her life, her mother's expectation for her daughter to be a child prodigy. A newly married couple and their struggle to be independent are portrayed in "The young couple". A rocky relationship what changes with the surroundings. In the young couple the relationship changes as the family become more involved in Cathy and Naraian's relationship. In "The Young Couple" as the story progresses it becomes clear that the husband will not be able to find work without the help of his parents. Though the culture is still traditional and affectionate as families still provide "plenty of pocket money (to their relations) to spend in restaurants, cinemas and record shops". This helps to support the Indian culture is very materialistic. Another aspect of Indian society is the fact that is appears to cover your affection towards your partner. This is quite the opposite of a western culture "Cathy was rather a demonstrative girl and liked kissing and holding hands with Narain when other people were
Discuss Culture and Socialization as sociological concepts. Briefly compare human and animal societies. Consider the implications of the documented cases of 'isolated' or 'unsocialised' children for our understanding of the human learning capacity.
Discuss Culture and Socialization as sociological concepts. Briefly compare human and animal societies. Consider the implications of the documented cases of 'isolated' or 'unsocialised' children for our understanding of the human learning capacity. The discipline of Sociology is essentially concerned with developing a greater degree of self-understanding as well as helping us to understand the character, actions and behaviour of other humans in various societies. Central to the study of human behaviour is the concept of culture, which is learned and cannot be reduced to the cognitive aspects of human beings. Culture along with personality, is acquired through the life long process of Socialization that starts from birth. Both Culture and Socialization are only possible however, due to the unique biological traits that the human species possess. Culture itself is a key sociological concept that has a variety of definitions and is not merely concerned with high art, ballet and classical music. The Theodorsons offer a particularly concise definition of what they perceive to be culture: "The way of life of a social group; the group's total man-made environment, including all the material and non-material products of group life that are transmitted from one generation to the next." (Theodorson and Theodorson 1960 as discussed in Knuttila) So, culture can be seen as the way we
The Terms "West Indian" and "Caribbean" and the colonial problematizing of identity.
QUESTION 7: The Terms "West Indian" and "Caribbean" and the colonial problematizing of identity A little bit of everything makes my world an interesting place and while we're on the subject of diversity WE ARE NOT ONE BIG RACE! and there's no country called "the islands" and no, I'm not from there. From "Crossfire" by Staceyann Chin What are we? Who are we? Where are we going? These are the questions that plague us. Christopher Columbus' error in geography left us with the term "West Indies". He decided that since he was planning on going to India anyway he would just give wherever he landed that name anyway in an effort to cover up his navigational miscalculation. The very name is a contradiction since "Indies" means "East" ergo the Indies cannot be in the West! Moreover it creates confusion for those whose ancestry is in India and have the confusing designator of "East Indians who are from the West Indies"! The word "Caribbean" is no better since it is a derivative of the name that Columbus gave to his implacable Amerindian foes. The name "Carib" is from the Spanish caribes meaning "cannibals". This slander can also be attributed to Columbus. So as it stands we have two terms, one of which is geographically contradictory while the other is derived from a demeaning myth. Knowing this, how then do we define ourselves? For convenience in this discourse I will refer to
The relationship between men and women in society from the feminist perspective.
The relationship between men and women in society from the feminist perspective We believe the world is based on the values of domination and exploitation; through action, we will bring about a new world with different principles about power, a world which is not about domination but about caring for and nurturing each other, a world which is based on mutual responsibility and respect. We acknowledge that the imbalances which exist between men and women are a result of this patriarchal world view, and we accept that feminism involves challenging the status quo which favours males over females, changing the family structure so that we can share the responsibilities and benefits, re-evaluating female roles and male roles, demonstrating alternate ways of living and doing things, working to improve the quality of women's lives, and including those women and groups who have been pushed to the margins of our society by a culture which privileges white, male, middle-class and Judeo-Christian values above all others. We recognize that women's experiences are different from men's and we want to express that uniqueness, knowing that isolation and misunderstanding are barriers to feminist expression. We want to understand where women are coming from and how that affects the way we see the world. As feminists, we must give ourselves permission to validate and affirm all of our
To what extent are marriage payments a reflection of the work value of women? Discuss with reference to ethnographic examples.
To what extent are marriage payments a reflection of the work value of women? Discuss with reference to ethnographic examples. D. L. Radley Marriage payments occur in many different forms throughout the world. They take many different forms and so it is rather difficult to give any general descriptions of how they work. However, speaking very broadly, two main contrasting types of payment stick out: bridewealth and dowry. In decades past, anthropologists, such as Nair and Mandelbaum, seem to have placed these two forms of property transmission at opposite ends of a scale. In simple terms, bridewealth was seen as payment from the groom or his kin to the family of his wife, while a dowry was defined as a payment from the bride's kin to the groom or his family. Each form of payment was seen as being representative of other values of the society: specifically, what worth was placed on women's labour. It was thought that in societies where farming tools were basic (predominantly hoes) and land was freely available (such as in many parts of Africa), bridewealth was the more likely form of marriage payment, as there would be plenty of land for women to be put to productive work on. Therefore, a bride-to-be's family would desire compensation for the loss of a worker. In contrast to this, it was thought that in more densely populated regions, where land had more value and more
People are more than just Pots
People are more than just Pots What is Lapita? This question, as many have noted, continuing to stimulate debate amongst those who are interested in the archaeology of Oceania. Although this student is not qualified to discuss many of the issues raised (particularly linguistics), an attempt will be made to address this question. There is no doubt something (temporal horizon, cultural phenomena etc) is represented by the artefacts associated with the distinctive pottery known as Lapita. It seems to this student that Lapita should be addressed as an archaeological culture rather than as an ethnic culture representing a homogenous group of people. In the first instance, what is known about Lapita will be outlined. The question of whether Lapita is more than just pots will be discussed before the criticisms of Terrell (1989) are reviewed. Finally the theories of Lapita origin will be discussed in an attempt to show that not only is Lapita more than just pots, but also the peoples who created the pots where more that just Lapita. The archaeological culture known as Lapita, distinguished by dentated-stamped decorated ceramics (Ambrose 1997), as depicted in Figure 1and 2, extended 'down the Melanesian island chain from New Guinea to Tonga' (Allen 1996:11). Kirch noted that the spatial extent of Lapita is some four thousand kilometres 'as the frigate bird flies' (1996:61). This is
Questions to ask about gravestones. Part ITake one graveyard and/or a church full of memorials and tombs
Language investigation - comparisons of the type of language used in different styles of music reviews, namely the nME new musical express, and the daily telegraph's music reviews. Questions to ask about gravestones. Part I Take one graveyard and/or a church full of memorials and tombs. Record the following information on the gravestones/memorials/tombs: . Inscription 2. Decoration, including style of inscription carving. Are the words cut into the stone, raised up or metal attachments? 3. Location of grave/memorial. Has it been moved? 4. Style of grave/memorial. 5. Type of grave/memorial. They don't all look the same. They can be made from different materials, be different sizes and shapes, be fixed on the wall, on the ground etc. . Think of simple ways of describing them, like black floor slab, sandstone floor slab, table tomb etc. . 6. Take photographs where possible and measurements if you can. 7. You may not be the first person to study the stones. Check in your local library to see if someone has recorded the information before you. You may be able to use it to supplement your findings because some stones may have become too worn for you to read. 8. Above all be careful! Remember these objects are heavy and often unstable. Don't put yourself in a position where they can fall on you and squash you flat. There are all sorts of ways that you can use your