The book, Distant Mirrors: America as a Foreign Culture, is a compilation of articles written by anthropologists, sociologists and professors. It was edited by Phillip R. DeVita and James D. Armstrong. This is the third edition of the Distant Mirrors books. In the introduction to the book it is said that Americans like things bigger and better and that is why they feel the need to keep making new editions. The main focus of this book is looking at the American culture from a different prospective.…
In Eric Liu’s essay, What Every American Should Know, he discusses how America needs to unite to create a common culture. This new culture will help the the current new generation of Americans become equal in a social atmosphere. Liu used Cultural Literacy, a critical piece by E.D. Hirsch, to explain a list of topics Hirsch and two of his colleagues believed every American show. The only concern that comes with the list is that it is outdated. The current generation needs a list with Internet memes, images, symbols, and pop culture references that can put Americans of all backgrounds on an equal playing field.…
Frost, M. (n.d.). Culture of the United States. Retrieved November 8, 2012, from Martin Frost: http://www.martinfrost.ws/htmlfiles/american_culture.html…
I feel like cultural appropriation should be encouraged as long as it is respected and not mocked. Societies should be open to share their culture. I feel for those who project their negative ideas, they feel a sense of violation when an outsider adopts a part their culture whether it be cuisine or fashion and uses it get rich. However, these allegations of “cultural appropriation” are overwhelmingly being used to object the mixing of different cultures, religions, thoughts which often result in the discovery of entirely new ones i.e. melting…
When we say American, the idea that America is a ‘melting pot’, meaning that different cultures come together, is true. However, it is false to say that not one culture has a hold upon the rest.…
Cultural Appropriation has many ways of interpretation. It contrasts the original ideas with the new non-traditional ways, it mocks, hurts and damages cultures and beliefs.…
6. What are some emerging symbols associated with American culture? What are some diminishing symbols that have…
America loves appropriating African-American culture –even when black people don’t get that same love reciprocated. This appropriation is seen many times in pop culture, schools, and the media. In the passage, “Appropriating Native American Imagery Honors No One but the Prejudice” by Amy Stretton, she emphasizes that racial stereotyping and inaccurate racial portrayals do not honor a living breathing people. Similar to black culture, Native American culture is often appropriated through the use of mascots and offensive naming of sports teams. The following passage depicts the negative effects that stereotyping can have on a person’s identity.…
When visiting another country, an American citizen may realize that that country’s values are totally different than ours. Each country has their own cultural identity. This identity “is formed in a process that results from membership in a particular culture, and it involves learning about and accepting the traditions, heritage, language, religion, ancestry, aesthetics, thinking patterns, and social structures of a culture.” (Lustig,…
“Cultural appropriation is a sociological concept which views the adoption or use of elements of one culture by members of a different culture as a largely negative phenomenon.”…
I could not help but to think that the purpose of a shopping mall was for everyone to have one convenient place to buy anything they desired. But, the viewpoints expressed though "Community through Exclusion and Illusion" by George Lewis and "Shopping for American Culture," by James J. Farrell, have led me to believe that the shopping mall also serves as a community center. Another article which captured my attention was Ira Zepp's, "The Shopping Mall as Sacred Place." They each express their ideas of how the shopping mall is not just a place to shop due to it's constantly availability, which has created an ideal environment for social interaction for people of all ages. Farrell…
Everything is connected in one way or another on a global level. American culture dominates as an example for globalization. So many different things have mixed and mashed and molded together creating American Popular Culture. Although, Americans shouldn’t take full credit for originality in all of their widespread ideas as they are a melting pot of other worldwide ideas. This is a good thing, and a bad thing.…
Throughout the 1960s, there was a cultural phenomenon that started in the United States and spread like wildfire to multiple other cultures in the world. This phenomenon was also known as countercultures. This decade raised the 76.4 million Americans born during the baby boom generation. These adolescents entered their teen years during the 1960s and they definitely embraced a multitude new standards, dramatically different from the way their parents were raised. While some encompassed new ideals in dress, music and movies others joined countercultures and rebelled against the social norms. Three of the most altering countercultures were the Hippies, the Sexual Revolution and the Gay Liberation. The Hippies were the beginning counterculture of this era. The sexual revolution and gay liberation connect back to the hippies. During the hippie time sex was key factor in their freedom and rebellion and with the freedom of sex came the freedom of sexuality. These small connection do not make these countercultures the same, but all them together helped transform society in drastic ways. 1…
* Many women learn how to calculate their ovulation when they first talk to a doctor about birth control. But some may still question whether they can get pregnant if they aren't ovulating. The answer to that question is not as straightforward as it seems. One would think that if a woman isn't ovulating, she can't get pregnant. This is only partially true. Generally, a woman isn't fertile if she isn't ovulating. If she isn't ovulating, she has no egg present to be fertilized outside the ovulation period. The confusion comes when trying to decipher when the ovulation period really is. Sometimes a woman can ovulate beyond what she considers her normal ovulating period, and she can become pregnant outside of her calculated fertility window.…
I've been a part of the Denver Cherry Blossom Festival for as long as I can remember. From a very young age, I have danced at the festival as a performer, worked at the temple's refreshments booths during middle school, and have run the temple's complimentary tea service during my time in high school. I hold many wonderful experiences from volunteering for Sakura Matsuri—this is where I learned types of teas, cook important cultural dishes like curry or sushi, or dance in odori. The greatest value of this festival, however, moves beyond entertainment and deals with controversial matters, most notably cultural appropriation, a concept I do my best to combat.…