Evolution Of Cultures Around The World Essay, Research Paper

Culture….?The totality of socially transmitted behavior patterns, arts, beliefs, institutions, and all other products of human work and thought.? A key point in the definition is all… products of human work and thought what is not a product of human work and thought the computer this report is being typed on the school in which the paper is being for a class what about the class itself. All of these things computer, school, and paper, are products of human work and thought. Culture includes the history of people and also their current lifestyle. In The United States you can have Hunan beef, which originally was made in China, you can eat burritos, which are a staple food in Mexico. In the United States you can also see products of German engineering when on the road or maybe the car you are in Mercedes, Volkswagen, and BMW all are companies based in Germany. Diamonds are frequently imported from South America to United States finest Jewelers.

Culture has distinct differences throughout the world, which are in part, associated with the inner teaching and outside influences of the world around it. Even bodily gestures can have very different meaning in different cultures. Did you know that while giving someone a ?thumbs up? may mean good job to you in the United States, in other parts of the world it could be likened to ?flipping them off.? In the United States when you receive a business card it is common practice to put it in your wallet and put in your back pocket, In Asian countries you should always put it in your left chest pocket as a sign of respect. If you do want to say you are sitting on them you may though use the American way. As can be seen by these examples there are many differences in culture. Some of these differences will be highlighted in this paper to give you a better understanding of culture in general.

Politics play a very important role within each society as they create laws, which can help or hinder people. A Political change since it is a product of human work and thought is a cultural change in itself, although greater than some others because a political change has the ability to affect such a large number of people. Whether a government is monarchy or a democracy can greatly affect the people. A government, which is by the people, may work more closely with the people to create positive changes in society whereas a monarchy serves for the betterment of one person, the monarch. South Africa began with very little government to speak of, however, once the invasions from the Philippines, Dutch and British occurred, there became a very strict form of government. Invasions by another country tend to drastically change a culture due to the fact that there is another ruling party. Depending on the level which they inhabit the new land, they bring their own culture with them and you can still see remnants of this in South Africa. In Mexico recently there was a change in the electoral process the change was too a two party system this brings about many social changes. The reason that the change to a two party system changes cultures so much is that it gives the opposing viewpoint a voice and a voice is a start. In Germany the most important political change has been that of reunification when East Germany and West Germany became one, for such a long time families had been split by a wall and now they have been reunited allowing for commerce and relationships to flourish once again. China changed from a feudal society to a republic society in 1912. The ?democracy? and ?science? idea came from the west. The republic government implemented new political policies, which greatly influenced people?s thinking. In these four societies Political change has resulted in many changes of other aspects of culture.

Technological changes can also bring about overwhelming cultural changes as well as social acceptance or rejection of new ideas or aspects. Technology advancing has brought about the global village Sputnik a satellite launched by the former USSR of which Germany was a part started a global change. Before satellites and trans-ocean cables news was slow to travel it was weeks or even months before issues were covered in the newspapers of another country. Now we want live coverage in how many previous wars was there live coverage from the rooftops of both countries. The world has become a much smaller place and there is no changing back with each passing moment more and more information is available and at a much more rapid pace than ever before in history. In South Africa the gold rush and diamond discovery created an explosion of technological growth and a severe influx of immigrants who brought with them their own culture. This influx of people was a great cultural change for the entire country the mixing of cultures, as they had never previously seen. The oil reserves found in Mexico in the late seventies brought about similar effects. The oil reserves in Mexico and the mining operations in South Africa created one thing, wealth, which allowed people who owned land on which these resources were found to change their lifestyle and know the world a little bit more. China having the largest percentage of the earth?s population by far at 80% found technology to improve the peoples financial situations as well as their thinking process. Technological advances not only gave the Chinese wealth but new ways to track production and change planting cycles and other aspects of their farming which in turn showed them that technology can also increase productivity. In Germany there has been a technological overload of sorts as products have flowed into their country and been available which were previously unavailable. In Germany due to current economic conditions many of these technologically advanced products are far from the reaches of most of the people. The ability to produce these products in their own countries has reduced prices and therefore made them more affordable to some of the population and thus affected people?s behavior and outlook on their needs and desires.

Economy is another aspect of culture as an economy grows it creates wealth, individual as well as companies can prosper and change in the economy of a country can drastically change the lifestyle of the average person in that country. The NYSE exchange is known as the ?Big Board? not only in the US but also around the world more money passes through this exchange than any other is. The prosperity of US corporations and the inflation of their respective stock prices has made many Americans as well as Foreigners very wealthy because not only do Americans by US stocks but people around the world. It truly has become a world economy; there are mutual funds in which average citizens can invest in most countries around the world. Communication has advanced the world?s economy by allowing it to be one. There have been some major historical changes in the countries we have focused on that have in some way enhanced or changed their economies. In South Africa the Gold rush and diamond discovery not only created great technological advances, it also brought great wealth and trade to that country. In 1940 Mexico replaced their old Hacienda government this expanded their economy and brought about newfound wealth, as did their oil discoveries of the 1970?s. China?s open-up policy, incorporated in 1977, had a positive and nourishing affect on its economy. In all of these countries money has been formed through their own change and natural resources. Now though global aspects of wealth are as important to an individual as are there own countries economic situation.

Bibliography

References

South Africa

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China

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Mexico

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Germany

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Symynkywics, Jeffery B. Germany, Discovering Series. New York: Crestwood House, 1993

Yancey, Diane. The Reunification of Germany. Lucent Books, Inc., 1994