Impact of Culture on Identity

Impact of Culture on Identity How does the culture we are born into effect the kind of person we become? Culture plays an integral part in an individual’s life. Various aspects of life are governed and influenced by the culture including the social behavior, norms, and the influence over the judgment and decisions. I particularly believe that culture is a prominent aspect of life and subsequently has to do with the kind of person we become in our life. The testimonies to the influence of culture in one’s life is apparent by some aspects as follow, the culture to which a person belongs has a strong influence over his thoughts and ideologies, the culture manifests his ability and potential of the work he does, the culture reflects his social behavior and the way he responds to various predicaments. On the surface, it shapes our life and our vision for how we look at the world. Culture is dynamic it keeps changing, its surface appearance is deceptive, what you see on the surface isn’t necessarily what is under it. Therefore to determine the effect of culture on an indi vidual is often complicated and there are some implications which are to be accepted without questioning, that is to say the effect of culture on people vary and affects us vividly. However, I am going to fret that it affects us in a positive manner. The culture has a strong influence over our thinking, ideologies and understanding. As thinking is one of those aspects that keeps vacillating and growing with in us, shaping our life every time we learn something new. And the culture is one of those attribute which helps in augmentation of our cogitation. Some of the culture which observe open-mindedness are often more likely to grow and develop faster than the others who observe conservativeness. This model of thinking will ultimately affect the development of an individual, hence the one with open-mindedness will grow faster, and this is apparent by taking the example of USA’s and Vietnamese culture. The one who belongs to an open-minded culture will always be ready to take risks and accept the opportunities he is provided with, because such aspects are deeply etched in their culture and resultantly would be exhibited in the individual [1]. So by taking example of two contrasting nations like Vietnam and USA one can witness the force and potent of culture, that how it shapes the lives of the living entities residing within it. In the novel â€Å"Fallen Angels† the protagonist-Perry makes a statement that, â€Å"We were supposed to smile a lot and treat the people with dignity. They were supposed to think we were the good guys. That bothered me a little. I didn’t like having to convince anybody that I was the good guy. . . . We, the Americans, were the good guys.† (Page 112 Fallen angels, Walter Dean Myers)[2].This statement shows the thinking of Perry which has been influenced by his culture, making him think that they were the good guys, just because they were helping others for their own independence. But they failed to see the other side of it and the repercussions it would bring. That is to say â€Å"we only see and understand what our culture teaches us†. Educational phase is an important stage of life, and sometimes it can be linked with some aspects of culture. Some cultures are often considered to be more superlative when it comes to intelligence and understanding of its students. Some of which are indeed in reality, while some aren’t, but relying on such generalized and over-simplistic ideas is dangerous. But if viewed from my point of view, the effects are positive. That is to say, if a person represents a culture where intelligence and understanding are the aspects embedded in them, in a culture where education is considered to be an important aspect and is meant to be achieved, then the student would be of greater knowledge and understanding in the end, which would eventually help him in becoming a better person in life. This aspect of intelligence is either governed by the genetic inheritance or the surrounding environment prevailing the society, an alluding outcome of the culture. Furthermore, sometimes when others don’t meet the boundaries of expectations and anticipations set by us, developed through the thinking we gaine d by our cultural understanding, we often consider that as cue that either we are different or they. As we can see from the above mentioned examples how the thinking is influenced by the culture surrounding us and resultantly and ultimately affects the kind of person we become in future. Secondly, the cultural values manifests how we deal or respond to the conflict or harmony that is omnipresent around us and also how it shapes our understanding about them. In the novel â€Å"Fallen Angels† Perry had to go through many phases of exasperation and intimidation, but every time he seemed to be responding each situation differently. When he was in hamlet on pacification, he encountered a Vietcong who was trying to shoot him but he couldn’t because his rifle wasn’t working, Perry stood petrified wondering what to do, but finally it dawned upon him that in order to save himself he had to shoot him. At first he wasn’t ready to shoot the Vietcong because he viewed war as â€Å"immoral and senseless killing of people†. But he responded according to the requirement of the predicament that is he finally killed the Vietcong. I surmise that, indirectly his response towards Vietcong was influenced by his cultural values. Explicitly stating, the cu lture had taught him how to respond to each situation, that â€Å"it’s not always about responding in a perfect way, but rather responding in a manner the predicament requires and deserves†. In addition, after doing the research on culture of other country (Vietnam) and understanding them through a different perspective, I have also developed a sense of understanding and a respect for their cultural values and how it has transformed them in spite of their ignorance toward knowledge. Considering my response towards their culture as an example in itself, it can be made apparent that my response isn’t an instinctive one but rather an acquired one, because â€Å"that’s the way I was brought up, to see the goodness in others neglecting the indecency that occurs in it simultaneously†. The origin of the response can be deeply rooted in my culture itself as it has nothing to do regarding my knowledge itself. Furthermore, in â€Å"Hamlet† by William Shakespeare, Hamlet is confronted by the ghost of his father, asking him to avenge his death. The audience of that time had accepted the event unquestioningly, the question was not whether the ghost really existed or not, but perhaps was it actually the king or a wicked soul masqueraded. But if a similar scene were to be placed in front of the audience of present time they would be reluctant to accept the ideas regarding the ghost, on the contrary they would disregard the originality and seriousness of work. This won’t be considered as an outcome of evolution in the human minds, but perhaps a development in the cultural teachings and understandings, for how we have been brought up to respond to or view such events. So this were the some form of the illustrations, for how cultures trains our reaction to respond to a conflict, not necessarily conflict but rather our response towards the happenings in our surrounding . And lastly, culture is also an important body controlling the manifestation of our social behavior, etiquettes, attitude and the potential of an individual to strive or work for something. Learned behavior is the foundation of human cultures and the transmission of this behavior ultimately powers the wheel of development of human culture. Human behavior produces cumulative changes in the society, and the constantly changing society requires constant behavior adjustments. Simply stating our demeanor and attitude are neither static or nor deterministic, it chiefly depends on the changes in the culture. In an interview conducted in Canada, a Chinese elder man pointed out that he hasn’t experienced any conflict since the last 40 years of his life [*]. Among one of the possible reason for his denial, one would be seeing the cultural preferences and differences in society through lens of harmony and mutual respects for others, which is the result of his Confucian upbringing. This at titude and perception of the Chinese was eventually a result of his cultural values, which helped him in becoming a wise and knowledgeable person in his life. His culture had taught him about the attitude he should have towards his own culture as well as for the other cultures. Now to demonstrate the influence of surrounding culture on our disposition, let’s take an instance of culture of Vietnam and India, if a boy was born in a Vietnamese family but his upbringing allegedly happened to be in Indian family, than the boy rather than getting accustomed to social behavior and etiquettes of Vietnam would tend to get accustomed to that of Indians. And fundamentally would demonstrate the attitude and disposition of a typical Indian. So the point of my insistence is that our surrounding culture demonstrates the way we would behave and how our attitude would tend to be. Now rather than using chop-sticks while eating, he would insist upon using his hands to do the same activity. And while greeting people instead of bowing and handshaking he would do Namaste (a gesture formed by joining two hands and bringing them down to chest). Now, an illustration of influence over our potential or our ability to strive for something. In Indian culture, the â€Å"sants† [3] (a person who attains the highest state of enlightenment by meditation and worshipping god) are considered to be an exponent of the Indian cultural values. They only strive for achieving salvation in their life, regardless of how tempting objects you place in front of them, they don’t develop desire for them. Consequently if there is no desire in the mind, they won’t be worried about it and also if any desire arises they won’t feel ease without shunning it. My point of emphasizing the idea is that that their commitment towards their works is so determined that they would never deviate from their path. The aspects of their potential and that of their outstriven ability are an exa mple in itself, if viewed from my point of view. In no other culture in world, would you find such adamant people. Their deterministic demeanor is a result of the cultural values. Again taking the culture of Vietnam and USA as a point of justification, in Vietnam children are encouraged to solve math problems mentally rather than using the calculators, but they do not consider this as a sacrifice and also their education system emphasizes more on morality rather than independent thinking. On the contrary, the Americans try to make their life as easy as possible by using technology. Also their education system emphasizes more on independent thinking rather than morality. So the inference which could be drawn from this happening is that both the culture are approaching the same work, but they have two distinct ways to achieve and strive for it. In conclusion, it is obvious by now that the way of life a person would live in future is derived chiefly from the cultural values and aspects of the specific group he belongs to. The three specific reasons I used for justification of my thesis are as follow, firstly the culture has strong influence on our ideologies and thinking, in a broader sense we as a person are an outcome of our thinking and ideologies. Secondly, culture demonstrates our way of responding to various conflicts and harmony prevailing in the society, dealing with conflicts is an important dimension of life and eventually and indirectly our response generated towards it is determined by the culture we are influenced by or born into. And lastly culture is the primarily body, that demonstrates our disposition, attitude and the potential and ability to strive or work for something. Just like economy and country, culture is also one of the most important dimension of our life. Cultures are not just about traditions, f ood customs, languages, dress etc. but perhaps, it has a broader horizon than the literary context, which requires a great deal of understanding and contemplation as a whole. Cultures are like underground rivers flowing within our lives, which gives us messages and teachings, shaping our perception, judgments, attribution and ideas for self as well as others. â€Å"We as a whole are inseparable from culture†. Work cited: *Lebaron: Mediation and Multicultural Reality.Lebaron: Mediation and Multicultural Reality. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Jan. 201 LeBaron, Michelle. Culture and Conflict.Beyond Intractability. Eds. Guy Burgess and Heidi Burgess. Conflict Information Consortium, University of Colorado, Boulder. Posted: July 2003 . Cultural Influences and Education.Cultural Influences and Education. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Jan. 2015. How Cultural Differences May Affect Student Performance.GreatSchools. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Jan. 2015. Myers, Walter Dean.  Fallen Angels. New York: Scholastic, 1988. Print Shakespeare, William, and David M. Bevington.Hamlet. Toronto: Bantam, 1988. Print. From what I have experienced and understood in my life about different culture. The novel I had chosen for my culminating task. The ideas explained in the holy book of Indians â€Å"Vachanamrut† Note: while writing the essay I had to make certain implications, and also I used my experience as point of justification in certain matter.

Maya Angelou’s “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” Essay

Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings chronicles the early years of the author’s life – up to age seventeen. In the book, Angelou poetically describes the phenomenon that is growing up black, in the south, in the time before and during World War II. I believe that you are expected to interpret this as a memoir of overcoming the odds. I believe that you are expected to regard the happenings of this book with feelings of empathy and/or sympathy. You are also supposed to marvel at the way Angelou persevered to become the woman (and writer) she is today. At the end of the prologue, Angelou states that, â€Å"If growing up is painful for the Southern Black girl, being aware of her displacement is the rust on the razor that threatens the throat.† (4) The razor to the throat is symbolic of authority. To a Southern black girl in the 1930’s and 40’s, authority is almost everyone. Young black female was the absolute bottom of the barrel. She must let herself be ruled by all sorts. Older black kids, black adults, and anyone white. Likewise, these people are ready to pounce on her should she do the least little thing wrong. Everyone was reprimanded for one thing or another as a child. No one enjoyed it. Imagine being surrounded by people, just waiting for you to slip up so that they can yell at you, punish you, etcetera. Through this, Angelou gaines your sypathy, and you may very well find yourself in awe that Angelou made it through such a childhood with her sanity intact. When a young Maya Angelou’s grandmother tried to take her to a white dentist who owed her a favor, the dentist said, â€Å"‘Annie, my policy is I’d rather stick my hand in a dog’s mouth than a nigger’s.'† (189) This adds upon the point made earlier. The pain of a toothache combined with the pain of wounded pride. Maya Angelou has massive amounts of pride. She spent most of her years in Stamps, Georgia being insulted by one thing or another. Some of the occasions were insulting (the dentist), while some others were the product of reading too deeply into something, like when a white politician came to speak at her graduation. He spoke of how much new equipment the white school was getting, and how the black community would not be forgotten. Here, her pride was injured because of the way the politician  spoke, like their school came second when in fact, in that time and place, they did come second, and the politician did not mean anything negat ive; he was simply being honest. To have your pride assaulted day in and day out is a horrible way to live. Maya’s brother did not return home once after attending the movies. When they found him, â€Å"Bailey was talking so fast he forgot to stutter, he forgot to scratch his head and clean his fingernails with his teeth. He was away in a mystery, locked in the enigma that young Southern Black boys start to unravel, try to unravel, from seven years old to death. The humorless puzzle of inequality and death.† (198) All children learn about death eventually. They have to. Death is a part of life. But imagine living where your death is regarded as a burden on society relieved, as opposed to the tragedy that it would be. It makes you wonder why you are viewed as so low, and it makes you wonder if those people who view you as such are correct. â€Å"I was given blood tests, aptitude tests, physical coordination tests, and Rosarchs, then on a blissful day I was hired as the first Negro on the San Francisco streetcars.† (270) Triumph! Angelou somehow managed to overcome all of society’s efforts to hold her back. Such an accomplishment, though little-remembered today, was a great thing back them. Many little wins like that contributed to winning the equality of today. â€Å"What happened to the moonlight-on-the-prairie feeling? Was there something wrong with me that I couldn’t share a sensation that made poets gush rhyme after rhyme, that made Richard Arlen brave the Arctic wastes and Veronica Lake betray the entire free world? . . . . â€Å"Three weeks later, having thought very little about that strange and strangely empty night, I found myself pregnant.† (283-284) Angelou did not completely understand the connection between sex and love. This in itself is proof of the way she grew up – almost like everyone held her at arm’s length. Her didn’t (or I imagine she didn’t) think that she was old enough to know these things, and even if she was old enough, her grandmother was too old fashioned to adequately explain it. By the time she moved in with  her mother, she was past the age that modern kids learn these things. Maybe her mother figured she already knew this stuff, or maybe she figured that anything her daughter needed to know, she would ask her. But needless to say, one would be hesitant to ask their mother about such a touchy subject. Angelou did not even want to tell her mother that she was pregnant. This unfortunate situation is not exclusive to minorities, but was and still is very common. It occurs less frequently now, that one makes a sexual mistake out of ignorance, due to people being more open about such topics. The fact that the baby is delivered healthily, despite the fact that she was the only one in the area who knew about it for the first eight months of the pregnancy is amazing. It makes you think about how lucky she is. And she is very lucky. Maya Angelou’s accomplishments are pretty amazing. All of the things she had to overcome to become until she acheived the ultimate goal – equality, and perhaps normalcy. When one is possessed of a childhood such as hers, normalcy may be a thing to strive for, and a thing to cherish once experienced. Indeed, she surpassed the point of normalcy to reach the opposite point from where she started. She went from being someone who was barely noticed, and when she was noticed, regarded with contempt, to one who is admired and revered for her work.

Effective Education Web Site Essay

The rapid development of the internet has made it into one of the greatest tools of learning for many individuals in the academic environment. Even students still in primary and secondary education have become highly dependent on the services provided over the World Wide Web. What libraries and tutorial programs used to be for the older generation, the computer and on-line sites have become for the younger generation. The qualities of an effective education web site for primary and secondary schools thus needs to be assessed. Cook & Dupras (2004) state that an educational websites effectiveness lie in its ability to answer specific needs and goals for the student. This means that the website needs not only to be user-friendly and easily navigable but it also needs to be content-oriented. There should be a specific task for the website and all possible media that can fulfill this task should be incorporated in the site’s design. For example, if the site aims to teach the basic principles of arithmetic, different elements can be mixed together to reach this aim – a step-by-step tutorial, examples, sample problems, quizzes, and even games. An effective education website needs to encourage active learning especially if it is for primary and secondary schools. (Cook & Dupras, 2004) This can be done by allowing self-assessment, learner interaction, feedback and even self-directed learning. The website itself should be made accessible, user-friendly, and should have templates that encourage the student to study. Colorful pages, interactive images, and regularly updated content all perform the said task. Educational websites may well be the classrooms of the future. As such, more research need to be conducted in order to better understand the dynamics that would allow optimum learning from the sites. Reference Cook, D. A. , and Dupras, D. M. (2004). A practical guide to developing effective web-based learning. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 19(6), 698-707.

Biology Prefixes and Suffixes Cephal-, Cephalo-

The word part cephal- or cephalo- means head. Variants of this affix include (-cephalic), (-cephalus), and (-cephaly). Words Beginning With  (Cephal-) or (Cephalo-) Cephalad (cephal-ad): Cephalad is a directional term used in anatomy to indicate positioning toward the head or anterior end of the body. Cephalalgia (cephal-algia): Pain located in or near the head is called cephalalgia. It is also known as a headache. Cephalic (cephal-ic): Cephalic means of or relating to the head, or located near the head. Cephalin (cephal-in): Cephalin is a type of cell membrane phospholipid found in body cells, particularly in brain and spinal cord tissue. It is also the main phospholipid in bacteria. Cephalization (cephal-ization):  In animal development, this term refers to the development of a highly specialized brain that processes sensory input and controls body functions. Cephalocele (cephalo-cele): A cephalocele is a protrusion of part of the brain and meninges through an opening in the skull. Cephalogram (cephalo-gram): A cephalogram is an X-ray of the head and facial area. It assists in obtaining accurate measurements of the jaw and facial bones and is also used as a diagnostic tool for conditions such as obstructive sleep apnea. Cephalohematoma (cephalo-hemat-oma): A cephalohematoma is a pool of blood that collects under the scalp. It typically occurs in infants and results from pressure during the birthing process. Cephalometry (cephalo-metry): The scientific measurement of the bones of the head and face is called cephalometry. Measurements are often taken using radiographic imaging. Cephalopathy (cephalo-pathy): Also called encephalopathy, this term refers to any disease of the brain. Cephaloplegia (cephalo-plegia): This condition is characterized by paralysis that occurs in the muscles of the head or neck. Cephalopod (cephalo-pod): Cephalopods are invertebrate animals, including squid and octopuses, that appear to have limbs or feet that are attached to their heads. Cephalothorax (cephalo-thorax): The fused head and thorax section of the body seen in many arthropods and crustaceans is known as the cephalothorax. Words With  (-cephal-), (-cephalic), (-cephalus), or (-cephaly) Brachycephalic (brachy-cephalic): This term refers to individuals with skull bones that are shortened in length resulting in a short, broad head. Encephalitis (en-cephal-itis):  Encephalitis is a condition characterized by inflammation of the brain, typically caused by viral infection. Viruses that cause encephalitis include measles, chickenpox, mumps, HIV, and herpes simplex. Hydrocephalus (hydro-cephalus): Hydrocephalus is an abnormal condition of the head in which the cerebral ventricles expand, causing fluid to accumulate in the brain. Leptocephalus (lepto-cephalus): This term means slim head and refers to having an abnormally tall and narrow skull. Megacephaly (mega-cephaly): This condition is characterized by the development of an abnormally large head. Megalencephaly (mega-en-cephaly): Megalencephaly is the development of an abnormally large brain. Individuals with this condition may experience seizures, paralysis, and decreased cognitive function. Mesocephalic (meso-cephalic): Mesocephalic refers to having a head that is of a medium size. Microcephaly (micro-cephaly): This condition is characterized by an abnormally small head in relation to body size. Microcephaly is a congenital condition that can be caused by chromosome mutation, exposure to toxins, maternal infections, or trauma. Plagiocephaly (plagio-cephaly): Plagiocephaly is a skull deformity in which the head appears asymmetrical with flat regions. This condition occurs in babies and results from abnormal closure of cranial sutures. Procephalic (pro-cephalic): This directional anatomy term describes a position located near the front of the head.