1 00:00:08,166 --> 00:00:12,832 One defining trait of culture is that it identifies us in relation to other people. 2 00:00:12,833 --> 00:00:15,533 We've talked about his before: 3 00:00:15,533 --> 00:00:18,733 a shared culture corresponds with a higher feeling of belonging. 4 00:00:18,733 --> 00:00:23,266 A cultural distance can create a feeling that you don’t belong. 5 00:00:23,266 --> 00:00:26,666 Imagine John, an adventurous traveler from Amsterdam. 6 00:00:26,666 --> 00:00:32,198 John takes a trip to the Amazon to live for a while amongst a tribe there. 7 00:00:32,200 --> 00:00:37,300 This tribe will have a different language, different music, customs, behavior, 8 00:00:37,300 --> 00:00:41,733 a different way of celebrating birthdays, perhaps even some different morals than John is used to. 9 00:00:41,733 --> 00:00:46,466 Even though John has a great time, he feels, because of these differences, 10 00:00:46,466 --> 00:00:48,832 that he is not part of their culture. 11 00:00:48,833 --> 00:00:51,333 When after a few months he lands in Amsterdam 12 00:00:51,333 --> 00:00:53,133 and embraces his friends and family, 13 00:00:53,133 --> 00:00:58,666 he immediately feels at home again and experiences a sense of belonging. 14 00:00:58,666 --> 00:01:02,632 People in the airport are already culturally closer to him than the very friendly, 15 00:01:02,633 --> 00:01:06,199 but culturally different, tribe he has visited. 16 00:01:06,200 --> 00:01:11,133 So culture helps us identify where we belong, with what group we fit in. 17 00:01:11,133 --> 00:01:13,666 But it's not really that simple is it? 18 00:01:13,666 --> 00:01:16,366 Because we are not members of only one culture. 19 00:01:16,366 --> 00:01:22,899 This is another important thing: there are cultures on all kinds of levels. 20 00:01:22,900 --> 00:01:26,600 Within Western Culture for instance we can make many subdivisions 21 00:01:26,600 --> 00:01:30,066 like Western European Culture, Dutch Culture et cetera. 22 00:01:30,066 --> 00:01:33,532 You can even distinguish culture on a very specific group level, 23 00:01:33,533 --> 00:01:36,233 for instance within one group of friends, 24 00:01:36,233 --> 00:01:43,099 co-workers, fans of a popular television series, you can have groups around hobbies, 25 00:01:43,100 --> 00:01:48,600 special interests, moral values, your fashion sense, ethnicity, nationality, 26 00:01:48,600 --> 00:01:51,600 religion, sexual orientation, you name it. 27 00:01:51,600 --> 00:01:55,366 Being in a group means sharing something with the other members. 28 00:01:55,366 --> 00:01:59,199 Being a member of a group therefore has everything to do with your own 29 00:01:59,200 --> 00:02:02,133 personal identity and the group identity. 30 00:02:02,133 --> 00:02:07,133 That's why being part of a group carries emotional weight. 31 00:02:07,133 --> 00:02:13,266 It is this shared element, the shared culture that creates a feeling of belonging. 32 00:02:13,266 --> 00:02:15,332 Let's take another traveler, Maud. 33 00:02:15,333 --> 00:02:21,233 Maud also just returned, not from the Amazon but from a long holiday in Spain. 34 00:02:21,233 --> 00:02:26,333 In Spain, Maud has become a huge fan of Flamenco-dancing. 35 00:02:26,333 --> 00:02:30,599 She had many other Flamenco enthusiasts there to share her passion with, 36 00:02:30,600 --> 00:02:36,100 but back in the Netherlands, her friends and family there don't really know the dance. 37 00:02:36,100 --> 00:02:36,133 38 00:02:36,133 --> 00:02:37,999 Luckily there is the internet, 39 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:41,700 and Maud soon finds webpages where she can discuss this dance 40 00:02:41,700 --> 00:02:44,433 and share music with people from all over the world. 41 00:02:44,433 --> 00:02:51,533 Maud is now in fact a member of a global cultural group of Flamenco fans, 42 00:02:51,533 --> 00:02:54,766 next to being part of the Dutch culture, the Amsterdam culture, 43 00:02:54,766 --> 00:02:58,366 and many other groups she feels connected with. 44 00:02:58,366 --> 00:03:01,232 Of course, things don't always stay the same. 45 00:03:01,233 --> 00:03:08,466 Maud might lose her interest in Flamenco after a while, leaving the group or making membership 46 00:03:08,466 --> 00:03:15,666 a less important aspect of her identity. Or the dance itself might undergo changes, 47 00:03:15,666 --> 00:03:19,132 splitting up the group in conservatives on one hand 48 00:03:19,133 --> 00:03:22,466 and progressive Flamenco lovers on the other. 49 00:03:22,466 --> 00:03:24,599 All of this is completely natural. 50 00:03:24,600 --> 00:03:30,400 It is in fact another important element of the principle of cultural relativism: 51 00:03:30,400 --> 00:03:32,666 Cultures change all the time. 52 00:03:32,666 --> 00:03:39,232 And many things can cause sudden culture shifts like new technology, population shifts, 53 00:03:39,233 --> 00:03:46,733 resource shortages, new art forms, wars, political decisions and many more factors. 54 00:03:46,733 --> 00:03:50,566 But it’s important to realize that change is also inherent to culture, 55 00:03:50,566 --> 00:03:55,199 so suddenly or gradually change will occur. 56 00:03:55,200 --> 00:03:58,466 You can imagine that all this change and cultural diversity 57 00:03:58,466 --> 00:04:01,299 causes much uncertainty in our lives. 58 00:04:01,300 --> 00:04:04,166 That's why, even if we are not always aware of it, 59 00:04:04,166 --> 00:04:09,566 we are constantly communicating to minimize the discomfort of uncertainty, 60 00:04:09,566 --> 00:04:15,299 to adjust, to keep in touch with cultural reality, with society and the groups we identify with 61 00:04:15,300 --> 00:04:17,233 or want to belong to. 62 00:04:17,233 --> 00:04:19,999 We'll explore this further in our next section.