The Girdwood Guru

Cultural Development
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The concept or phrase of "cultural development" is not new, but the way that I use these words are. Culture is the unifying force in any societal group, influenceing the way we think, what we believe, and they way we behave. Culture is pervasive, and affects every aspect of our daily personal lives, whether we are consciously aware of it or not. Culture dictates the way we see ourselves, the purpose of our lives, our political and economic structures, and is often the backdrop for evaluating the choices we make.

Introduction

Today we appear to be heading down the road to a global culture, courteousy of mass media, television, movies, and the like. Is this a good thing or bad thing? I think this is a hard question to answer quickly. I find that most statements of "truth" lack meaning without context. The question, "Does the culture (or cultures) I am involved in benefit me?" is an easier question to answer.

In my personal experience, the subculture of my youth I was immersed in was leading me to a lifestyle that was very destructive towards the fulfillment of my goals and dreams. There was too much emphasis on immediate and selfish gratification (often at the expense of others). Over time I became aware that it didn't serve me and I decided to make a change.

Look around your life. Watch the TV (if you normally do - otherwise I wouldn't encourage it!). Observe your friends and close personal relationships. Do you see patterns in people's behavior? Do you experience depression, hopelessness, and apathy? Or do you see people who are independently and consciously choosing and acting, with clear intent and decisions, acknowledging the impacts of their actions? Do you feel able and competent to achieve anything in your life and make your dreams come true?

Whatever your answers are, culture may have a lot more to do with it than you may think. There are many good aspects to culture, it binds us together, giving us a common understanding and way to behave. But in my honest analysis of American culture (and global culture), there are too many cultural forces working today that are quite destructive - individually and collectively. To me in an ideal world cultures do not need to be uniform, but they are synergistic, meaning that the shared beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors have shared benefit.

Language

The very most basic and often overlooked aspect of culture is language. Language defines how we think, our ability to communicate, and what we believe. If I have an idea or sensation but don't have the language to communicate it, my experience is limited to myself, marginalized, possibly even discounted as being real by myself. If I have the language to communicate what I am experiencing, it has the possibility of being understood by another.

Words are symbolic representations of the "reality" around us, and languages tend to mutate and evolve over time. They are not the "reality" but only representations of it. As much as language empowers us to share our experiences and benefit from relationships, it binds us rigidly into patterns of thinking that are hard to escape. Words are rarely devoid of emotional associations, some quite stronger than others, often having different associations to different people.

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