Culture & Identity

Watch

• How Culture Drives Behaviours | Julien S. Bourrelle | TEDxTrondheim ↗TEDx Talks
• Building Identity as a Third Culture Kid | Erik Vyhmeister | TEDxAndrewsUniversity ↗TEDx Talks
• Kashmir Documentary 4K: History, Conflict, Culture & Travel | The Real Story Explained ↗Global Draft

Read

• Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism ↗This seminal work dissects the origins and spread of nationalism, revealing how nations are not ancient entities but rather social constructs, essential for understanding the foundations of collective identity.Benedict Anderson
• Multicultural Citizenship: A Liberal Theory of Minority Rights ↗A foundational text for liberal democracies grappling with diversity, this book offers a robust framework for reconciling individual rights with the collective rights of minority cultures, particularly pertinent for Canadian policy.Will Kymlicka
• Identity and Violence: The Illusion of Destiny ↗Nobel laureate Sen argues against the dangerous reduction of individuals to singular identities, advocating for the recognition of our multiple affiliations as a bulwark against conflict and a path to greater understanding.Amartya Sen
• Sources of the Self: The Making of the Modern Identity ↗A monumental philosophical inquiry into the historical evolution of the modern self, this work illuminates the moral and spiritual sources that underpin contemporary identity, offering profound insights into human flourishing.Charles Taylor
• Cultural Identity and DiasporaThis influential essay explores the dynamic and complex nature of cultural identity, particularly for diasporic communities, challenging static notions and highlighting the ongoing processes of formation and transformation.Stuart Hall

Voices to follow

• Kwame Anthony Appiah ↗His incisive work explores the complexities of identity in a globalised world, advocating for a nuanced cosmopolitanism.Professor of Philosophy and Law, New York University
• Judith Butler ↗A foundational voice in gender studies, whose theories on performativity have profoundly reshaped understandings of identity and social construction.Distinguished Professor, University of California, Berkeley
• Arjun Appadurai ↗Offers critical insights into the cultural dimensions of globalisation, mapping how identities are formed and transformed by global flows of people, media, and ideas.Goddard Professor of Media, Culture, and Communication, New York University
• Roxane Gay ↗Her sharp, unflinching essays dissect contemporary culture, gender, and race, offering a vital perspective on intersectional identities.Author and Professor of English, Yale University

Glossary

• BelongingBelonging is the feeling of being accepted, supported, and connected to a group, community, or place. It's knowing you fit in and are valued. For example, feeling like you truly belong to your school's debate team because your teammates respect your ideas and cheer you on.
• CultureCulture is the shared way of life for a group of people, including their beliefs, customs, arts, and food. It's like the invisible rules and shared experiences that connect them. For example, celebrating Diwali with family, eating traditional foods, and performing specific rituals are all parts of Indian culture.
• DiscriminationDiscrimination is the unfair treatment of a person or group based on their background, religion, gender, or other characteristics, often because of prejudice. It's when negative opinions lead to negative actions. For example, if a shop owner refuses to serve a customer because of their accent, that's discrimination.
• DiversityDiversity means having a wide range of different things or people within a group or society. It celebrates the unique qualities and backgrounds everyone brings. For example, a classroom with students from different states, speaking different languages, and having various interests shows great diversity.
• IdentityYour identity is how you see yourself and how others see you, based on things like your family, where you're from, your beliefs, and your interests. It's what makes you unique. For example, being a student, a football player, a big sister, and someone who loves art are all parts of your personal identity.
• InclusionInclusion means making sure everyone feels welcome, respected, and able to participate fully, no matter their background or differences. It's about creating a space where everyone belongs. For example, a school club that actively invites students with different interests and ensures everyone's ideas are heard is practicing inclusion.
• PrejudicePrejudice is when you form an unfair and often negative opinion about someone or a group of people without knowing them properly, usually based on stereotypes. It's like judging a book by its cover. For example, if someone assumes a person wearing a certain type of clothing is unfriendly before even talking to them, that's prejudice.
• StereotypeA stereotype is an oversimplified and often untrue idea or image that many people have about a particular type of person or group. It's like putting everyone into the same box without getting to know them. For example, thinking that all teenagers are lazy and only care about social media is a stereotype.
• TraditionA tradition is a belief, custom, or way of doing something that has been passed down from older generations to younger ones over a long time. It helps connect people to their past. For example, celebrating your birthday every year with a cake and candles is a tradition in many families.
• ValuesValues are the important beliefs and principles that guide how a person or a group lives and makes decisions, showing what they think is right, good, or important. They are like your internal compass. For example, if honesty and hard work are important values to you, you'll try to be truthful and put effort into your studies.

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Where this connects to other fields, and why it's worth knowing.

• Emotion & Emotional Regulation Psychology

  A handful of facial expressions, like fear or disgust, seem to mean the same thing to humans everywhere. But the 'display rules' for when you're allowed to show them are wildly cultural: one society expects loud wailing at a funeral, another demands a stone face. The feeling may be universal; the permission to show it is taught by your culture.

• Color Theory Arts & Design

  People from cultures that don't have a separate word for 'blue' are measurably slower at picking a blue square out from green ones. Same eyes, same light, but no word means the brain sorts the colors less sharply. The words your culture hands you actually reach back and shape what your eyes can quickly notice. Language edits sight.

• Mental Health Health

  In one country depression shows up as deep sadness and guilt; in another, the very same illness shows up as a sore back or an aching stomach. So mental illness isn't purely a fixed thing in the brain. The culture you grow up in helps shape what the suffering even feels like and how it comes out.

• Mythology and Epics Literature

  Every group has its famous stories, and knowing them, and reading them the 'right' way, quietly proves you're one of us. It works like a password. Shared myths aren't just entertainment; they're a test that sorts who belongs inside the group from who stands outside it.