Culture Arises from Human Nature :: Mirror for Man Essays

In his book, Mirror for Man, Clyde Kluckhohn presents his views on the development of purification. Kluckhohn believes that culture develops out of a combination of human nature, human biology, and the laws of nature. There argon vast deviations in the habits of the polar commonwealths of the world. An example could be the eating patterns of Americans comp ard with those of Europeans. new(prenominal) could be the spatial relations of American students compared with the attitudes of Asian students. At the same time, thither are some characteristics which are present in all societies, such as peer pressure. In my opinion Clyde Kluckhohn is correct when he states that human port is affected by both human nature and human biology. Kluckhohn gives some(prenominal) examples from his life experience illustrating how two cultures can have very different behavior patterns. During a recent trip to West Germany, I encountered a similar difference. I quickly discovered that the most s triking difference between the eating habits of Americans and German was the expression in which the knife and single out were utilize. In Germany most people eat with their class in their go away hand and their knife in their right hand. In addition the fork is almost always used upside down and the knife is used as a "pusher", much like Americans use bread. When I questioned a German friend about this difference I was impress by her response. She explained that the "German" style of eating was the only "civilized" way and that the "American" style was "sloppy" and "Barbarian". Another example of heathenish differences could be the procreational attitudes of Americans as opposed to those of many Asians. Many people in the United States are surprised and alarmed by the high-pitched test score and college admissions averages of Asian students in contrast to the falling averages of students of other ethnic backgrounds, includi ng white. This discrepancy is directly related to cultural differences between American and many Asian nations. In most Asian cultures education is potently encouraged and supported and has been for generations. On the other hand, in America education is often a low priority. Many American students look at school as a burden rather than a venture to gain knowledge. At the same time, many American parents reinforce this attitude because they were raised with a similar belief. Kluckhohn is careful to point out that there are characteristics which are present in all cultures.