American culture and society

American Culture and Society 1 The general view of the American culture The American people express their culture through traditions in food, clothing, recreation and ceremonies; through the education system and institutions of learning, including museums and libraries; and through the arts; encompassing the visual, literary and performing arts American culture is rich, complex and unique It emerged from the short and rapid European conquest of an enormous landmass sparsely settled by diverse in.

American Culture and Society

1 The general view of the American culture

ceremonies; through the education system and institutions of learning, including museums and libraries; and through the arts; encompassing the visual, literary and performing arts

conquest of an enormous landmass sparsely settled by diverse indigenous peoples Although European cultural patterns predominated, especially in language, the arts and political institutions, people from Africa, Asia and North America also contributed to American culture All of these groups influenced popular tastes in music, dress, entertainment and cuisine As a result, American culture possesses an unusual mixture of patterns and forms forged from among its diverse peoples The many melodies of American culture have not always been harmonious, but its complexity has created a society that struggles to achieve tolerance and produces a uniquely casual personal style that identifies Americans everywhere The country is strongly committed to democracy, in which views of the majority prevail, and strives for equality in law and institutions

before taking firm root in European societies, where the ideas originated

enormous range of cultural activities Besides being avid readers of a great variety of book and magazines catering to differing tastes and interests Americans also attend museums, operas and ballets in large numbers They listen to country and classical music, jazz and folk music, as well

as classic rock-and-roll and new wave Americans attend and participate in basketball, football, baseball and soccer games They enjoy food from a wide range of foreign cuisines such as Chinese, Thai, Greek, French, Indian, Mexican, Italian, Ethiopian and Cuban

culture has also become increasingly international and is imported by countries around the world

2 The forces that shaped the American culture

- Development of Mass Media

money to attend live performances New technologies, such as the motion-picture camera and the photograph, revolutionized the arts by making them available to the masses

tastes, styles and points of view among different groups in the US Class and ethnic distinctions

in American culture began to fade as mass media transmitted moves and music to people throughout the US Some people criticized the growing uniformity of mass culture for lowering the general standard of taste, since mass media sought to please the largest number of people by appealing to simpler rather than more complex tastes

direction of influence as Europe and the world because consumers of American popular culture

entertainment is probably one of the strongest means by which American culture influences the world, although some countries, such as France, resist this influence because they see it as a threat to their unique national culture

3 The American way of life

available One effect was to make it difficult to enforce traditional European social conventions, such as primogeniture

agricultural economy that defined American society

Americans completed the white conquest of the west, the idea of possessing land was deeply etched into American cultural patterns and national consciousness

for theaters, museums, concert halls, art galleries, and more upscale restaurants, shops and bookstores

of cities They often rely upon federal housing subsidies to pay for apartment in less-desirable areas of the city or in public housing projects

- In recent years, the importance of home ownership has increased as higher real estate prices have made the house a valuable investment The newest home construction has made standard the comport of large kitchens, luxurious bathrooms, and small gardens

4 Food and Cuisine

healthy diet Despite this, Americans did not begin to close attention to the variety and quality of

becoming overweight

vegetables widely available and famine that common elsewhere was unknown in the US

products, pork, beef and poultry

into the American diet

breads and cookies, preserved fruits, and pickles

processed breakfast cereals, preserved meats, frozen vegetables, instant pudding and gelatins

technology, although they rely heavily on it for their daily meals

5 Sports and Recreation

ingrained part of American life Americans use sports to express interest in health and fitness and

to occupy their leisure time

investment

hockey

intercollegiate games quickly followed

major sport played in the US is ice hockey

began to enter the sport area

- Sports have become one of the most visible expression of the vast extension of democracy in

6 Arts and Letters

personal vision

American people

produced in the rest of the world

cultural discrimination against blacks, women, and other group diminished