American culture

UNIT 1. IMMIGRATION & DIVERSITY

1) Melting Pot/ Salad Bowl:_ Melting Pot: various cultures / people combined into one

_Salad Bowl: various cultues/ people mix but still remain specific culture

_ Many are bicultural: consider themselves Americans but also wish to retain their original language/ culture.

2) The Establishment of the Dominant Culture:_ The white population: greater numbers/ money/ political power

_The white population: largely English in origin, Protestant & middle class => Dominant culture. Their chareacteristics became the standard for judging other groups. Those speaking a different language: would be disadvantaged unless they became assimilated

Such Americans referred to WASPs.

_WASPs ( White Anglo-Saxon Protestants)

_ Immigrants with these characteristics would be welcome => give strong support to the values of the dominant culture.

5) The Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s & 1960s:_ The US Supreme Court declared: racially segregated public school did not provide equal educational opportunities for black Americans => illegal.

_ Black leaders were encouraged by this decision. They decided to try to end racial segragation

_ The most important leader: Martin Luther King.

_ His goals: bring about greater assimilation of black people into the larger American culture. His ideals were largely developed from basic American values.

_ Howerver, some black leaders ( Malcolm X) urged a rejection of basic American values and complete seperation of blacks from the white culture.

_ He believed that blacks must separate from whites, build their own society.

American culture

6) Race Relations after the Civil Rights Movement:_ Jesse Jackson: the first African-American to run for president of the United States

_African-Americans are now mayors of major cities & members of Congress

_ More than 80% of whites say they would vote for a black for President.

_ The bad news: there is still a gulf between the races.

_Half the whites live in the suburbs, only a fourth of the blacks.

_Many blacks are trapped in cycles of poverty, unemployment, violence, despair

_44% of blacks said the problems are due to white discrimination against them.

7) A Universal Nation:_ The dominant culture & its value system: has roots in white, Protestant , western Europe.

_ 1920s: Americans decided it was time to close the border to mass immigration.

_ 1965: the U.S made changes: allow more immigrants to come & eliminate older laws.

_ About 90% are from Asia, Latin America & the Caribean.

American culture

UNIT 3- TRADITIONS OF VALUES & BELIEFS

_ 21st century: U.S has a greater diversity of racial, ethnic, cultural and religious groups than any other nation.

_ From the beginning of the US history: there has been diversity.

_ Historically, the U.S has been viewed as “the land of opportunity” => attracting immigrants all over the world.

Six basic values ( 3 reasons & 3 prices to be paid) that have become “traditional” American values:

1) Individual freedom <> Self –Reliance_ The earliest settlers (European societies) came to the North American continent to ebtablish colonies.

_ 1776: The British colonial settlers declared independence from England and ebtablished a new nation, the United States of America.

_ The first settlers created a climate of freedom where the emphasis: individual.

_ By freedom : the desire & ability of individuals to control their own destiny without interference from the government, the church or other organized authority.

_ The word freedom: one of the most respected words in U.S.

However, a price to be paid: Self-reliance._ Individuals must learn to rely on themselves or risk losing freedom => achieving both financial and emotional independence from parents as early as possible (age 18 or 21).

Individual freedom <> Self-reliance

Equality of Oppoturnity <> Competition

Material Wealth <> Hard Work

American culture

_ Americans believe: They should take care of themselves, solve their own problems => “Stand on their own two feet”.

_ Most Americans believe they must be self-reliant in order to keep freedom.

_ If they rely too much on the support of families/ the government / organization => lose some of their freedom to do what they want.

_ To be in the mainstream of American life / have power, respect => individuals must be seen as self-reliant.

_ Although receiving financial support from charity family or government is allowed

never admired => such individuals are setting a bad example weaken the American character (many people believe).

2)Equality of Oppoturnity <> Competition_ The second reson why immigrants have been drawn to U.S

the belief that everyone has a chance to succeed here.

_ In “the old country”: their place in life was determined largley by social classes in which they were born.

_ It is important to understand what most Americans mean equality of oppoturnity.

Do not mean: everyone is or should be equal ×

Mean: each individual should have an equal chance for success ۷_ Americans see much of life as a race for success

ensures that the race is a fair one and that a person does win not just because he/she was born into a wealthy family , or lose because of race of religion

American culture

A price to be paid: Competition_ If much of life is seen as a race => a person must run the race to succeed , must compete with others.

_ People who like to compete or more successful than others are honored by being called: winners.

_ Those: do not like to compete and are not successful : losers.

especially true for men , and is becoming more and more true for women.

_ The pressure of competition

. begin in chilhood

. continue until retirement

Learning to compete successfully is part of growing up in U.S (encouraged by strong programs of competitive sports provided by public schools & community groups).

_ The pressure to compete causes Americans to be energetic, but also places a constant emotional strain.

_ When retire => feel useless and unwanted in a society giving prestige to those who compete well.

Reason why older people in U.S do not have as much honor and respect as they have in other countrie

3) Material Health Work <> Hard Work_ The third reason why immigrants have been drawn to U.S: to raise their standard of living.

_ Because of its abundant natural resources , U.S appeared to be called “land of plenty”

millions could come to seek their fortune.

_ Even if they were not able to achieve the economic success, they could be fairly certain that their children would have the opportunity for a better life.

_ The phrase “going from rags to riches”: a slogan for the Great American Dream.

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_the word “Materialism”: placing a high value on material possessions

_ Americans do not like to be called materialistic because they feel this accuses them of loving only material things and having no religious values.

A Price to be paid: Hard Work_ The North American continent was rich in natural resources but all these were undeveloped.

Only by hard work could these resources be converted into material possessions.

_ Hard work has been both necessary and rewarding for most Americans.

_ There has been a decline in high-paying jobs for factory workers.

_ Nowadays: difficult for the average workers to go “from rags to riches”

_ As the U.S competes in a global economy

many workers are losing their own jobs work longer hours for less money and fewer benefits.

no longer believe hard work brings material rewards.

CONCLUSION:_ In understanding the relationship between what Americans believe and how they live, it is important to distinguish between idealism and reality.

_ Values such as equality of opportunity and self-reliane are ideals that may not describe the reality of American life.

_ For example, equality of oppoturnity, is an ideal that is not always put into practice.

In reality, some p.p have a better chance for success than others.

.Those who are born into rich families have better chances.

. Many black Americans have fewer opportunities than white American

.Many women have feweroppoturnities than men

. Many immigrants today have fewer opportunities than who came before.

American culture

UNIT 4. GOVERNMENTThe national government is divided into 3 separate branches, based on the belief that if any one part or branch of government has all, or even most of the power, it will become a threat tp the freedom of individual citizens.

3 branches

Legislative Executive Judicial

Senate House of President Supreme Court

Representatives

(435 representatives divided among 50 states)

_ The legislative/lawmaking is called the Congress

. fire the President

. dismiss the bills/laws suggested by President ( if 2/3 votes agree).

_ The President ( chief execuitive):

. carry out laws

. summon the Congress

. appoints the Judge of the Supreme Court.

_ The Supreme Court: settles disputes

If any one of the three abuses its power, the other two may join together to stop it, through a system of Checks & Balances( limit the power of 3 branches)

The Constitution is careful in balancing the powers of Legislative & Executive branches because the two are the most powerful.

In almost every important area of governmental activity ( power to make laws, declare war,etc), the Constitution gives each of these two branches enough power to prevent the other from acting on its own.

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_ The President and both houses of Congress have almost complete political independence from each other because they are all chosen in separate elections

. the election of Congress doesn’t determine who will be President

. the presidential election doesn’t determine who will be elected to either house of Congess.

_ It is Important to note that the elections of the members of the two house of Congress are separate from each other => the Republicians may control one house, while the Democrats may control the other.

Both two must agree on all legislation, hower, before it becomes law.

_ Observers from other countries often confused by the American system

. The national government often speak with 2 conflicting voices ( that of the President & that of the Congress).

_ Although the American system strikes many observers with inefficient & disorganised, most Americans still strongly believe for 2 reasons:

. the ability to meet challenges of the past

. strong protection to individual freedom.

_ The Constitution included a Bill of Rights => protect specific individual rights & freedom from government interference ( freedom of speech or religion)

American culture

UNIT 5. EDUCATION1) The Establishment of Public school in

America:_ Educational institutions in the U.S reflect the nation’s basic values, especially the ideal of equality of oppoturnity => From elementary through college, Americans believe that everyone deserves an equal opportunity to get a good education.

_ When establised the basic system of public schools, Americans reaffirmed the principle of quality by making schools open to all classes of Americans.

financing the schools with money collected from citizens.

_ P.p believed that these insitutions would help reduce social class distinctions by educating children of all classes in the same “common schools”.

_ American public education had a strong practical content including

the teaching of vocational skills

the duties of citizenship

Public education gave Americans not only the desire to better themselves but also gave them practical tools to do so.

2) The Educational Ladder:_ Americans view the public school system – an educational ladder.

_ Most children

. start school at age 5 ( kindergarten) or age 3 ( pre-school programs)

. elementary ( 6 years ) & middle school ( 2 years) & high school ( 4 years).

American culture

_ After high school, most students go to college

. undergraduate studies -> bachelor’s degree

. bachelor’s degree -> professional studies ( law, medicine,..) & graduate studies (master’s & doctoral degrees).

_ American public school: free & open to all at the elementary & secondary level

but public universities: charge tuition & have competitive entrance requirements.

_ In U.S: no separate educational system between the wealthy & the masses. Just one system open to all.

_ Some choose to attend private schools ( associated with churches & receive financial support from them, parents pay tuition. Purpose: give religious instruction to children.

_ There are also some elite private schools –=> serve upper-chass children / pay high tuition.

There is another inequality in the America education system

_ Because of the way that schools are funded, the education quality varies greatly:

. School districts that have middle class or wealthy family have more tax money to spend on education.

. Wealthier school districts have beautiful school buildings <> Poorer have older with less equipment.

FIGURES:

. More than 90% of the money for schools comes from the local level ( cities & counties).

. The amount of money spent on education: varies $7000 per child / wealthy surburb -> $12000 / inner-city school.

American culture

3) Attending an American University:_ Money: an increasingly factor in a college education.

_ All university students must pay tuition expenses in the U.S. There are a number of financial aid programs in the form of loans and scholarships available at both public & private schools.

However, the expenses of buying books & living away from home make it difficult to attend university.

_ Many students must work during their college years to help meet the cost.

_ Students who cannot afford to go away to college => attend community college programs for 2 years.

4) The Money Value of Education:_ The belief in U.S: the more schooling p.p have, the more money they will earn when they leave school.

_ In recent years, there has been a change in the job market.

. In the past: possibile to get a high-paying factory job without a college education (immigrants)

. However, the advert of new technologies => more education is required.

Many of the new jobs require a college education / graduate degree <> low-paying jobs in the service sector ( fast-food restaurants, small stores, hotels…)

5) Educating the Individual: _ American schools tend to put more emphasis on developing critical thinking skills.

_ Students encouraged to express their own opinions & think for themselves.

_ The goal of American education system: teach to children how to learn and to help them reach their maximum potential.

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_ The development of social & interpersonal skills = the development of intellectual skills.

_ To help develop the other important skills, schools’ve added extracurricular activities ( activities outside classroom) .

_ Grades on high school courses & scores on tests: very important & so are the outside activities.

. Team sports ( football, baseball….): important because they teach “winning spirit”.

. Student government: designed to develop competitive, politicial & social skills.

_ There are clubs and activities for every student interest ( art, music, drama, debate…)=

6) The Increasing Responsibilities of Public Schools

_ Americans place the weight of many of their ideals, hopes, problems on the nation’s public school system.

_ Public school often expected to solve student problems.

_The education of new immigrant children provides the public school system some challenges

_ Many children come from countries where they have not had strong educational preparation, academic skills: low

_ All children must learn English (immigrant child took 5-7 years to compete with English-speaking American children)

7) The Standard Movement:_ International comparisons of education: American students do not perform as well in math, science as many other developed countries.

The federal government has set national goals for education

_ To ensure that standards are met, many states now require students to pass a series of examinations in such subjects ( reading, writing…) before they can graduate from high school.

American culture

8) Multicultural Education:_ The changing populations of students in American schools has brought some changes in what is taught at school.

. Ethnic & racial minorities have criticized schools & textbooks for focusing too much on the literature & historical events of Anglo-Europeans or white males => ignored the contributions of African-Americans, Latinos & Native Americans.

_ During the 1990s, schools began to examine seriously their curricular

_ Many schools have adopted

history or social studies textbooks including more info about African- American

American literature texts including poetry & fiction written by Americans of all ethnic background.

UNIT 6. FAMILY1) Family Structures:

_ If Americans asked to name the members of their families, married American aldults:

. name their husband/wife & their children => “immediate family”

. name their father, sisters… => define them as “separate units – living in separate households.

. aunts, uncles, cousins…. => “extended family”.

_ In 1950s: 70% American households : “classic American family” – husband/wife/2 children.

. father – breadwinner ; mother –homemaker

_ But In 1990s: only 8%

_ Factors: . Young people are marrying & having children later in life, some choose not to have children at all

American culture

. People are living longer after their children are grown & they often end up alone

. High rate of divorce.

2) The Emphasis on Individual Freedom:_ Americans view the family as a group with purpose: advance the happiness of individual.

_ Family name & honor are less important.

_ American family is rarely self- supporting

Ex: A farmer’son is likely to go college , leave the farm , take a different job in different location.

_ Americans do not like to have controls placed on them by other family members.

3) Marriage & Divorce:_ Marriages are not arranged.

_ Young p.p can find a husband/wife on their own = > Parents have little control

_ Americans believe p.p should fall in love & decide to marry s.o so they can live happily.

_ The most important value: companionship / economic support…: less important.

_ If the couple not happy => get a divorce easily in most parts of America.

_ Some states have “no-fault” divorce ( neither has fault).

_ Divorce: nowadays so common that it is no longer unacceptable, children: not embarrassed to say their parents are divorced.

4) Equality in the Family:_ The belief in quality: strong.

_ There is less respect/fear of the father but more affection => much more equality between parents & children.

_ In fact, some Americans are worried that there is too much democracy in the home.

American culture

_ Some parents seem to have little or no control the behavior of their teenage children._ Americans give their young p.p a lot of freedom => independent & self-reliant.

_ Age 18: “leave the nest”, go to college or get a job to support themselves.

_ “boomerang kids”: those are unable to find jobs supporting the lifestyle they have grown up & choose to move back with their parents for a time.

UNIT 7. LEISURE TIME

1) Sports & American Values:_ 3 most popular organised sports: football, basketball, baseball.

_ Women’sports : growing in popularity & have more funding & support than in the past.

_ Americans believe: learning how to win helps develop the habits to compete successfully in later life.

_ Amateur athletics: teach young people traditional American values

_ Professional sports: provide an example to inspire the young to take part in organised sports.

_ Organised sports: “ the national religion”.

_ Sports is education.

2) Competition carried to an Extreme ?_ Although sports in the U.S are glorified by many, there are others critical: An excessive desire to win can weaken rather than strenghthen traditional American values.

_ When the idea of winning is carried to excess: honorable competition can turn into disorder & violence.

_ Most people still say that competiton in organised sports does more to strenghthen the national character than to corrupt it.

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_Another criticism: players & team owners get too much money, while fans have to pay more & more for tickets. Ex: Basketball, baseball stars get multi-million-dollar contracts similar to movie stars.

3) Recreation: A Time for Self – Improvement_ Americans prefer recreation that requires high level of physical activity

_ 3 fastest growing aldult recreational sports: jogging/running, tennis, snow kiing.

_ “We like to work hard & play hard” : a well-known expression.

_ Long-distance marathon races: so popular that organisers have to limit the number.

Few expect to win – most just want to finish the race.

_ People say they find them relaxing because the activity is different from the kind they do in the world of work ( indoor office work).

_Interest & participation in cultural activities (going to symphony concerts, visit museums, hear lectures) : improve people’s minds or skills : also popular.

_ Many also enjoy hobbies ( weaving, candle making,etc).

4) Health & Fitness:_ Not all Americans are physically fit.

_ Study shows: less than half of Americans exercise in their leisure time – they just don’t do it.

_ Television news programs urge people to eat more vegetables & warn of the dangers of high-fat diets, high cholesterol levels.

_ Americans say: they pay attention to the nutritional content of food but also they eat they want.

_ Experts say: a combination of social, cultural, psychological factors.

_ Americans eat larger portions

_ Another factor: Americans’ love of fastfood. They are consuming more& more hamburgers, french fries because they like them & cheap.

_ Another factor: Americans’ busy lifestyle. It takes time to prepare fresh vegetables and fish, stopping at KFC on the way home from work is a much faster alternative.

American culture

5) The Impact of Television:_ As Americans have gotten heavier as a population, the image of beautiful woman:

much slimmer.

_ Television shows, commercials feature: slender actressess.

_ Beer/ soft drink commercials: thin girls in bikinis.

many teenage girls have become insecure about bodies & obessed with losing weight.

_ The more people watch TV, the less they exercise.

_ “couch potatoes”: p.p spend much free time lying on the couch watching TV.

_ The average family TV set: 6 hours/ day.

_ Children watching TV programs, videotapes: 4-5 hours/ day.

_ Many aldults worried about the impact of TV on the nation’s children. Many children are not getting as much exercise as they should, do not spend enough time reading => lower their ability to achieve in school.

_ Recent study: too much sex & violence.

_ Public television provides many educational shows, but most people (children) spend their majority of time watching commercial television.

_ Some argue parents are responsible but how ? Children often watch are either not in the room or at home.

_ The popularity of home computers & “surfing the net” has brought the whole new world of leisure-time activities to Americans. Some value the oppoturnities it brings, while others prefer spending their time in “chat room”, communicating with friends or family, playing computer games.

_ Computers are so extremely popular. Now parents have to worry about monitoring the computer in addition to monitoring the TV.