Week 4

This week in sociology we learned all about American culture and what we value in our society. Our reading of 'Bemused in America' gave us insight on how culture may be viewed as different from other cultures around the world. Through this reading we learned all the things we do that are seen as weird by other cultures. An example of this is all the different phrases we have. As Americans, we do not simply say "so and so died" we try to make the situitation sound nicer by saying they "passed away" or are "no longer with us". These phrases are seen as confusing to other cultures as they are more up front about death and are not afraid to come right out and say that this person has died.

This ties into the concept of American values. We value control and fear death, while other cultures value fate and destiny. We always have to arrive at a place on time, or we are seen as rude. In other countries, they value human interaction instead of time. They believe that it is better to be late somewhere due to a valuable conversation than arrive on time but cut all conversations short due to aways keeping an eye on the clock. This is especially true for myself, as I get anxious when I am not in my seat by the bell and personally value it when someone is on time, or even early. I view lateness as rude and would never intentionally make someone wait for me. I believe that no ones time is greater than another persons, so they should not expect me to wait for them if they do not value my time.

A valuable example from class is the movie "Tuesdays with Morrie". This movie depicts the life of a man and how it changes when his college sociology professor is dying. His professor teaches him life lessons and why the values of American society are not what they should be in this day and age. He teaches Mitch (the main character) that we should not be afraid of death, as it is their time to go. He also learns that our connections with people are often times cut short because we are afraid they will not last together. Morrie teaches Mitch the absurdness of this reasoning, as we are going to lose someone eventually so we may as well forge great relationships with people. This movie provided examples of American values and knocked down everything I once valued. Morrie teaches that we should not keep track of time, as it is the people in our lives that mean the most. From now on, I am hoping to keep this idea with me when I am avoiding conversations in the hallway simply to arrive on time to class.