M2 Lesson 1 | What is Culture?

Culture, according to Mbarek Morocco, is “the acquired pair of glasses through which we see life”. To
Edward Tylor, culture is “that complex whole, which encompasses beliefs, practices, values, attitudes,
laws, norms, artifacts, symbols, knowledge, and everything that a person learns and shares as a member
of society.” To put it simply, culture refers to a “set of common values, norms, beliefs and ideas shared
by members of the same group”.

There are seven aspects of culture:

1. Culture is shared
2. Culture is transmitted
3. Culture is learned
4. Culture is social
5. Culture varies from society to society
6. Culture is continuous and cumulative
7. Culture is gratifying and idealistic
There are also many different types of culture, depending on the classification. When classified
according to physical perception or tangibility, culture may be material or non-material. When classified
according to the relation to the culture shared by the general population, there are subcultures and
countercultures.