We as human beings almost always communicate, perceive, and think using language. In addition, there are a lot of languages in this world. Language does not necessarily divide and define cultures, but examining the differences between languages is a good way to begin thinking about the relationship between communication and culture. Rather than being the determinant of where we belong, language is more like a characteristic of our culture. In order to avoid being misleading, first I would like to define what I mean by culture.
1. What is culture?
Many people often think the word “culture” means a national culture, such as Japanese, American, and Chinese and so on. But this is just one facet of the word; the word “culture” includes a wider range of meanings. For example, there are the cultures of age, gender, class, and religion.
The culture of age refers to the different culture of young, middle-aged, and old people. This culture is like historical culture. Culture is ever changing, reflecting the current of the times. The culture of gender refers to the customs peculiar to each gender, like Takaradsuka, Sumo etc. Takaradsuka is an all-female performing troupe and Sumo is a male-only sport that women are not allowed into the Sumo ring. Class culture refers to the difference in culture between the working class, the middle class and the upper class. Among these cultures, people have different values and customs. People in the working class are most aware of a difficulty in earning money and ones in the upper class are more apt to hold one’s authority and the honor.
Language between cultures
We as human beings almost always communicate, perceive, and think using language. In addition, there are a lot of languages in this world. Language does not necessarily divide and define cultures, but examining the differences between languages is a good way to begin thinking about the relationship between communication and culture. Rather than being the determinant of where we belong, language is more like a characteristic of our culture. In order to avoid being mislea...