The individual and the pattern of culture
There are various commonly used explanation devices that have tried to explain and explore the concept of culture and all the ideas behind the race and environment with respect to human life. Benedict has penned down her thoughts in the book Patterns of Culture whose primary message revolves around the paramount importance of a learnt behavior in the existence of human beings. Concerning the issue of race, Benedict is very clear that all the items that build up culture such as the language, the social organization religion and other practices attached to culture are not in any way dependent on the germ cell of a man which indicates that culture is not connected to race under the idea of biological determinism (Benedict 12). From another angle of interpretation, Benedict also asserts that the human behavior which makes up the culture is founded upon the hints that are presented by the adjacent environment which are directly attached by physical necessities of the human beings. This brings the sense that the human behavior is patterned and that the patterns are usually learned.
As many scholars do, I would agree that configurations are seen to very important to the Benedict’s assertions but the most important that readers must recognize is that the idea of patterns is not the supposed the core idea as she has carefully crafted it. This is because Benedict has left a number of signposts for the reads whereby the discussions she initiates usually become very difficult to discern. First, Benedict rules out the concept of social thinking in the account of cultural relativity (Benedict 113). This should not be the case because various people have proved to think critically and don’t usually consider their patterns to rhyme with the normal beliefs such as faith, and the environmental and physical response.
Ruth Benedict has also presented the issue of race with relation to the concept of culture. From the assertion of Benedict, no aspect of culture is carried in the germ-cell of a person. This assertion implies that all the social organizations, language and religion are not attached to which race one belongs to because culture is a pattern (Benedict 114). In contrast to this claim made, it is evident that race is cultural identity. For instance, the Negros in the United States despite being in the culture of the whites, their identity still remained. Biological determinism is a great contributor to culture because even if people from different races may mix and observe a similar pattern of culture, the race identity still withholds some practices which are not in line with their biological determinism.
With this regard, the conclusion Benedict makes that culture is not transmitted biologically is not true because as much as a person who comes from a different race mingles and socializes with a dominant different race, some of the cultural practices he or she upholds may not be eroded. This is purely supported by the fact that social thinking ruled out by Benedict is still at work. On the same issue of race, it is evident that slavery was purely based on race. Despite much interactions with the dominate races, social transmission of culture could not transform the slavery and racism because the biological boundaries were the hindrance.
In addition, respect to other cultures is a consideration which Benedict misses out. This is because her assertions continue to hold that culture is developed from daily patterns of the environment. For instance, a man from the Middle East has a right to marry more than one wife as long as he is able to sustain them (Benedict 117). When the same person relocates to cultures which only allow monogamous marriages, social transmission or influence should not substitute the beliefs of the immigrant.
Issues such as human sacrifice and cannibalism have been accepted in various cultures despite being surrounded or being in the midst of those who oppose the practice. It is right in their own eyes despite being wrong in others’. From this argument, it therefore, impossible to stay or view the society from a value-neutral perspective. In support of this argument, relativism argues that different cultures are bound to consider different parameters of determining what is true and what is not. This implies that there is no absolute truth. Some cultures consider the acts of female mutilation as a value while others consider it to be torture. Values cannot be disapproved by facts because there is no common boundary across which they can be measured. Viewing the society from a neutral-value perspective is therefore impossible (Benedict 120).
In conclusion, Benedict has oversimplified the concepts of culture by concluding that it is a pattern. From her assertion that culture is not dependent on race, I would contrast the claim by arguing that culture is not only dependent on social influence but also biological determinism or race. Human behavior is beyond the cultural patterns because social thinking triggers the notion. Different values are interpreted differently and hence the issue of viewing them from a neutral-value perception is impossible.
Work cited
Benedict R. The individual and the Pattern of Culture 1934 Internet resource
