There is a quote of Edouard Herriot that I really like which is “culture is what is left when everything else is forgotten”. I think it is true because as Gandhi said “a nation’s culture resides in the heart and in the soul of its people”. Culture is not something natural, it is something that we learn during our lives. People learn culture to form their own personal and cultural identity. By that way, they conserve culture. I myself feel that my identity is strongly influenced by cultural elements presented in my family as well as in the community and the whole society around me. And certainly, this factor affect the way I communicate with other people in the society. In this essay, I am about to share about my personal identity and explore
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I have learned cultural elements such as values, beliefs of Vietnamese through my parents’ teaching as well as in everyday activities at school or in society. Belief is defined as “an idea that people assume to be true about the world” and values is defined as “what a culture regards as good or bad, right or wrong, fair or unfair, just, or unjust, beautiful or ugly, clean or dirty, valuable or worthless, appropriate or inappropriate, and kind or cruel” (Lustig & Koester, 2010, p. 86,88). Regarding to values in Vietnam, in Vietnamese culture, women are expected to live by the "four virtues": hard work, beauty, refined speech and excellent conduct. Also, Vietnam is an agriculture country, so the requirement of Vietnamese people certainly includes industriousness. My parents have always taught me the value of hard work since I was a little girl. Additionally, as I can observe from media like in household appliances advertisements, women always play the role as homemakers who are in charge of every domestic chores. Vietnamese valued their traditional ideal of male superior. Since the highest status in Vietnamese families is given to the man (father), he had absolute authority in the household. His position as provider for the family was unchallenged because he provided the main source of income for the household, he was never expected to work in the kitchen or to cook. Those facts make …show more content…
In the first meeting with strangers, for example, I often avoid eye-contact, especially with men because there exists a distance between us. I also tend to smile to express respect when verbal expression is not needed or not appropriate because in Vietnam nonverbal symbol like this can convey a lot of meaning. In other situations, there are several things to notice. Firstly, since people in my country value modesty, it is preferred to avoid bragging or showing off. When I give a compliment I never expect a "thank you" in return. In this case, a verbal expression of thanks refers to a lack of modesty from the person who receives the compliment. Instead, I expect a smile or a blush in the face because it is considered the proper response to a compliment. If a verbal response is necessary, he or she would deny the compliment by saying that he or she does not deserve it. Secondly, in collectivistic culture like Vietnamese culture, I learn that face-saving is integral, so when talking with other people, I often try to avoid conflicts by speaking sensitive topics indirectly. For instance, when I saw my classmate steal the money of other, I talked to him privately to advise him to return that amount of money then confess his mistake instead of criticizing him publically in front of the class. That’s also the way I deal with
I have learned cultural elements such as values, beliefs of Vietnamese through my parents’ teaching as well as in everyday activities at school or in society. Belief is defined as “an idea that people assume to be true about the world” and values is defined as “what a culture regards as good or bad, right or wrong, fair or unfair, just, or unjust, beautiful or ugly, clean or dirty, valuable or worthless, appropriate or inappropriate, and kind or cruel” (Lustig & Koester, 2010, p. 86,88). Regarding to values in Vietnam, in Vietnamese culture, women are expected to live by the "four virtues": hard work, beauty, refined speech and excellent conduct. Also, Vietnam is an agriculture country, so the requirement of Vietnamese people certainly includes industriousness. My parents have always taught me the value of hard work since I was a little girl. Additionally, as I can observe from media like in household appliances advertisements, women always play the role as homemakers who are in charge of every domestic chores. Vietnamese valued their traditional ideal of male superior. Since the highest status in Vietnamese families is given to the man (father), he had absolute authority in the household. His position as provider for the family was unchallenged because he provided the main source of income for the household, he was never expected to work in the kitchen or to cook. Those facts make …show more content…
In the first meeting with strangers, for example, I often avoid eye-contact, especially with men because there exists a distance between us. I also tend to smile to express respect when verbal expression is not needed or not appropriate because in Vietnam nonverbal symbol like this can convey a lot of meaning. In other situations, there are several things to notice. Firstly, since people in my country value modesty, it is preferred to avoid bragging or showing off. When I give a compliment I never expect a "thank you" in return. In this case, a verbal expression of thanks refers to a lack of modesty from the person who receives the compliment. Instead, I expect a smile or a blush in the face because it is considered the proper response to a compliment. If a verbal response is necessary, he or she would deny the compliment by saying that he or she does not deserve it. Secondly, in collectivistic culture like Vietnamese culture, I learn that face-saving is integral, so when talking with other people, I often try to avoid conflicts by speaking sensitive topics indirectly. For instance, when I saw my classmate steal the money of other, I talked to him privately to advise him to return that amount of money then confess his mistake instead of criticizing him publically in front of the class. That’s also the way I deal with