American Cultural Patterns: A Cross-Cultural Perspective

Customer Reviews:

Insightful.......2007-08-16

A fantastic book for understanding how much our culture defines us. The authors do explain that they are addressing the main American culture (versus our rich group of subcultures). Additionally, they do not privilege one culture over another (as one reviewer stated). Their goal is to (1) explain how deeply our cultural responses are ingrained and (2)to help us recognize that our American outlook is not universal--amazingly there are other ways of perceiving the world than the way most Americans do. The book is not a quick, easy read--both authors are university professors (who probably use their book as one of their required readings ;D) Academics & those used to scholarly texts will get the most out of, everyone else will need to be patient and take it slow.

Useful but dry academic read.......2007-04-15

I read this book as part of a sociology class back in my college days. The intended audience is the college student, scholar, and academic. It was a difficult read for me because it's not intended for the layperson.

I'm an American citizen but was born in West Germany and spent the first nine years in that country. Both my parents are Korean. At 9 years of age we moved to the United States. I've more or less lived on the west coast since then. I was aware of cultural differences since my youth.

This book helped me to understand why native Americans (particularly WASPs), think and act the way they do. The book doesn't claim that all Americans behave the same way, but that as a group, they generally do tend think and behave in a similar manner. Communication differences do exist between Koreans, Germans, and Americans. Communication differences also exist between subgroups of a certain country. For example, minority groups such as black Americans, Hispanic Americans, and so forth, typically not only know how to communicate according to white mainstream cultural standards, but also their own.

If you are new to sociological terms, you'll need to look up a few words in a good dictionary. If you are used to academic reading, you should have no problem with this book. Please keep in mind that the focus is on explaining the white American majority communication pattern.

Perhaps their patterns would be useful for knitting..........2005-12-06

This book seeks to look at American cultural patterns within a cross-cultural perspective. A number of cultural stereotypes are compared with the American stereotype, particularly Japan. I say "cultural stereotypes" because this is what is primarily used. At times, I have to disagree completely with the authors' interpretation of the meaning behind the actions of the cross-cultural experience. For example they give some examples of difficulties the author(s) had in Japan and then they explain why this occurred, always giving the benefit of the doubt to the Japanese culture. However, if that same action would be seen as an insult by a Japanese person I really see no reason for the authors to explain it away using a Japanese cultural value. In other words, they fail to critically analyse different cultures either from within or from an American perspective. The end result is that you are to assume that other cultures always treat people with respect and it is only an American-centric view that would think otherwise. I am not American and can claim something of a dispassionate view on the subject.

At first glance this book appears to be a useful, quick read for those going overseas but in reality it is a tough slog through some unanalysed stereotypes. This book fails to get past surface meanings to the deeper reality of the cross-cultures with which it contrasts American culture.

Learning about the American way of thinking.......2000-06-23

I read this book as part of a class I took called socio-cultural perspectives on language and found this book very interesting and insightful. I teach German at an American university and since I am not American it is important to have an understanding of American culture. A lack of understanding can lead to miscommunications and frustrations both on part of the learner as well as the instructor. Though American Cultural Patterns is somewhat philosophical in its approach, it remains a very readable book with numerous comparisons between American and other cultures which are very helpful. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in knowing more about American culture, be it for professional or personal purposes.

The Chrysanthemum and the Sword: Patterns of Japanese Culture

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Guide to occupying forces
Explains the riddle of Japan
Over-Idealized, spawning what later became myths
Seminal anthropological study on Japan and its people
Briefing to American leadership during World War II

The Chrysanthemum and the Sword: Patterns of Japanese Culture
Ruth Benedict
Manufacturer: Mariner Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Japan | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

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Customs & Traditions | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0395500753

Book Description

A recognized classic of cultural anthropology, this book explores the political, religious, and economic life of Japan from the seventh century through the mid-twentieth, as well as personal family life.

Customer Reviews:

Guide to occupying forces.......2006-05-02

While I lived four years in Japan, I read many cultural books. Most authors referenced the work done by Ruth Benedict. It's my understanding that the military needed her ideas about the enemy to help win the war, and to effectively occupy Japan following WWII.
Japanese survivors from WWII have universally told me that American soldiers, following the war, were very kind, respectful, honorable, and helpful to the poor, defeated Japanese in their home country. They seemed genuinely interested in getting Japan back on its feet, and today's elderly Japanese feel a great respect and indebtedness towards those occupying forces from America.
American occupying policy was put together fairly quickly. Decisions were made, including whether and in what form the Emperorship should continue. A cornerstone for guiding these decisions was Ruth Benedict's book, "The Crysanthemum and the Sword."
Steps taken and structures put in place by America in post-war Japan were consistent, well-thought, and extraordinarily successful.
As Americans, we really needed a Ruth Benedict to analyze Iraq and inspire our leaders to put together an occupying strategy there that would acknowledge the strengths of Iraqui culture and re-shape them for success. Instead, we seem not to have a clear plan of who Iraq is or what to do with them.
How could we have done so well in the 40's and so poorly now?
Anyway, read Ruth Benedict's remarkable book and marvel at the skill of her analysis.

Explains the riddle of Japan.......2006-02-19

This classic of anthropology commissioned as a study by US military during WWII and completed after the war was over, is a remarkable study of Japanese ethos. Benedict had no direct access to the culture of Japan because of the war situation, so she uses historical, literary, anecdotal data to construct the ethos of Japan and explain why Japanese fight so hard and surrender without hatred, why they dislike anyone showing them a favour, and why they went to war till the emperor chose peace.

She bases the bulk of her analysis on the concepts of Japanese 'indebtedness' - giri and gimu. She states that Japanese do not follow a fixed catalog of common values nor do they have a fixed idea of character but have clear cut ideas about the hierarchy of duties based on the Japanese social structure.

These duties make life very hard for an average Japanese person, but they bear it, because clearing the debt is very important for a Japanese. And debt includes debt to one's name, which is cleared through revenge in the Samurai tradition.

Benedict's analysis correctly explains why the Japanese sought to conquer and rule other countries, why they fought so hard and bitterly, and yet accepted peace so easily.

It also explains much that happened after the book was written - the rise of Japanese industry, management and technology. Japan cleared the debt to its name (due to its loss in war) through commerce.

Her other insights are generally in harmony with other writers on Japan from management theorists explaining Japanese personnel culture to cultural theorists like Geert Hofstede, who rate Japan as the most masculine of all cultures.

Over-Idealized, spawning what later became myths.......2006-02-17

While this book covers many aspects of Japanese culture and behavior, making some of the seminal distinctions (e.g. shame v. guilt culture), it also adds up to a misleading picture in my opinion. Beautifully written, Benedict throws around abstractions and generalizations that I found added up to mythmaking, and ultimately popularised misleading notions about the honor, dignity, etc.

Perhaps I have a skewed view, having lived in Japan when many thought it permanently at the pinnacle of the capitalist world (how quaint does that seem today?), but I saw virtually none of the stuff that Benedict claims is the underlieing reality of life there. I would guess that, since she did not live in Japan and do her work on-site, it was inevitable that she constructed an ideal world and hence ignored the banalities and ugliness that I witnessed every day there. All the stuff about Samarai codes and delicate intimacies, in my opinion, are peripheral - to be sure, they can be found, but the everyday reality there is far darker, far bleaker, than this study implies.

As such, this book reflects about as much reality in Japan as Disney or the cartoon Rex Morgan would for the US. It obscures as much as it illuminates and a lot of people have wasted time trying to base their understanding on it rather than what their eyes told them. There is far less underneath than we would care to admit - perhaps, just perhaps, Japan is as ugly as it appears.

Seminal anthropological study on Japan and its people.......2005-08-15

Those reviewers saying that this book is outdated have obviously never "set foot in Japan" (as one reviewer criticizes the author). Even though I have dozens of friends who live and work in Japan while loving, laughing, crying and living with Japanese, there are still some things about Japanese behavior and society that utterly confuse us as a group. Many Japanese of today who participate in our discussions are also unable to satisfactorily explain their way of thinking to us.

To my surprise, several of these mysteries were explained in great detail here, in a book several decades old! As many students of sociology know, societal change takes time. While Japan's advancement has been remarkably fast, the motivations and analyses laid out in this book still apply to most Japanese today. At the very least, they form the bedrock of the convictions for the middle-aged Japanese of today who dictate political and social policy in the power circles of Japan.

This book is value not only because of how it showcases differences (this is done only for illustrative purposes) but for how it defines and contrasts the Japanese way with what we know, and in doing so allows us to understand them to a higher degree. Very highly recommended.

Briefing to American leadership during World War II.......2005-05-27

The Chrysanthemum and the Sword describes clearly and succinctly how the Japanese lived and thought in the 1930s and 1940s. The book developed from research into Japanese society conducted for the American leadership, civilian and military, during the Second World War.

Benedict describes social customs and traditions found in Japan at the outbreak of WWII. For instance, Japanese love bathing and the eldest male gets to go first and women having their period go last; everyone uses the same water but this is no worse than everyone sharing a pool because bathers wash >>before < < getting into the tub. Another tradition is that women usually control the family purse with the husbands handing over their wages to their wives and getting an allowance. This is still largely true today.

For over ten years I avoided this book because it was written by someone who had never been to Japan and also because I avoid books that "explain" the Japanese. So when I picked up a copy lying around at a coffee shop and began skimming, I was very surprised at how insightful it was. Benedict was unable to do her research in Japan because of the war, so she obtained all her material from interviews with Japanese POWs and also with second generations Japanese-Americans interned in American concentration camps.

It is still worth reading today. Things have changed in Japan, as they have everywhere else in the world, but her people are still basically the same.

The Shaman: Patterns of Religious Healing Among the Ojibway Indians (Civilization of the American Indian Series)

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Searching for the stoic Indian
Native Americans Live in a Universe
Excellent synopsis of the shamanic practices of the Ojibwe.

The Shaman: Patterns of Religious Healing Among the Ojibway Indians (Civilization of the American Indian Series)
John A. Grim
Manufacturer: University of Oklahoma Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Russia | History | Subjects | Books

Native American | Earth-Based Religions | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Shamanism | Earth-Based Religions | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Native Healing | Alternative Medicine | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
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Accessories:

ASIN: 0806121068

Customer Reviews:

Searching for the stoic Indian.......2007-03-29

I compliment the author for the amount of work put into this book and the attempt to represent shamanism. However, it is rather patronizing in its presentation.

Native Americans Live in a Universe.......2003-02-04

Thourough account of shamanism in the Ojibwe society, but applicable to the phenomenon as a whole. A great researcher, Mr. Grim provides perspectives from other areas of the world such as Siberia to exhibit similarities of human experience both in the shamanic realm and in the human psyche.

Excellent synopsis of the shamanic practices of the Ojibwe........1999-04-26

The author wisely places the practices of shamanism within the cultural context. At no point does the author make the mistake of reducing the shamanic practices to deities and such but correctly emphasizes the "forces" and movements of nature of which the shaman is an "expression." Excellent read for anyone generally interested in shamanism or specifically in the Ojibwe practices of the Mide society.

World History: Patterns of Civilization 1990

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World History: Patterns of Civilization 1990
Beers
Manufacturer: Pearson Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0139686452

Average customer rating:

This book is amazing.

World History: Patterns of Civilization
Burton Beers
Manufacturer: Pearson Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

Civilization & Culture | Historical Study | History | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0139681248

Customer Reviews:

This book is amazing........1997-04-06

This book is great. I learned a lot about the patterns of civilization. Now I feel civilized, and more knowledgable about the world. Now that I understand its patterns, that is. It all makes sense now. So what should I do? Pass this book on to a friend

The Shape of the Future: (Vol. I) The Critical, Overarching Impact of Human Settlement Pattern on Citizens' Economic, Social and Environmental Well-being, ... in 21st Century New Urban Regions.

Average customer rating:

Amazing book

The Shape of the Future: (Vol. I) The Critical, Overarching Impact of Human Settlement Pattern on Citizens' Economic, Social and Environmental Well-being, ... in 21st Century New Urban Regions.
E. M Risse
Manufacturer: SYNERGY/Planning, Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: CD-ROM

Urban & Land Use Planning | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0967810809

Product Description

This is a CD Rom version of a book already offered by Amazon.com. The CD Rom includes a PDF file with the entire book and a brief introduction to the third printing. This book has been sold by Amazon.com since Septermber 2000.

Customer Reviews:

Amazing book.......2001-01-02

The Shape of the Future is potentially the most ambitious book you'll ever read and one that will change the way you look at almost everything - transportation, politics, development, housing, societal relationships and more. Among the book's goals as outlined by author E M Risse is to 'Lay the groundwork for the development of a unified field theory of economic, social and physical human activity.' He's produced a stunning package of ideas, and in presenting his arguments for how our communities should be organized he debunks many of the common assumptions we hold about ourselves and our communities. This is an extremely well-researched book as well, quoting from (and often disagreeing with) experts such as James Howard Kuntsler, Joel Garreau and others. Risse draws from nearly every academic area - you'll find references to the works of Orwell, Freud and Machiavelli in here too. Read it to find out why they belong. This is a remarkable book and an essential resource for anyone wanting to join the debate.

When the Empire Strikes Out: Are We Repeating the Pattern of Past Civilizations?

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When the Empire Strikes Out: Are We Repeating the Pattern of Past Civilizations?
William R. Goetz
Manufacturer: Horizon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Island Lives: Historical Archaeologies of the Caribbean

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Island Lives: Historical Archaeologies of the Caribbean

Manufacturer: University Alabama Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Americas | History | Subjects | Books

El Crisantemo Y La Espada/ the Chrysanthemum and the Sword: Patrones De La Cultura Japonesa/ Patterns of Japanese Culture (Ciencias Sociales / Social Science)

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El Crisantemo Y La Espada/ the Chrysanthemum and the Sword: Patrones De La Cultura Japonesa/ Patterns of Japanese Culture (Ciencias Sociales / Social Science)
Ruth Fulton Benedict
Manufacturer: Alianza Editorial Sa
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Queen of Sheba's heirs;: Cultural patterns of Ethiopia (Africana culture and history series, v. no. 1)

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Queen of Sheba's heirs;: Cultural patterns of Ethiopia (Africana culture and history series, v. no. 1)
Edith Lord
Manufacturer: Acropolis Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Africa | Travel | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0874910110

Book Description

More than 100 species--all the most commonly seen birds along mountain hiking trails of the western United States and Canada. Peterson FlashGuides are the most compact and convenient field guides ever made: slim as road maps and ideal for hikers, bikers, canoeists, or anyone who wants to travel light.

All The Songbirds: Western Trailside (American Bird Conservancy Compact Guide)

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All The Songbirds: Western Trailside (American Bird Conservancy Compact Guide)
Jack Griggs , and Paul Lehman
Manufacturer: Collins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Birds | Field Guides | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

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Book Description

American Bird Conservancy Compact Guides
The Bird Guides for Nature Enthusiasts

American Bird Conservancy Compact Guides focus on the birds that can be observed at specific sites. With illustrations by America's finest bird artists, a handy, pocket-size format and a ground breaking organization system derived from the definitive North American bird guide, ABC's All The Birds of North America, they are simply the most useful bird guides available.

All The Songbirds tells you everything you need to know about the songbirds you'll see in a national park, on a nature walk, or on a wilderness trek. It features:

Highly informative entries on more than 100songbird species. Spectacular, full-color paintings of songbirds in their natural habitats that set new standards for beauty and accuracy. Tips on where and how to find songbirds; plus a checklist for recording your sightings.

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