By the end of this section, you will be able to:
- Explain how elements of culture combine in aggregates.
- Give three detailed examples of cultural symbols.
- Explain how symbols are embedded in rituals.
- Describe how social structures organize important cultural processes.
An aggregate is a combination of elements. What we make, what we do, and what we think all combine in larger aggregates of culture. For instance, it’s pretty clear that toothbrushes, moon rocks, restaurants, and Mother’s Day cards must be understood as aggregates of material objects, practices, and ideas. In order to fully understand the toothbrush as a cultural object, we must examine not only its design and production but also how people use toothbrushes and why they use them. A set of routine practices surround our cultural objects (brushing), and those practices are supported by cultural ideas (hygiene).
The content of this course has been taken from the free Anthropology textbook by Openstax