The Things You Carry

Rationale: To analyze how culture impacts a person's self-development.

Description: According to the textbook, culture is our "mental software" that colors the way we view the world. The culture in which were raised, the culture(s) we live or visit, and the cultures of others that we share relationships with all impact our world view.

This assignment is designed to help us reflect on the impact of culture on our self-development.

Directions:

1. Gather five items of importance to you that help to describe who you are culturally. You do not have to actually have the item in front of you, but you do need to gather them in your mind.

Try to find as specific an artifact as possible for each of the five. For example, a set of gold spoons from a trip to Japan is a specific concrete item. The items can be small or large; you could choose a necklace or a race car.

2. Make a list of the five items. Number the items: 1, 2, 3, and so on. For each item you will write two sentences next to the item then skip a space type the next number and go on.

3. Sentence one: describe the item and give as much detail as possible. For example, if you are describing a postcard you've collected from your stay in Australia, it is not just a card but "it is a picture of a pink kangaroo with green shoes and he is eating an apple; when you open the card it says..."

4. Sentence two: describe how the item connects you to a culture. You could identify the culture and explain how that culture impacts yourself, your world view, your priorities, your family, your morality, etc.

You could also mention how yourself, world view, priorities, family or morality changed when you encountered the culture. Spend time carefully crafting this one sentence to clearly explain the connection between the item, culture, and yourself.

Remember, you can select only five. When I read this assignment, I should know and understand your cultural experience through the five items and the two carefully written sentences you construct for each item.

As with all assignments, writing errors will damage your grade. Edit your work carefully; this is a college level course and college level writing is expected.