To what extent are you a product of your culture?
Culture is defined as a system of values, conventions and beliefs that are shared among a group of individuals in society. Furthermore, culture provides the structure through which behavior, cognition and emotion are defined and formed through ( Cohen, 2017) . Additionally, it is futile to ignore the profound effect that globalization has had on the phenomenon of culture, especially in terms of cultural diversity ( Cohen, 2017) . Given the communicable nature of culture in addition to the social nature of human kind, it is only right to say that culture has a great influence on the thoughts and the behavior of an individual. Moreover, research points out to the fact that indulgence in certain cultural activities could lead to the evolving of specific kinds of learning capabilities in addition to the acquisition of a specific set of skills ( Cohen, 2017) . It is difficult however to assess the effect of culture on individualism in this generation given the fact that diverse cultures are intertwined which has led to different influences of a wide array of cultures on personality.
California is the American city of dreams, or rather, the city of the ultimate American dream. Synonymous with a rich creative heritage encompassing both art and culture, California has earned a reputation for being a center of expression ( Cohen, 2017) . However, the rich culture of California has had a significant effect on the beliefs together with the behavior of the society ( Cohen, 2017) . Additionally, research points out to the fact that the culture of this region seems to be detached from reality given the current economic realities in addition to the perspective of the members of society. ( Cohen, 2017) With the promise of designer wear and food, trendy vehicle, overnight success, California’s culture is one that is obsessed with the achievement of this dream, regardless of the price ( Cohen, 2017) . The detachment of California culture has been explained by most individuals as that which promises a totally different reality from the one that individuals live in.
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If you were born in another culture, how would your thoughts be different?
Given the diverse nature of human thought and experience based on their environment and influences, different regions have different cultures. ( Cohen, 2017) With the effect that culture has on thought in mind, it is evident that individuals who have been nurtured in different cultures harbor a different view of the world in terms of their norms, values and belief system ( Cohen, 2017) . Additionally, research delineates to the fact that different cultural practices equip individuals with different capabilities of grasping concepts, skills and knowledge ( Cohen, 2017) . The acquisition of diverse range of learning capabilities for specific activities across a wide array of cultural groups point out to the fact that an individual’s environment has an impact on how they think based on their culture ( Cohen, 2017) . For instance, research points out to stack differences between the thought processes of Asians as compared to that of Americans.
Individuals who have been brought up within the American culture exhibit different values and social customs in terms of their cognition and way of thinking as compared to Asians. For instance, research points to the fact that while American culture favors a more individualistic approach to life, the Asian culture favors a more social approach to life ( Cohen, 2017) . This has led to various notions suggesting that thoughts as shaped by culture make Asians more susceptible to focus on surrounding factors around an object or phenomenon while Americans would rather focus on the object/ phenomenon ( Cohen, 2017) . The theory was demonstrated through an experiment where Asians and Americans were requested to assess an object placed on an empty surface ( Cohen, 2017) . While a significant portion of Americans noted details about the object, the Asians instead noted details about the background of the object.
An individual who is born in an Asian culture is therefore more likely to be concerned about the causative agents of an event occurring or an object existing ( Cohen, 2017) . On the other hand, an American’s perspective would be more intrigued about the event itself or the object itself and its existence without paying attention to the reason for the occurrence ( Cohen, 2017) . The differences in views however are not limited in terms of the ability to think but rather on the perspective that it adopted by either ( Cohen, 2017) . If an individual was to be trained to view events and phenomenon with a different view, then they would be susceptible to adopting that view.
Does this support Hegel’s claim that all viewpoints are historically relative?
Having a clear view of history has been deemed vital to being able to understand human cognition, behavior, beliefs and social norms in the current composition of society ( Winter, 2016) . Keen interest has been raised on the ability of researchers to be able to define modern concepts based on historical interpretations of the concepts or historical human behavior concerning concepts of the same kind or of the same nature ( Winter, 2016) . Hegel claims that history has nurtured and revealed commitment of humanity towards the achievement of freedoms and liberty ( Winter, 2016) . It is the continuous development upon these concepts that raises the issue of historical relativism.
According to research exhibiting the influence of culture on thought, it is only reasonable to conclude that all viewpoints are historically relative. It is safe to conclude this given the fact that culture has a direct influence on the cognition and thoughts of individuals who subscribe to it ( Winter, 2016) . Notably, cultural practices, beliefs and values have radically evolved and transformed throughout time immemorial ( Winter, 2016) . This suggests that given that thoughts are defined by the dominant culture of a given period, then the viewpoints that existed all through history must be influenced by the dominant culture of that specific period in time.
References
Cohen, M. (2017). American thought: a critical sketch . Routledge.
Winter, M. (2016). " Philosophy is its own time apprehended in thoughts": Hegel on Time and Concept. Revista Portuguesa de Filosofia , 339-349.
