12939: RE: 12920:Culture and civilization (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Karen F. Davis <kdavis@marygrove.edu>

"When I use a word, it means just what I want it to--no more and no less"
	(Humpty Dumpty, in Lewis Carroll's fantasy-land)

	Unfortunately, when we in the world THIS side of the looking-glass
use words, they always mean much less than we intend, and much more.
About 40 years ago, Leslie White found over 200 different definition of the
word "culture" only within the field of anthropology.
	I find the most satisfying way to deal with word meanings is to
teach as much as I know of all uses of the word, in different times, places,
languages, and contexts. Yes, "kultur" suggested eliteism--its origins are
also in words for earth, dirt, digging, and growing plants.
	I used to teach courses that had "Civilization" in the title, and
the intent of using that word instead of "culture" was to limit the range of
study to city-based societies, which share certain soci-political-economic
features, such as long-distance trade, central markets, army, taxes, labor
drafts, state recording devices, etc. Certainly some people use the term
"civilized" or "civilization" to imply a kind of moral or aesthetic
superiority, but sociologists tend to refer to the word's origins, meaning
"people of the city" in ancient Rome--urbi, rather than orbi. Now, my
undertanding is that the Romans believed they, as city-dwellers, were
superior to the "savage" (forest-dwelling) "barbarians" (their men wore
beards instead of shaving), but the word "civilization" need not imply this
aura of superiority.
	Indeed, anyone who studies the history of cities learns they are
fragile entities, prone to disruption and dissolution through revolt, war,
flood, drought,and ecological overload.
	Some scholars avoid the word altogether & say "state-level society"
or "state" or "class-based society"
	In any case, everyone in the world now is subject to a city-based
state, so we are all, God help us, "civilized."

Karen F. Dimanche Davis
Associate Professor and Head, Humanities Department
Marygrove College
Detroit, Michigan 48221
313-927-1352
kdavis@marygrove.edu

> -----Original Message-----
> From:	Bob Corbett [SMTP:corbetre@webster.edu]
> Sent:	Wednesday, August 28, 2002 1:32 PM
> To:	Haiti mailing list
> Subject:	12920:  Re: 12908: Re: 12886: Re: 12871: Re: 12817: Re:
> 12816: Re: Lavalas and corruption; Simidor responds to Pierre (fwd)
>
>
> From: Hyppolite Pierre <hpierre@irsp.org>
>
> From: Lois E Wilcken <makandal-ny@juno.com>
>
> "PS   The words "culture" and "civilization" are not interchangeable."
>
>
>
> Well Lois, maybe my philosophy teacher misled us when he defined both
> words
> "culture" and "civilization" as interchangeable. He explained to us that
> people use the word "civilization" or sometimes even "culture"
> specifically
> to downgrade the validity of other cultures from poor, "native" countries.
>
> He also told us that it is in that very context we should regard the
> Nazi's
> use of the term "Kultur" which means the same, as a way to show the
> strength
> and superiority of their culture when compared to others.
>
> I still have my notes from this course in my small library at home.
>
> Maybe the philosophical meaning of the term has changed since then. If so,
> then I am sorry for the misuse.
>
> In any case, maybe Bob (whom I believe also taught philosophy) could shed
> some light on the proper use of this term for us.
>
> Hyppolite Pierre
> IRSP
> http://www.irsp.org