CHAPTER THREE

CULTURE

What  is Culture?

Sir Edward Tyler defines culture as:

That complex whole which includes knowledge, beliefs, art, morals, laws, customs, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of the society.

Society may be defined as: A social organization made up of a group of people who share a geographical area and culture.

Thus very often we use the terms culture and society as though they mean the same. Each of the tribes in the Sudan forms a culture. So we talk of Kuku culture, Dinka culture etc.

Within every culture there are subcultures that differ lightly from the main stream of their culture. In the Sudan the various clans within the tribe form such subcultures. The term culture has much wider application,  that any group that is within the culture could be thought of as a subculture. A group of youngsters gathering together for some activity may develop a subculture because of some particular emphasis.

Diverse Definitions of Culture:

Bodley, John H. in "definitions and discussions of culture", Collins, P., Law, R.and Miraglia, R. 1999

According to Millet:

• Culture comes from the Latin word "colere", meaning to build on, to cultivate, to foster.
• Culture is a set of accepted behavior patterns, values, assumptions, and shared common experiences.
• Culture defines social structure, decision-making practices, and communication styles.
• Culture dictates behavior, etiquette, and protocol.
• Culture is something we learn.  It impacts everyone, and influences how we act and respond.
• Culture is communication.  It is a way people create, send, process and interpret information

 “All human populations have culture, which is therefore a generalized possession of the genus Homo. This is Culture (capital C) in the general sense, a capacity and possession shared by hominids.  However, anthropologists also use the word culture to describe the different and varied cultural traditions of specific societies. This is culture in the specific sense (small c)” (Kottack, 1991).

“Levi-Strauss:assumes that cultural forms are based on common underlying properties of the human mind. Levi-Strauss believed that human minds have certain characteristics which stem from the functions of the brain. These common mental structures lead people to think similarly, regardless of their society or cultural background. Since culture is formulated by human minds, which follows the same pattern of functions, all cultures are based on common general rules.” (Soga, 2003, Claude Levi-Strauss)

What we see as we enter into the culture and interact is only the tip of the iceberg.  Deep below them lie the basis which is the belief system and the value system which in decides the morals, values art.  Out of this comes the external visible culture forms. It is all decided by the understanding the people about how God interacts with people and with God’s character as they perceive and realize.

What makes the culture different?

Bronislaw Malinowski (1884-1942), the Polish born, British anthropologist has classified seven biological and psychological needs of man.  These needs are to be met.  The action that leads to the satisfaction of these needs or impulses creates the culture.  These needs may be met in different ways.  Each culture meets them in their own way.  That is what makes the cultures different

This sequence is known as the Permanent Vital Sequence

The Seven Basic Needs of Man

1. Metabolism.

These are the needs of air, water and food.  What do they eat? This factor essentially decides the professions of the tribe.  A cattle breeding tribe of Dinka rely essentially on their cattle for food, whereas the agricultural communities like the Hamites, Sudanese and the Bantus rely on their farm products  and the forest resources  Each tribe  therefore have developed their special ways living;  and the necessary technologies for such comfortable living has been gradually developed. Their ways of life are determined essentially by these factors.  The pastoral communities like the Dinkas and the Mundaries are nomadic, moving from one place to the other wherever they can find water and food for their cattle.

In the north, there are cattle tribes and camel tribes as further examples.  Each such clans works out a permanent plan for their annual movement across the land to and fro within the geographical range, so that each clan chief will be able to tell where his clan is settled at any particular time with some certainty.   Because of the necessity for the constant movement their settlements are not permanent and are usually made of perishable materials that can be discarded.  They seldom live in permanent buildings except by the chiefs and elders, old and the new born.  On the other hand agricultural communities can afford luxury or permanently built houses.  They normally make their settlements and build their cities and townships near rivers and streams or wherever water can be easily found and the land is fertile.

How do they eat?  Do they ear together?  Is there segregation between men, women, and children?  What is the role of the women in the food production, preservation and preparation?

Women are a major labor force in agricultural field maintenance as a helpmeet to their husbands.  So also among the Nilotics womenfolk provides labor force for regular milking of the cows.  In many Sudanese tribes where men eat alone before women, there exists a taboo on chicken meat and egg.  They are eaten only by the women and children thereby providing them with enough protein which they may miss otherwise.  Tools for cooking, serving, eating as well as pots, pans and bottles are determined by their availability and necessity.  While cooking is done in earthen vessels, storing is done usually in calabashes and baskets.  Granaries are part of the home which has the shape as tulkuls but are built on stilts to ward of pests

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Many other factors build up around this need.  When and how many times do they eat?  What are the rules of the hospitality in meals? How are the sacrificial meat and other products distributed? In the sacrificial animals every member of the larger family and friends has a share. Each part is designated by tradition to certain person who is related to the person sacrificing in a certain way. For example the right shoulder of the sacrificial lamb should go to the uncle. Similarly the meat obtained by the hunt is divided strictly in accordance kith the cultural traditions.

An infinite amount of intricate details work out around this need.

2. Reproduction

These are the needs of man to satisfy his sexual urge as well as his desire to maintain his lineage and name. These are controlled by the society very rigidly by the cultural system of marriage and kinship.

Marriage is a social mechanism to mark off legitimate sex partners; and kinship is a system for placing and training each individual born within the culture.

 3. Bodily Comforts

These involve essentially shelters and clothing. What types of shelters do people make depends on their needs determined by their profession, convenience and availability. Evidently nomadic types cannot maintain permanent houses, as they are moving all the time except for their old, women and children. So they live in shelters made of temporary materials and protect themselves with thorn fences. The agriculturists can build permanent houses with yards and can afford more luxuries of life on a permanent basis. They make tukuls made of grass so that it will be cooler with larger yards. Many tribes do not wear clothes, but adorns themselves with ornaments and paints. In the extreme humid hot regions clothing is probably unnecessary. Many tribes prefer to go totally naked to keep themselves cool.

Others have minimal clothes to cover their loins. However beads, bones and metals provide ample ornaments. The right to wear particular ornaments is earned by exhibiting certain skills or reaching certain maturity.   Women show their marital status with certain ornaments and coverings. In some tribes the privilege of covering the breasts is given only to the married. Thus the way in which a girl dress will declare her availability as sex partner.

 Housing, clothing and ornaments often act as status symbols.

Chiefs and aristocracy wear special regalia. Wearing suits have come to be a status symbol with the British rule.

What do people do to repel insects and mosquitoes? Among the Kukus a constantly smoking fire is kept inside the house, while among the Dinkas smearing of dung ashes is practiced. How often do they wash and take bath? Some traditions have elaborate ablution rites and patterns. Some puts on oils and dyes. In Nuba, women are either pink or blue. Many of these are conditioned by the climates and availability.

4. Safety

This includes safety devises for each individual against attacks from wild animals, attacks from fellow tribesmen, attacks and invasions from neighboring tribes etc. The basic skills of spearing, spear throwing, archery, stick fights, wrestling etc are common to all the tribes in the South Sudan where there is a constant threat from wild animals and from neighboring tribes.

Intrusion of tribesmen from outside is always suspected and killing of an alien tribesman within tribal territory is not considered as murder. In the modern state system a person who violates immigration regulations are either put in jail or sent back.

Some form of military structure exists in all cultures. All able bodied people are expected to be warriors and their services are called for when necessary. Though war and war plans are made by a clan or a tribe as a congregation, each warrior is on his own to establish a name and a status and wealth for himself and for his family. Good hunters and warriors were always respected.

This is very much similar to the Old Testament times and is reminiscent of the period of King David or earlier. Often spiritual forces were called upon for protection and elaborate ceremonies intended to maintain the morale of the warriors are performed. Tools and weapons of war are developed according to the technology of the culture. lf spears and bows and arrows were the early weapons, guns and missiles and heavy arms of warfare have come to the Sudan now. Constant tribal warfare, besides civil war on a large scale has caused this intrusion of modern technological weapons in this country.

5. Movement and Activity

Adequate exercise is necessary for proper growth of man. For this purpose every culture develops appropriate sports and games. Apart from its purpose of exercise they also serve as a learning process. Children play games that help them grow into adults, independent and powerful. Adolescents play games that develop skills suitable for their adult life. Very small children like in every other place in the world play mother and father, hunter, warrior etc. In the adolescence while girls engage in learning artistic and culinary skills, boys play with spears and arrows, traps etc. Wrestling seems to be the most common sport. Accuracy in shooting, and spearing, games involving jumping, running, swimming etc are also emphasized.

However no regular sports (except wrestling) is found in this part of the world. Life is too much of a struggle for existence and survival leaving little time for leisure except for girls.

Dancing is a regular activity which provides exercise as well as social intercourse for the young and the old. Agility and vigorousness of the South Sudanese dances are well known all over the world.  Nubian girls are renowned for their grace and charm from ancient days

.6.  Growth

There are special needs associated with each state of human development. Infants and children have special feeding requirements and needs of protection. Old age calls for special care along with respect and honor. The young needs to express themselves find sex partner and build themselves a self image and a status in the society. Widows and orphans calls for special care. All these aspects are taken care of by cultural activities. Most tribes have special food and body care regulations during pregnancy and lactation periods for women.

Marital relations are regulated for family planning purposes.

The levitate system eradicates the problem of widows and orphans.

Elders are honored and are relieved from heavy work. They act as counselors and judges.

7.  Health

Hygiene and medicine fall under this category. There are cultural precautions to avoid sickness and epidemics. Regulations for defecation exist. In fact these customs are so well followed that most South Sudanese children in the tribe believe that their adults do not defecate. Similarly a taboo on food makes sure that only foods that are not decayed are consumed. Normally all vegetables are to be cooked. Fresh salads and other vegetables are not eaten in the Sudanese community simply because of the possibility in infection from the abundant insect population that haunt the tropical area.

All cultures have their medical system which includes preventive as well as curative systems. Though very often mixed with witchcraft, effective herbal medicines are available. Very effective medicines for scorpion and snake poison are also found.

Preventive antigen's injection is practiced by all the tribes whereby snake and scorpion poison is made ineffective. The injection is given in a simple way by cutting the outer skin of the back of the palm and rabbit: in the medicine diluted and activated by saliva.

Psychological sickness vas recognized and treated by most witch doctors from very early times. For this purpose they psychoanalyze not only the patients but also their near relatives and friends, as the assumption is that it is imbalanced relation in the family or society.

In all Sudanese cultures sickness and death are considered as due to sin of the person or the group.  Epidemics among man, beasts, animals or fishes are caused by the communal sin and should be atoned for the remedy. Regular sacrifices for such reconciliations between people, environment, spirits and God are practiced.

I have taken my examples mostly from the Sudanese context.

But the arguments are equally valid to all cultures irrespective of their technological level of development. Each of the above seven needs have to be met by all men. The way they meet them differ depending on the process of development, availability of materials, suitability of the method etc. These are learnt through being in the society and are not reflex or instinct.

All cultures are unique. There are no primitive or advanced cultures.

Development in various aspects of life is emphasized by cultures.  In some cultures technology and skill are given importance, in others art and craft are given importance, and yet in others human relations and family are given special emphasis.  Thus each develops in their own way. Those cultures which have developed war machines and war technologies had an advantage over the others in that they could easily subdue them. But history have shown that the victors are not always victors the war. Some cultures were able to conquer their victors. The point is that every culture is capable of full growth and is highly adaptive.

We have seen how culture is built around the basic needs of man. Every cultural act performs a function, whether we can discern it directly or not. They are intricately correlated that any attempt to change a cultural act may result in serious imbalance of the social structure. Strict introduction of monogamy in the East African culture by the Christians is one such example. It has caused several unforeseen effects in the widespread increase of unwanted widows and orphans and prostitution. When problems arise, the society will find a solution. These solutions may not be very desirable though.

SYNOPTIC SURVEY OF BIOLOGICAL AND DERIVED NEEDS AND THEIR SATISFACTION IN CULTURE

(SOURCE: Malinowski’s Basic Human Needs as presented in Langness 1987)

QUESTIONS

1. Define culture and society.

2. Explain Malinowski's permanent vital sequence and how they explain difference in cultures all over the world.

3. Mention the seven basic needs of man.

4. Take each one of these basic needs and explain how they are met in your culture.

5. Take the subculture in which you form part and explain how it differs from the main culture.

6. Take any two neighbored: tribes and compare how they meet these seven needs differently.

7. What are some of the cultural complexes of your church? How do they differ from other churches?

8. Consider some of the ceremonies, rituals and church organizational structures and discuss how far they fit into the culture. Are there any cultural alternatives?

9. Discuss why changes in cultural practices must be approached carefully.

10. Discuss the effect of the following changes in your tribe.

a) Abolition of polygamy
b) abolition of levitate system
c) introduction of modern medicine
d) abolition of certain rituals and sacrifices.