One important theme in AP US History is American and Regional Culture. Questions on the exam will ask you to evaluate the impact of various cultures. It will also ask you to describe how these cultures developed and changed over time.
I'm a licensed teacher and professional tutor with over ten years of experience in education. I've helped dozens of students improve their grades in their AP US History class. This article will define American, regional, and group culture. We'll also discuss relevant examples from the AP US History curriculum. Read on for tips you can use to improve your grades today!
Note: This post is part of a series on historical themes covered in AP US History. You can learn more about the all of the themes in AP US History at this link.
Table of Contents
Definition
Culture can be a difficult concept to understand. At a basic level, culture is a group's beliefs, practices, and institutions. Beliefs include religious beliefs, values, and worldviews. Practices include observable behavior, like speaking a specific language, wearing certain clothes, or eating certain foods. Institutions are established organizations or practices shared by a group. Marriage is an institution because it is an important practice. Elementary schools are an institution because it is an organization that fulfills a need for a group.
These aspects of culture help create a sense of what's normal and expected. Because people view their own practices as "normal" it can be difficult to see one's own culture. It can feel invisible, like air - invisible, but present.
It's also important to note that within any culture there is diversity. People within a group may differ from each other in the extent to which they participate in specific practices. Individuals can choose to behave differently than a group. They can also value specific parts of their culture more than others. People often belong to multiple cultural groups. The values and practices of different cultures can come into conflict. When we talk about culture, we are painting with a broad brush and looking a broad trends.
Like everything else, culture changes over time. These changes often occur through a combination of external and internal pressures. Culture also impacts other aspects of society. For example, culture can shape political practices and economic activities.
At any rate, AP US History considers three distinct types of culture. Let's examine each of these in turn.
American (National) Culture
American culture, or national culture, is the mainstream culture of people living in the United States. These are aspects of American culture that are shared and recognized by most Americans. For example, most Americans attend school for at least thirteen years. Most American institutions, like schools and government buildings, use English as the primary language. The most popular condiment in the United States is mayonnaise. It's part of the American culture.
Note: This idea is closely related to the theme of American and National Identity. In general, this theme focuses on the beliefs and practices of Americans. American identity focuses on who is considered an American and the implications of those decisions. In practice, there is overlap between these two ideas. If you'd like to learn more about American Identity, click here.
Regional Cultures
The United States also has distinct regional cultures. These regional cultures are shaped by a number of factors. For example, many different groups have immigrated to the United States. These groups have shaped cultural practices in many places. In the Upper Midwest, you can find lutefisk suppers every weekend in the fall. Lutefisk is created by taking a dried fish and soaking it in lye for several days. This causes the fish to turn into a gel. Norwegian immigrants brought this practice to the area and it persists.
Regional cultures are also shaped by geography. Landforms, weather, landscapes, and soils all shape human life. When these things are combined with history, people develop specific ways of adapting and enjoying these things. In New England, seafood is plentiful because of the ocean. In the interior of the country, people eat less seafood because it is not as readily available or fresh. As a result, life can be very different in different regions of the country.
Group Culture
To some extent, all culture is group culture. In AP US History, this category exists to recognize that there are many groups that exist in the United States. These groups practices may not be capture by considering just national or regional cultures. Many of these groups form around a specific identity. This could be a racial, religious, ethnic, or fall into any of several other categories. These group identities may be limited to a specific region, or they may be found in multiple regions.
One example of these group cultures is the Oneida Nation. The Oneida are an indigenous group that originally lived in upstate New York. The Oneida were displaced by white settlers and US government policy. As a result, today there are members of the Oneida nation living in New York, Wisconsin, and Canada. Despite being spread across many regions, many members of the Oneida nation continue cultural traditions. This includes speaking their traditional language, playing lacrosse, and bead work.
Example
One of my favorite examples of regional culture is the Harlem Renaissance. This movement is discussed in Period 7. During the Great Migration, many African Americans moved north and settled in cities like New York. Harlem is a neighborhood in New York City. It is famous for being the site of a new cultural movement that shaped the 1920s. The neighborhood was famous for jazz clubs, poets, literature, and social activism. Overtime, many of these artistic movements became part of mainstream American culture. For example, you can see famous jazz musicians Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington perform on the wildly popular Ed Sullivan Show here.
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