Culture: Embracing Unique Identities for Social Bonding - Research Paper Sample

Introduction

Culture is the description of social behavior, customs and ideas that are unique to the people of a specific society. The unique identifiers have been embraced for a long time; therefore, they are respected by them as part of their life. For mist cultural activities, they are social, whereby they bring the people closer, giving reasons as to why they are continually embraced. The social aspect of a culture is what makes it unique; because the people have different activities that they hold with high regard over time. Therefore, there is a need to highlight specific people's culture to understand the aspects they embrace in their social lives. Culture may be eroded with time; when people abandon their indigenous settings to adopt contemporary lifestyles. However, when they are in their natural form of life, most of the cultural and social attributes are retained. In this case, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People of Australia's culture and social life (Nelson, 2007). They have quite a unique culture, which has been cultivated over time and has been embraced in an indigenous setting.

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Indigenous People

The indigenous people cultivate the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture better because aspects of modern life have not diluted it. Therefore, various social and cultural aspects can be highlighted to understand it better. The Aboriginal people of Australia form one of the indigenous cultures in Australia, where they are associated with the original cultural practices (Colquhoun & Dockery, 2012). Furthermore, there are the Torres Strait Islander people famous because of their cultural and social practices. The reason for the fame behind the two groups is their originality in embracing the original culture. It is attractive to outsiders because of the various unique aspects that it has. Therefore, it is important to know the details of the social and cultural aspects of their indigenous environments.

Among the Torres Strait Islander people, one of the primary aspects that shape their culture is social life. The way people interact in different settings determines the activities that are embraced within the society. One of the primary activities in any given society is participation in decision making. In a social setting, there is always a need to reach a consensus in various ways. Among the Torres Strait Islander people, decision making in a social setting is embraced as an essential aspect of ensuring non-discriminatory practices. Therefore, there is an aspect of effective indigenous participation in making decisions that affect people. The interests of the people form the basis of major decisions to achieve the objective of maximum social benefit within society. Therefore, among the peoples' socialization, they always embrace equal opportunity in making decisions. That ensures that all people in society have equal treatment and have their rights and freedoms respected. Therefore, as people associate in the culture, they feel free to air their concerns and interests, which contributes to the Torres Strait Islander societal well-being.

Social and Cultural Aspect

The other social and cultural aspect associated with the Torres Strait Islanders is the right to consult. Commonly, people are faced with situations where they are unfamiliar with the fine details, despite the significance of the issues. Therefore, among the people in the indigenous culture, there is a framework created that enhances consultation on various issues (Avery, 2018). In the governance framework in the culture, there are various experts and service providers. Therefore, all people have to ensure they consult on various issues to ensure they understand the fine details. That will enable them to understand the various cultural, social and regulatory aspects associated with the culture. In the long run, they will conform to the cultural expectations embraced by the rest of society. The duty to consult on various issues is an integral part if the Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal people. That shapes the cultural practices and the interrelations among the people.

The other cultural aspect associated with the Aboriginal people is that of time, which informs of various activities embraced by the people. Various cultural events happen at different times and frequencies, which are based on time. Therefore, there are cycles of repetition that form the basis for cultural activities embraced by the people (Morphy & Lippincott, 1999). Australian For example, there are cultural activities associated with sunset. Therefore, for people to embrace them, they have to wait for a time when the sun sets; so that they can get involved in the activities. For example, some ceremonial gatherings happen at certain times of the year. The events are places at finite times and finite frequencies to enhance orderliness in society. An example is the celebration of seasons, which happens at certain intervals of the year. Among the Aboriginal people, such events are essential. As they are being observed and practiced, information is passed on to the ensuing generations, which encourages them to observe cultural practices. Therefore, as people grow, they are encouraged to embrace the cultural practices, which become a perpetual part of life. Time is an essential component of the Aboriginal culture because it informs of their history and continuity of some practices. An example is a creation that happened a long time ago and is still embraces through procreation with time. Therefore, time firm an essential aspect of culture and social life among the Aboriginal people.

The culture of the Aboriginal people is also seen through their farming habits, which have been embraced for a long time. There are specific crops that are part of their culture expressed through farming. The cultivation of the cops was introduced by their leaders; and has been upheld by the people for a long time. The crops were a source of their livelihood and trade, which enhanced their survival. The culture through their farming was propagated and spread to other cultures over time. When the elders traveled, they spread the culture to other regions. They planted the crops in other regions to enhance sustainability. Although they had a history of hunting and gathering, they also derived pleasure from cultivation, which was a significant aspect of their day to day lives. For example, Dark Emu Black Seeds are an essential cultural sign; which they continue to uphold for long. The Aboriginal people built houses, settled and cultivated the Dark Emu Black Seeds (Broome, 2014). Therefore, they engaged in irrigation because of water shortages. Since that time, the culture associated with cultivation has been upheld in their lives as it is a significant part of their lives. In most ceremonies, cultivated food was an essential component. Therefore, food has a cultural and social significance for the people.

Torres Strait Islander People

The Torres Strait Islander people also have a complex culture similar to the Aboriginal in some ways. One of the major social and cultural aspects of their culture is storytelling. The telling of different types of stories serves different roles for the community. For example, there are stories about their origin, which informs generations about their history. Through knowledge about their history, people get a better understanding of their origins and the significance of the various activities they still practice. For example, they are told about the important people in the community; who are essential in building their culture. When people become aware of the culture, its history and significance, they adopt their practices readily. That is one of the factors that make the culture strong and is inherited by consequent generations in the long run. Furthermore, there is dancing, which is in a specific style, that has been practiced historically. The dancing is mostly during celebrations, which brings people together and enables them to appreciate the various aspects of their life. Through the enjoyment derived from the dancing, the people embrace the bond that exists among them, hence grow stronger as a community.

Some differences exist between the two communities in terms of their culture and social life. That shows the difference in cultures, which defines their identity and is essential in identifying the cultures. First, there is a difference in the form of their place of origin. For the Torres Strait Islanders, they are from islands in north Australia. On the other hand, the Aboriginals are from Australia mainland; therefore, their natural environments and locations are different. Therefore, their culture and social life adopted different environmental conditions, for example, agriculture and gathering. The other difference is in the form of their artwork; whereby the Aboriginal people paint about the Australian mainland (McNiven et al., 2006). The artwork shows the plants cultivated and animals reared for different purposes. For the Torres Strait Islander people, their artwork is more about the ocean environment, which speaks about their origin. The celebration and social functions are also different because they are based on the different environments where the people came from.

Conclusion

The culture that people uphold is of great significance, as it justifies various activities that the people engage in. For example, in this case, the Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islander people have different cultural attributes. That is seen through their social activities, farming and the environment. That highlights the significance of the environment in shaping the culture and social aspects associated with people. People must be aware of their culture so that they can embrace their aspects and propagate the essential practices for the culture. That s seen through the various activities that the two cultures get involved with to ensure ensuing generations inherit the culture.

References

Avery, S. (2018). Culture is inclusion: A narrative of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with disability. https://researchdirect.westernsydney.edu.au/islandora/object/uws:54669/

Broome, R. (2014). Dark Emu-black seeds: Agriculture or accident?[Book Review]. Agora, 49(4), 67. https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/6387449?from=list

Colquhoun, S., & Dockery, A. M. (2012). The link between Indigenous culture and wellbeing: Qualitative evidence for Australian Aboriginal peoples.
http://www.ncsehe.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/2012.01_LSIC_qualitative_CLMR1.pdf

McNiven, I. J., David, B., & Barker, B. (2006). The social archaeology of Indigenous Australia. The social archaeology of Australian Indigenous societies, 2-19.
https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=dR59Eivg7yIC&oi=fnd&pg=PA2&dq=The+social+archaeology+of+indigenous+Australia+Ian+James+McNiven,+Bruno+David,+Bryce+Barker&ots=M9lL3GEnA0&sig=6dEokY_HMTKkg_QuGxyOKz9TaoA&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=The%20social%20archaeology%20of%20indigenous%20Australia%20Ian%20James%20McNiven%2C%20Bruno%20David%2C%20Bryce%20Barker&f=false

Morphy, H., & Lippincott, K. (1999). Australian Aboriginal concepts of time. The story of time, 264-267. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Howard_Morphy/publication/282818866_Australian_Aboriginal_Concepts_of_Time/links/561d7cba08aecade1acb3dbf/Australian-Aboriginal-Concepts-of-Time.pdf

Nelson, A. (2007). Seeing white: a critical exploration of occupational therapy with Indigenous Australian people. Occupational therapy international, 14(4), 237-255.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/oti.236