Activity 10: Relationships In My Culture

I grew up in a very white, middle class area where there was very little cultural diversity. Because of this, I did not had very many intercultural relationships growing up. Since I went to college, I've had more intercultural relationships, but I've never really examined how my culture views these relationships. This assignment gave me the chance to do so. For the purposes of this assignment, I've defined my culture as Catholic, European Americans who are middle class.

Members of my culture view family members to be anyone who is vaguely related to you. I've shown up at my grandmother's house many times only to be introduced to so-and-so, a "sixth cousin twice removed who is staying with us for awhile." Family can also be someone who is a very, very close friend.

The roles and responsibilities of family members vary from generation to generation. My grandparents expect females to be responsible for housework and children while the men work outside and fix things. However, in my parents household, my father does much of the housework, so gender lines are not as clearly drawn. Children are expected to do some light chores, but play is considered more important. Younger people are expected to visit and help the elderly, but older generations do not live with younger generations.

After adolescence, children are expected to move out of their parent's house. However, my family is very close, so people have not moved more than an hour away from one another.
My culture has a lot of norms regarding dating and relationships. Dates are typically not set up by the parents; they are often set up by mutual friends or happen through a chance meeting. Men usually ask women out on a date and are expected to pay for any expenses during the date. The first date typically occurs somewhere casual, such as going to a cheaper restaurant and a movie. Silence is considered awkward while dating. If the couple decides to continue seeing one another, the man will call the woman a few days after the first date.

In my culture, men propose marriage. The man buys an engagement ring, usually with a diamond, and gets down on one knee to propose. Proposals often occur in a fancy, beautiful, or sentimental location.

Weddings in my culture have two main parts-the ceremony and the reception. Both of these events are planned months, even years, in advance. The ceremony occurs in a church and is performed by the priest. At the beginning of the ceremony, the groom stands at the altar with his relatives or friends (who are called groomsmen). The bride and her bridesmaids then walk down the aisle. The bride is usually accompanied by her father. The ceremony consists of prayers and vows. The reception follows the ceremony and usually consists of eating cake and dancing. Following this, the couple takes a trip called a honeymoon.

My culture does not approve of divorce except in certain circumstances, such as physical or mental abuse. If divorce occurs, belongings are typically split in half between the couple. The mother usually retains primary custody of the children, and the father may have the children on certain weekends.

Catholics typically do not approve of homosexuality. However, one of my uncles is gay and is accepted by my family. Therefore, I was raised to be very accepting of the gay community.

My view of gender roles is very different from older generations in my culture (such as my grandparents). Older generations believe women should stay at home and raise children while men work for a living. I do not believe that women should have to follow this role, and younger generations of my culture (including my parents) agree with me. I also disagree with the Catholic treatment of women. In the Catholic religion, women are not allowed to hold positions of power, such as the position of priest. I do not agree and believe that women should be allowed to hold these positions.