CW #2 - Brad Charlassier

Today's culture workshop required us to identify surface and subsurface cultural aspects for ourselves. This was represented by a worksheet our group was given with an iceberg on it. Matt and I, the Americans of the group, had a tough time identifying the distinct parts of our culture. There are so many aspects of American culture that are driven from other cultures that it was hard to find one specific aspect. I think one of the surface level cultural aspects of American culture is that we are friendly people. For example, if you go out to a bar in Europe, from what I am told anyway, Europeans do not try to make friends with the other Europeans there. Here in the United States, people are extremely friendly at bars. It is nearly encouraged to make friends and talk with random people at bars. A subsurface level cultural aspect is probably fitness. The rest of the world views us as a bunch of fat people, but growing up I would always hear about the pressures girls would feel to make themselves look like a barbie doll. Also boys would have action figures and super hero figures that made them feel like they had to be super muscular with abs.