Every society has its own values and ideals, traditions and superstitions that have been observed over centuries and are passed from generation to generation. Sometimes they may seem weird and

SOCIETY VALUES

Every society has its own values and ideals, traditions and superstitions that have been observed over centuries and are passed from generation to generation. Sometimes they may seem weird and strange to a foreigner. However, if you demonstrate to people your knowledge of their traditions and even practice some of them, they are more likely to be very hospitable and generous to you.

Every society has a reputation of some kind. Social values determine the general idea of a national character. The French are supposed to be amorous, gay, fond of champagne; the Germans - dull, formal, efficient, fond of military uniforms and parades; the Americans - boastful, energetic, gregarious and vulgar. The British are thought to be cold, reserved, rather haughty people, who do not yell in the street, make love in public, change their governments as often as they change their underclothes, or have revolutions. They are steady, easy-going and fond of sport.

American Values

Sometimes it is difficult to describe the values or ideas of a society from within that society. However, if one were to look at the culture from the outside, certain observation should be made more easily. It is important to understand social values if you want to understand people’s behavior. Certain ways of thinking, acting and communicating are a direct result of cultural values.

The following list of values can easily describe a majority of Americans. For each entry in the list of American values a “Contrasting value” is given. This opposite value may be found among some Americans (particularly to those belonging to certain ethnic groups), but for the most part is more typical of people in other non- American cultures of the world.

1. Personal control over environment: People can alter nature, and, to some extent, can determine the direction of their lives.

Contrasting value – Fate: What happens in life is a result of a grand plan or destiny.

2. Change: Change is healthy. People stagnate if they don’t make enough changes.

Contrasting value – Tradition: preservation and emphasis of rituals, customs and beliefs from the past.

3. Control over time: Time flies. People are pressured and constrained by time because they are trying to control it. People shouldn’t waste or kill time. They must rush to get things done. They must follow their schedules to be productive.

Contrasting value – Time walks. There is no need for people to feel so pressured. They should take it easy!

4. Equality and egalitarianism: All people are created equal.

Contrasting value – Hierarchy, rank, status: People’s roles are defined in terms of their relationship to other people. People are mostly either subordinate to or superior to someone else.

5. Individualism and privacy: Individual needs are considered primary.

Contrasting value – Group orientation: The individual sacrifices his needs to those of the group.

6. Self-help: People can and should try to improve their own lives. Many middle- and upper-class Americans have the belief that people can ”pull themselves up by their own bootstraps”.

Contrasting value – Birthright inheritance: People are born into either wealth or poverty. They cannot change their status in life.

7. Future orientation: Look to the future and not to the past.

Contrasting value – Past or present orientation: People should for today or for their ancestors. They should live according to tradition.

8. Action and work orientation: Work often defines people, their identities come from what they do.

Contrasting value – “Being” orientation: Work is not the center of their identities. It is acceptable not to focus on work, accomplishment and achievements.

9. Informality: First name usage (“Just call me Bob”), casual clothes and the lack of formal ritual are typical in American life.

Contrasting value – Formality: Use of titles and last names are common. People are restrained and polite with each other.

10. Directness, openness and honesty: honesty is the best policy. People should express themselves openly. It is not considered good to “beat around the bush”.

Contrasting value – Indirectness and “saving face”: People should consider one another’s feelings when deciding what to say. Honesty is not always the best policy.

As compared with other societies, there are three most frequently mentioned American “national characteristics”: friendliness to strangers, a strong sense of community and a general informality. Americans enjoy meeting new people and having guests. When they are introduced, men usually shake hands, women usually don't. Saying good-bye Americans rarely shake hands, except on business occasions. Americans tend to use first names in most situations presenting an image that everyone is equal. For example, employees often call their bosses by their first names and can even sometimes joke freely with the president of the company. This informal behavior and communication occur among all people at all levels in the business and political worlds. In other words, the American tendency is to minimize status differences; many Americans choose not to be overly polite and formal with a person of a higher status.

One often hears of the Englishman's "reserve": how he likes to "keep himself to himself; and how on a long railway journey, with four Englishmen in the carriage, often there won't be a word spoken during the whole journey. That wouldn't be the case in America. The Englishman thinks it ill-mannered to ask personal questions. The American doesn't feel that at all, they speak freely about themselves. There are topics, though, for example, income and religion, that many Americans feel are best avoided in casual conversations.

Americans value sociability, so their houses have no hedges or fences separating them from the pavement or from each other. There are none of those shut-off gardens; generally just a strip of grass with trees on it. The American in his home doesn't object to being seen by everyone - he actually likes it.

With this sociability goes overwhelming hospitality. You get taken to parties at the houses of your friends and of your friends' friends; you are invited to theatres, dinners, sports meetings, motor trips; the people you meet show the keenest interest in your affairs and ask you to let them know if they can help you. As a guest you may ask your host if there is anything you can do to help in the kitchen. It will be appreciated as a gesture and may be even more important than actually helping. Yes, being friendly is a virtue that Americans value highly and expect it from neighbours and strangers.

Some American families spend their vacations at home. Others might own or rent a cottage near a lake or in the mountains. Locations where swimming, fishing and other water sports are available are especially popular. A great many Americans take to the road and “see America first”. Camping and hiking which have become extremely popular throughout the country also afford the chance to travel on a limited budget. Some Americans go camping to feel like the pioneers - early settlers of the West for whom camping was the necessary way of life. Some want to spend some time in the wilderness - undeveloped areas where no one lives. Getting "back to nature" is a popular reason for many activities in the U.S. today.

Americans, on the whole, look to the future rather than the past. Tradition and ritual reminders of the past play a small part in most Americans' daily lives. There is instead a focus on progress and change, goals that many Americans try to achieve. Many people feel optimistic that they can be responsible for some progress and change (however small) in their lives, this is also related to the American belief in personal control over one's environment (and one's life), and the emphasis on "doing' and acting. In Europe there are people who have lived in the same house and been in the same job for 20, 30, 40 years, and who would hate to pull up their roots and change to something new. The average American changes his or her job nine or ten times during his or her working life.

English Values

One of the most striking values of English life is the self-discipline and courtesy of people of all classes. Many foreigners have commented on a remarkable politeness of the English people. For example, queuing, which is governed by a strict code of fairness in Britain. People do not rush excitedly for seats in buses or trains but stand in queues at the stops and take their seats in a quiet and orderly manner.

English people value restraint and patience. They don't like displaying their emotions even in dangerous and tragic situations, and ordinary people seem to remain good-tempered and cheerful under difficulties.

Englishmen value privacy very much. An Englishman prefers his own house to an apartment in a block of flats, because he doesn't wish his doing to be overlooked by his neighbours. "An Englishman's house is his castle". Most English people love gardens, their own above all, and this is probably another reason why so many people prefer to live in houses rather than flats. Although the task of keeping a garden is so essentially individual, for many people gardening is the foundation of social and competitive relationships. Flower-shows and vegetable-shows, with prizes for the best exhibits, are immensely popular, and to many gardeners the process of growing the plants seems more important than the merely aesthetic pleasure of looking at the flowers or the prospect of eating the vegetables. Every Englishman is a countryman at heart.

The English love and value competitive sports. Football is the most popular team game with them. Cricket, on other hand, is not as popular as football, and is much quieter and more sedate, but it's the game peculiarly associated with England. Britain was the first home of many of the modem world's most popular sports. The British cannot claim that they have surpassing skill in any form of sport, but they care strongly about the sporting spirit, the capacity to play with respect for the rules and the opponents, to win with modesty and to lose with good temper.

Australian Values

Australians are proud of their egalitarian society and boast about it. No wonder: their society is considered to be more egalitarian than any other and this is a trait to be proud of. The world community often think their informality is a cult, and one has to learn certain rules how to become informal that are as strict as those of formality.

1. If one wants to see somebody, even a high official or a business tycoon, one can just ring the boss up and he will pick the receiver himself (no secretaries are required!).

2. In Australia people are on Christian-name terms with almost everybody, immediately after introducing to each other.

Australian egalitarianism and informality are genuine and not affected: the Australians are not pompous or pretentious. Their air in this respect is clear, refreshing and transparent.

Ukrainian Values

Human rights are a necessary component of modern democratic states, that is why they are the most precious values in many countries. They provide for moral values and legal norms. Justice, freedom, and equality are the core and basic values of a human rights system.

The main interest of a number of sociological surveys was to understand what significance human rights have for Ukrainian people. One of the scientific aims is to describe the post-soviet conscience and how it has changed in years of independence.

This survey was conducted in Odesa in June 2002. 261 respondents were questioned. The first question read: What is most valuable in your life? And the answers which occupied first place on the value scale were: family, health, peace, and well-being. Civil values, as opposed to the above “ existential” values, were ranked second in importance. These included: peace and consensus in society, and ecological security. Moral-legal values ranked third in importance. These included: justice (it turned out to be more significant than others), freedom and honesty. The last category on the value scale included political rights of freedom of speech, participation in elections, and the chance to be elected to public office.

Position Values:

family health peace and consensus material well-being

ecological security justice honesty freedom equality

right to express own opinion right to be elected participation in election

Our conclusion with regard to all of the above mentioned is summarized formulated in the following statements:

- democratic values do not dominate in contemporary Ukrainian society

- problems of everyday existence are more important for people than their political and legal rights

- democracy without material well-being is not perceived by citizens as a positive value in Ukraine

- discrimination and violation of human rights have specific social-economic manifestations, and relate not to separate groups only, but to most parts of society.

Ukraine, as a modern, democratic state is obligated to demonstrate its commitment to human rights. The concept of human rights, includes, within its definition such rights as: the right to an independent material and spiritual life, and the development of the individual self; these are conditions which the state is obligated to fulfill.

Equality of rights, freedom, and justice are moral ideals and values, which are declared by the state are the main social-political and social-economic expectation of the citizens. The conditions surrounding the formation of opinions differ among age groups and those conditions should also affect the different rights, which young people value. The values of a new, democratic, and open society, should, dominate the values of young people. The statistics of this social survey pertaining to values, create a conception of human rights, such as: justice, equality, freedom, and political rights, but these do not dominate in the value system of young people. However, among this group, more dominate are values, such as: understanding of justice (34,8%). Among 29,2%, freedom is important. 25,5% pay attention to principles of equality of rights among citizens. For 23, 6%, honesty is especially valued. But, 20,5% emphasized the importance of having the opportunity to express their point of view.

The values of young people form their characters and shape them as personalities. Social values indicate the well-being of the whole nation and influence its mentality that differentiates one society from the other.

The elements of the Ukrainian mentality

Ukrainian people have always been known as kind, hospitable and friendly. They have respect for elders, for the deceased; love for children, love of nature and animals. Ukrainians have a knack for humor; they are musical, artistic and wonderful craftsmen famous for their mastery in weaving, wood carving and ceramics. These characteristics indicate the qualities they value, show their ultimate goals towards high morality.

Skills and diligence in working the land is perhaps the greatest talent the Ukrainians possess. Ukraine is situated on rich soil, and since ancient times the Ukrainian people have thrust their energy into agriculture. A lot of rituals, connected with agriculture, are observed for many centuries and are of great value even nowadays.

Folk customs, revived since the era of Trypillian culture (4th - 2nd millennia B.C.) and modified over time, have sustained the hard working peasant toiling on the land. Life depended on the rhythms of working the soil. Holidays were celebrated during periods of transition from one type of agricultural activity to another. Even in pre-Christian times a kind of ceremony was held before starting work invoking the powers of nature to cooperate and to provide generous harvests. These seasonal festivities were later incorporated into Christian holidays - and they exist to this day. Easter, for example, is a spring holiday. Spring is a time of ploughing and sowing in the fields, a time of warmth and rebirth after a cold, hungry winter. In pagan times, Ukrainians believed that the gods died and were reborn every year. An example of a pagan ritual symbolizing renewal and rebirth which is still practiced is the dyeing of eggs. Using wax, girls drew symbolic designs on eggs, dipped them into dye, melted the wax to expose the ornament, and presented these magical objects to loved ones. To the Christian "Ascension Day" (the 40th day after Easter), Ukrainians added a pre-Christian tradition of going into the field to inspect the progress of the wheat. The Trinity is celebrated on the 50th day after Easter (summer). Traditionally, people decorated their homes with green tree branches and fragrant herbs. This was a day for fortune-telling. Girls wove garlands and floated them in a river or stream. They watched as the wreaths drifted away, wishing that a handsome young man would find the garland, for this meant that he would some day become her husband. Another summer holiday full of magic and ritual is known as Saint Kupala (July 7th). It is a beautiful, exuberant fete at which fire and water (symbols of cleansing) are celebrated. During the day everyone has to be at least immersed in water. At dusk bonfires are lit, and holding hands, boys and girls leap over the flames.

This was the last holiday before the harvest. The year was rounded out with a series of harvest holidays: August 2, known as St. Illia Day, marked the beginning of autumn. "Until dinner it's summer, after dinner it's autumn," people said. On the19th of August, known as "Saviour Day" vegetables, fruits, mushrooms and honey were blessed. Weddings usually took place in the middle of October. A unique feature of Ukrainian Christmas festivities is the "vertep," or puppet theater. Young people get together, dress as angels, kings, Herod, Satan, death, and even animals. They walk from house to house enacting the Nativity and singing about the birth of Christ, greeting everyone with the holiday.

Every nation has traditions of its own. They represent the mentality of different people and are determined, to some extent, by the country’s history and geographical position. Ukraine, the breadbasket of Europe, has a rich soil which produces grain in great abundance, no wonder one of the most significant symbols of Ukraine is bread. Ukrainian homemakers developed a variety of artistic-looking breads. Bread was regarded as one of the holiest foods because it contained wheat, a staple of life. Over the centuries Ukrainians developed rituals and traditions which became deeply rooted in their lives.

The ancient tradition of offering a guest bread and salt dates back many centuries. Bread and salt were once considered necessary ingredients for health in daily consumption. Guests in Ukraine are offered a circular bread (klib) and a mold of salt (sil) on an embroidered ceremonial cloth called a rushnyk by their hosts. The hosts greet their visitors with a humble and heartfelt greeting - "With this bread and salt we greet you. We invite you to preserve the Ukrainian culinary arts, by teaching and passing on these traditions to your loved ones - Welcome". Often a small piece of the bread is broken off by the guest, dipped in the salt and then eaten. If it is part of a family gathering the bread may be eaten, put aside to be eaten later or taken to one's home.

The bread represents hospitality, the warmth of Ukrainian hospitality from the rich black fertile soil of Ukraine. The salt symbolizes friendship, an eternal friendship that will never sour because salt is never corrupted by time therefore, never loses its taste. In ancient Greece, over two thousand years ago, bread and salt were offered to guests as a greeting. This tradition symbolizes the link of Ukraine with the roots of its Greek culture.

Bread and wheat have always been important elements of Ukrainian life in culture and folklore. A variety of distinctive national breads play an important part in the national customs and traditions of Ukrainian culture. The decoration of bread became a form of art for Ukrainian women. Every major event and holiday in Ukrainian life has its special bread. For Christmas, Easter, weddings and funerals bread and wheat form the central traditions.

Some facets of customs and traditions are usually observed at most weddings. However, there is a growing number of Ukrainians — second and third generation — who want their weddings to reflect their heritage in as many areas as possible. Obviously, the adoption of the Ukrainian motif in the dress of the wedding party is the first place to begin for it immediately establishes the ethnic origin and creates an atmosphere conducive to the observance of Ukrainian nuptial traditions and customs.

BUT, there exists the other point of view on the modern tendencies leading to national decline of Ukrainian customs and traditions in this society.

Since Ukraine became independent, everything has changed in our country. Many policy-makers think the reason is one: we became more open to the influences of different countries and cultures. The first place among these trends belongs to the USA.

You may ask why, but the answer is obvious. Nowadays the USA is one of the most developed and powerful countries in the world. So, its foreign influence is very tangible in most countries and Ukraine isn’t an exception. This influence was reflected on each side of Ukrainian life.

We don’t only accept their habits, style of life, the attitude to reality, we take over their customs, their traditions which have been forming for ages. Their sources are deeply in history and everything would be fine if we weren’t too fond of them. The overloading of various innovations in Ukrainian cultural life leads to humiliations of our traditions and habits, to forgetting them. This way we indicate their inferior quality; we are ashamed of our culture and at the same time of our history.

We can see the manifestation of Americanization nearly every day and we got used to this. We try to celebrate our holidays as Americans do; thus, we decorate our apartments and houses as they do. We dress up our children and ourselves (on birthdays, for fancy-dress balls) in their costumes (policeman, mermaid, cowboy, etc.), but not in our national costumes.

It’s very unnatural and unusual when we try to adapt our habits and holidays to theirs (like it happens at our Orthodox Christmas and New Year’s Eve), to make them look like each other. We accept some of their holidays (like Halloween, St. Valentine’s Day), but forget about some of ours. Why do we act in this way? Maybe because it is fashionable and prestigious. Or is it that we don’t respect our customs and history? I think the reason is in both.

The Americanization changes our mentality. We are so happy that we can use American help which was unavailable in the Soviet period. And we use it without thinking what is good for us and what is not. We see American films, listen to American music and songs, wear American clothes; we begin to adapt completely to foreign culture and don’t support the development of Ukrainian culture because we think it is less valuable. Of course, it doesn’t mean we have to protect our society from the innovations and to be mistrustful of them. They can give us plenty of good and useful things: for example they can extend our knowledge or our outlook, change our attitude toward different things and phenomena to a better one.

In the pursuit of fashion, Ukrainians appreciate the influence of the American world in order not to fall behind others. But when we do this we become less respected in the eyes of other nations. We Ukrainians should preserve the best we have and try to inherit from the West only advantages of American society.

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