In Culture as Given, Culture as Choice, Dirk Van Der Elst talks about how culture is everything that we are taught, that we make and give meaning to, and that we pass on to generation after generation. Culture is not necessarily natural, but then again culture and nature are not total opposites. Culture is something that is invisible, we can see it in the everyday actions and artifacts we have in our society. We gain culture from our parents, and the way they explain to the world to us as we grow. As we age, we are taught differently by our peers, and even by our own investigations. Dirk talks about food and the fact that what we eat is culturally instilled in us by those who raise us and by the society we live in. The same chapter talks about sex, elimination of wastes, sleeping and dreaming, looking at colors in different ways and the record of different ways of being a human. All of these things take into account the fact that we think our society is right, and other societies are wrong. "It is normal in every society to assume that what we do is natural and

"The influence of culture is not limited to your biological drives and their expression; it extends into the very ways you experience life." (41)

"In almost all societies, the family meal assumes a central position in the concept "home." (39) I do agree with this statement, and what he discusses about the fact that fast food is encroaching upon the custom of a meal at home with the family. I am actually saddened that the future generations may never know what it means to have a home cooked meal. Cultures are changing, and the new culture being instilled is that there is not enough time to sit down to dinner, and food needs to be eaten on the run. I hope that I will be able to hold down the culture of "dinner", as i was taught, when i finally start a family of my own.

Dreams are another aspect of culture, and depending upon the society you live in, will determine how much the dreams will weigh on your daily life. I do agree that in everyday western societal life, dreams do not mean a whole lot when talking about daily life. They do however seem to tell us what we are thinking about subconsciously, and can sometimes help us understand what has been bothering us. It is culturally taught that this is what dreams are for in our lives. I have a friend who is Native American, and dreams are extremely important and religious in her society. So I definitely believe that "every culture appears to incorporate some way to interpret dreams but, not surprisingly, different societies give them greater or lesser credence." (40)

When we look at all of our primary drives, Dirk talks about how they are just as culturally defined as everything else in our lives. He talks about sex, and how it is culturally defined by the society we live in. This is absolutely true. We as a society view sex as not only for reproduction, but as a pleasurable event. Other societies see it as something you do only for reproduction. We look at them like they are totally insane, while they look at us as if we are sac religious. If we can just look at one another as having different cultures and therfore different ways of living our lives, then maybe there would not be as much controversy. "The point is, sex is a cultural phenomenon as much as a biological one." (41)

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