Self And Environment

Today was the first introduction to our module 'Social Responsibility'. The session revolved around many terms, such as society structure, experiences, diverse cultures etc. It basically was about understanding what all defines an individual and how our concept of self is influenced by the environment around us. I know this might seem a bit odd. I mean why does one have to study about society, experiences, values etc. etc. in the field of fashion? But, this is to mainly understand how identity, is influenced, formed and established. And when you are in the field of fashion, it becomes very important to have a strong sense of identity, that is different from others and is within the parameters of values and ethics. So, here I am presenting my understanding and take on's from the session. Let's Get Started!

From the moment we take birth, till the day we die, we keep learning and evolving within our environment.  It is a combination of various aspects, including the interactions, relationships and a sense of community within it. And with the increasing diversity and cultures it has become important that we understand the oneness of self and environment, especially in this fast-paced, unpredictable environment, as it plays a crucial role in shaping our values and experiences even though diversity and certain norms are integral to our DNA. In order to get a better understanding of how they are connected to each other and self, let's begin by breaking down these terms.

Diverse Cultures

The concept of diversity encompasses acceptance and respect. It means understanding that every individual is unique, and recognizing our individual differences. These differences can be along the dimensions of race, religious beliefs or any other ideology. While, Culture, on the other hand, is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, laws, customs  and habits of the individual in these groups. When we analyze both these terms, we can see a relationship between culture and diversity i.e. diversity exists in the cultures. They both go hand in hand, since one cannot exist without the another. Hence, the term Diverse Culture.

So, as we can see, our culture in one way or the other refers to our lifestyle. And what is lifestyle? Lifestyle, again is a very broad term that inculcates everything from our ideas, customs and social behaviors to our living conditions. Lifestyle, however may vary from person to person and even from one group to another. And since there are so many diverse cultures not only in our country, but all around the world, we can actually view how lifestyle of people differ if they belong to any particular culture, geographical area, or group. Therefore, it becomes important that our lifestyle does not only dictate the world view but also our sense of self, as sometimes both these lines may get blurry in a modern society. 

Society Structure

Moving on, another aspect in our environment that plays a larger role in the development of self is the structure of society that we live in. Societies construct patterns of behavior by deeming certain actions or speech as acceptable or unacceptable. And these patterns of behavior developed with accordance to the society are known as societal norms. These norms undergo changes from time to time. And although living in a society, can provide us a sense of comfort and help us develop, it may sometimes overlap and distort our self identity. Thus, it is important to find a common ground where we understand these arrangements in a society without loosing our understanding of self.  At the end it's about asking yourself, whether society has influenced my choices and my personality? What parts of my identity have I chosen myself and what parts are determined by others? And when you start pondering upon these questions, you'll realize the impact society has on us and our lives. 

Experiences

Experiences are either gained from our community or learned on our own. Experience generally refers to the process by which we perceive the world around us. And the way we perceive things usually depends on our understanding of the thing that we are perceiving, while our understanding is more or less formed by the society we live in. So, for example, when we encounter a new person we often rely on generalizations to describe them. Generalizations that have been internalized by us because our society- through its particular culture, customs, institutions and more- have provided us with the labels to categorize everything. But do we need these generalizations, to define our own experiences? Can we see the uniqueness in things from our own understanding? I am not saying that what our society or culture teaches us is always wrong, but it is important that before internalizing, we question those experiences, understand those patterns to make a sense of it, before we apply them in our understanding. 

Values and Ethics

Ethics refers to the guidelines for conduct, it is based on morality. While, Values are defined as the principles and ideals, which helps in making the judgments about what's more important. Both, ethics and values are a central part of any institution, culture etc. and we are taught about them as soon as we enter this world. But what's important here to understand is that as we are evolving with time, we need to pay attention and alter certain values and ethics to fit the time. For instance, In earlier times it was considered a value in India to only engage in certain tasks if you belong to a particular community i.e. Brahmans can only teach. But as we have evolved and times have changed, we should value inclusiveness. We should understand that each person deserves a fair treatment in virtue of the fact that he/she is a person. 

At the end I would only say that, I believe parent's should let their children learn, experience and decide what values and norms they want to follow and take with them further in their life. Or as Rabindranath Tagore says, even though religion and family are equally important, it is still very necessary for us to remember that we should not limit a child to our own learning, for he was born in another time. And maybe I am a romantic, but it is my hope that we live with greater harmony between different people, their religions and cultures, and enjoy life in its all composite beauty, by learning and evolving with time.

All these images have been sourced from Pinterest.