15 are acted by people repeatedly to describe or justify their actions. These are called
cultural norms. Another description of values is conveyed by Ficther 293-294. He says that
values exist in everything which is useful, admirable, and which makes people want to possess it. Through this idea, values in every person may be different since he
might have different assumptions of what are considered useful, admirable, and so deserve to be possessed.
Values which give meaning to a culture and a society have some characteristics. The first characteristic of values is that values are shared. It means
that a group of people agree to the values. The second characteristic of values is that values are taken seriously. People are attached to the values in order to maintain the
common welfare and to satisfy the social needs. The third characteristic of values is that values involve people’s emotions.
They compel people to sacrifice or even die for the sake of the highest values. The last characteristic is values may be abstracted from various valued items because
values constitute agreement among many people. However, there is a different idea of values that is proposed by Henry 13-15.
According to him, value is associated with good things. These constitute actions which are expected by people in our surrounding to show. Values can be found in
family or friendship and they constitute the idea of good human relations.
d. American Culture 1 History of American People
The history of American culture began at the same time as the history of American people. According to Current et al 2, in the 17
th
century Englishmen tried
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16 to move to a place where they could be released from bad conditions in their origin
country. The Englishmen then called America as a New World where they were able to be free from the lack of their origin country.
Also, the Englishmen thought that this New World would give opportunities that could make them happy.
The Englishmen, then in 1750 called Americans, developed certain characteristics that were different from Englishmen in England. There are three
reasons underlie the differences of characteristics between the Americans and the
Englishmen. The first reason is because the Americans were different. They did not inherit general character of Englishmen. The Americans were more not satisfied with
their origin and more adventurous. The second reason is that the Americans adapted and developed some
particular elements of English in the New World where everything was strange .
The last reason is that American culture constitutes many different cultures originating
from Europe and Africa. This is because in the eighteenth century, there were many people from many countries who came to America such as from Africa, Holland,
Scotland, Ireland, and from other countries in the European continent. Besides from Europe and Africa, the different cultures also came from Asia and Latin Gordon 39.
The process of becoming Americans has led them to develop certain
characteristics which become typical characters of American people. Since culture is
the result of the existence society, the characters of American people, thus, form the American culture.
2 Characteristics of American Culture
According to Henry 13-14, culture as a result of community existence brings about two aspects that attach in American daily life. These aspects are called values
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17 and drives. American people associate values with good things, such as love, honesty,
fun, and relaxation. They exist in family and friend relationships. On the other hand, drives are associated with things which are able to make people want them more and
bigger. Drives lead people to expansiveness. Drives are found in occupational world and move many activities which direct people to getting ahead, rising in the social
scale, outstripping others, just as in business activities. American culture is a driven culture. American people are driven by
achievement, competitive, profit and mobility drives, security, and by a desire to a higher standard of living. These kinds of drives direct people to expansiveness.
Drives are easily found in occupational realm where competition with colleague often happens. Moreover, this realm indeed requires people with drives. Many jobs set
goals that can be achieved toward achievement, competition, profit, mobility or even a higher standard of living.
In America, people can easily get job opportunities if they are moved by drives. Henry states that
It is no problem at all to locate jobs requiring an orientation toward achievement, competition, profit, and mobility, or even toward a higher
standard of living. But it is difficult to find one requiring outstanding capacity for love, kindness, quietness, contentment, fun, frankness and simplicity 14.
If people are moved by values, they have to really search the jobs because the jobs underlain by values are very rare. Moreover, the jobs with values usually will only
yield small amount of money and is low prestige.
3 Values in the American Culture
According to Fichter 308-310, even though American people consist of various ethnic groups and cultures that lead them to have different values, there are
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18 some values which are shared by the people and are called
“an ultimate core” of values. Those values are the value of rational approach to life, the value of progress,
the value on individual success, the value on working and the value of freedom for the individual.
The first value, that is the value of rational approach, makes American people reasonable in thinking or acting. They always try to be as effective as they can in
using time and making efforts. The scientific ways are preferable to Americans in solving problems. The second value is the value of progress. It leads American people
to have faith in the future and so they are ready for changes and welcome experimentation.
The third value is the value of individual success. This value is a description that success is not only measured by economic and business realms. A self-made man
or woman such as a professional dancer or a highly paid singer may also be a measurement for success. The next value is the value upon working which is highly
valued by American people. It determines a man’s worth toward his function to
society. Working yields material comfort, leisure, and success and so American people put emphasize on getting things done and are in a hustle and bustle
circumstance. The value of freedom for the individual is the last
value in “an ultimate core” of values. This value brings the people into an understanding that freedom is not only
the matter of free from economic or political restraints. A man’s moral responsibility,
his inviolability, and his dignity are really of taken account as an individual freedom. This value should not be violated, even though sometimes it is violated.
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19 Regarding to the value of individual freedom, Stewart 70-71 conveys that to
Americans, children have already been taught to be autonomous since in the early age. Hence, a child or a person is expected to be able to face the world using his own
way such as developing his own opinions and view the world from his own point of view. These behaviors are in individualism value. This value then underlies people to
have an emotional effect namely self-reliance which actually unrelated to nowadays technological American culture. This self-reliance motivates people to look for
autonomy, self-actualization and personal growth. The value of self-reliance is emotionally perceived by American people.
Stewart 41-42 also suggests another American value namely measurable achievement. This value is related to
the people’s activities or actions in their daily life which only admit achievements with visible achievements. In consequence, this
value leads American people to seek for a sensation in achieving something, for personal triumph, or for visible achievement.
5. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
