Descriptionary

alienation an individual's sense of separation or isola­tion from society; the absence of a sense of community.

altruism doing good for others without the desire or requirement of any kind of reward.

amalgamation the blending of the races through intermarriage and creation of mixed-blood offspring.

anarchy the absence of government, police, and other organized controls of human behavior.

anthropocentrism the belief that human beings are at the center of all meaning and creation.

anthropomorphism the attribution of human traits to animals or objects.

anti-Semitism prejudice and discrimination against Jews.

apartheid a controversial policy of racial segrega­tion and discrimination originating in 1948 in South Africa, and largely repealed in 1991.

aristocracy a group of people deemed superior to others and, by virtue of heredity, placed in positions of power.

asceticism the philosophy or lifestyle of hard work, deprivation, and high morals as an expression of one's "goodness." asphalt jungle the city as a place of danger, with many of the same Darwinian dynamics as found in the wild.

assimilation the process by which a minority or member of a minority becomes increasingly like those in the majority through adoption of customs, lan­guage, and attitudes.

bigotry intolerance for those of another race, reli­gion, sexual orientation, etc.

bourgeois of the middle class or middle-class values.

caste a system of classes and subclasses in Hindu society, composed primarily of five main groups: Brahmans (priests), Kshatriyas (nobles and warriors), Vaisyas (traders and farmers), Sudras (servants), and Harijan (untouchables).

chauvinism fanatical bias toward one's own class, race, or gender; the belief that one's own group is superior to all others.

cheerful robots

a term attributed to those in society who accept their place and status, no matter how lowly, without much complaint.

class a social stratum, ranked as low, middle, or high, according to wealth and education.

class consciousness awareness of one's status in society or where one fits in the socioeconomic hier­archy.

conformity molding oneself to be like others in the community in order to fit in and be accepted.

convention a social norm; a traditional way of thinking or acting.

counterculture a subculture that rejects the ways of the dominant culture.

culture shock the disequilibrium or stress that occurs when one visits or moves to a foreign country or culture with different languages, attitudes, prac­tices, and customs.

custom a traditional practice.

desegregation the opening of schools and places of employment to all races, particularly after a period of segregation.

deviance a behavior or attitude that is out of step with the norm of a culture.

discrimination preferential treatment for one's own kind and rejection of those who are different.

double standard a social norm in which a specific behavior is acceptable in one gender or group but not in another.

establishment collective term for those with power and influence over society.

ethnic cleansing purifying a population through genocide.

ethnocentrism the belief that one's own ethnic group is superior to all others.

ethos the values and attitudes subscribed to by a particular group or culture.

eugenics the use of selective breeding as a tool to heighten national intelligence, control genetic dis­eases, and generally improve the human stock.

feminism

the advocacy of equal rights and opportu­nities for both sexes.

flag-waving zealous patriotism or chauvinism.

folkways traditions and customs of a culture, usu­ally handed down through the generations.

future shock a reference to the inability of some humans to evolve and thrive in a highly technological or rapidly advancing world. The term originates from a book, Future Shock, by Alvin Toffler.

gay rights the issue of civil rights for homosexu­als, such as the right to marry someone of one's own sex.

gender bias prejudice against those of the opposite sex and bias toward one's own.

gentrification the displacement of lower-class citi­zens with those of the middle class, in a community undergoing renewal.

glass ceiling the invisible, prejudicial barrier that prevents women or minorities in some corporations from advancing to the highest levels.

global village the amalgamation of nations and cultures into a more unified whole, as facilitated by internationally shared television programs and movies, global business expansions, worldwide travel, and increased communications, as via the Internet.