Human culture is material and spiritual examples. The relationship between material and spiritual culture

Spiritual culture is science, morality, ethics, law, religion, art, education. Material means tools and means of labor, equipment and structures, production (agricultural and industrial), routes and means of communication, transport, household items.

Material culture is one of the parts of an integral human culture, the results creative activity, in which a natural object and its material are embodied in objects, properties and qualities and which ensure human existence. Material culture includes a variety of means of production: energy and raw materials resources, tools, production technology and infrastructure of the human environment, means of communication and transport, buildings and structures for domestic, service and entertainment purposes, various means of consumption, material and object relations in the field of technology or economics.

Spiritual culture is one of the parts of an integral human culture, the total spiritual experience of humanity, intellectual and spiritual activity and its results, ensuring the development of man as an individual. Spiritual culture exists in various forms. Customs, norms, patterns of behavior, values, ideals, ideas, knowledge that have developed in specific historical social conditions are forms of culture. In a developed culture, these components turn into relatively independent spheres of activity and acquire the status of independent social institutions: morality, religion, art, politics, philosophy, science, etc.

Material and spiritual culture exist in close unity. In fact, everything material, obviously, turns out to be a realization of the spiritual, and this spiritual is impossible without some material shell. At the same time, there is a significant difference between material and spiritual culture. First of all, there is a difference in subject matter. It is clear, for example, that tools and, say, musical works are fundamentally different from each other and serve different purposes. The same can be said about the nature of activity in the sphere of material and spiritual culture. In the sphere of material culture, human activity is characterized by changes in the material world, and man deals with material objects. Activities in the field of spiritual culture involve certain work with a system of spiritual values. This also implies a difference in the means of activity and their results in both spheres.

In Russian social science, for a long time, the dominant point of view was that material culture is primary, and spiritual culture has a secondary, dependent, “superstructural” character. This approach assumes that a person must first satisfy his so-called “material” needs in order to then move on to satisfying “spiritual” needs. But even the most basic “material” needs of humans, for example food and drink, are fundamentally different from the seemingly exactly the same biological needs of animals. An animal, by absorbing food and water, really only satisfies its biological needs. In humans, unlike animals, these actions also perform a sign function. There are prestigious, ritual, mourning and festive dishes and drinks, etc. This means that the corresponding actions can no longer be considered the satisfaction of purely biological (material) needs. They are an element of sociocultural symbolism and, therefore, are related to the system social values and norms, i.e. to spiritual culture.

The same can be said about all other elements of material culture. For example, clothing not only protects the body from adverse weather conditions, but also indicates age and gender characteristics, and a person’s place in the community. There are also work, everyday, and ritual types of clothing. The human home has multi-level symbolism. The list can be continued, but the examples given are quite sufficient to conclude that it is impossible to distinguish purely biological (material) needs in the human world. Any human action is already a social symbol that has a meaning that is revealed only in the sphere of culture.

And this means that the position about the primacy of material culture cannot be considered justified for the simple reason that there is no material culture in " pure form"simply doesn't exist.

Thus, the material and spiritual components of culture are inextricably linked with each other.

After all, when creating the objective world of culture, a person cannot do this without changing and transforming himself, i.e. without creating oneself in the process of one's own activity.

Culture turns out to be not only an activity as such, but a way of organizing activity.

Everything a person does, he does ultimately for the sake of solving a given problem.

In this case, human development appears as the improvement of his creative powers, abilities, forms of communication, etc.

Culture, if viewed broadly, includes both material and spiritual means of human life, which are created by man himself.

Material and spiritual things created by human creative labor are called artifacts.

This approach makes it possible to use the cognitive capabilities of a wide variety of research methods created by representatives of the sciences that study culture and have high heuristics.

Culturology: Textbook for universities Apresyan Ruben Grantovich

3.3. Material and spiritual culture

The division of culture into material and spiritual is associated with two main types of production - material and spiritual.

Concept "material culture" introduced into cultural studies by ethnographers and anthropologists, who understood material culture as character traits cultures of traditional societies. According to B. Malinovsky’s definition, material products human - these are artifacts, built houses, manned ships, tools and weapons, objects of magical and religious worship, constituting the most tangible and visible part of culture. Subsequently, the concept of “material culture” began to define all material and practical human activity and its results: tools, homes, everyday items, clothing, means of transport and communication, etc. Human labor, knowledge, and experience are invested in all of this.

Spiritual culture covers the sphere of consciousness. This is a product of spiritual production - the creation, distribution, consumption of spiritual values. These include: science, art, philosophy, education, morality, religion, mythology, etc. Spiritual culture is a scientific idea, piece of art and its execution, theoretical and empirical knowledge, views that emerge spontaneously, and scientific views.

Manifestations of material and spiritual culture, the creation and use of objects related to each of them are different.

For a long time (and sometimes even now), only spiritual activities and spiritual values ​​were considered culture. Material production remains beyond the boundaries of culture. But human activity is, first of all, material activity. Beginning with primitive society, the entire human culture - the way of obtaining food, as well as customs, mores, etc. are determined, directly or indirectly, by material grounds. The creation of a “second”, “artificial” nature begins in the material sphere. And what its level is ultimately determines the development of spiritual culture. At the dawn of humanity communication primitive art with character labor activity was immediate and obvious. At higher stages of development of human society, the belonging of material activity to the sphere of culture became no less obvious: some manifestations of people’s material activity turned out to be such a direct manifestation of culture that their very designation is terminologically defined as culture. Thus, at the end of the 20th century, technical and technological, technotronic, screen and other cultures emerged.

In addition, the very development of spiritual culture largely depends and is determined by the level of development of material culture.

Material culture and spiritual culture are interconnected, and the border between them is often transparent. A scientific idea is embodied in a new model of a machine, device, aircraft, that is, it takes on a material form and becomes an object of material culture. Material culture develops depending on what scientific, technical and other ideas are implemented in it. Also, an artistic idea is embodied in a book, painting, sculpture, and outside of this materialization it will not become an object of culture, but will remain only the creative intention of the author.

Some types of creative activity are generally on the verge of material and spiritual culture and belong equally to both. Architecture is both art and construction. Design, technical creativity – art and technology. The art of photography became possible only on the basis of technology. Just like the art of cinema. Some theorists and practitioners of cinema argue that cinema is increasingly ceasing to be art and becoming technology, because the artistic quality of the film depends on the level and quality of technical equipment. One cannot agree with this, but one cannot help but see the dependence of the quality of a film on the quality of filming equipment, film and other material and technical means of cinema.

Television, of course, is an achievement and embodiment of technology. But the idea of ​​television, its invention belongs to science. Having been realized in technology (material culture), television also became an element of spiritual culture.

It is obvious that the boundaries between various areas culture and its individual forms are very conditional. Almost all forms of culture are interconnected. So, for example, artistic culture interacts, at least indirectly, with science, and with religion, and with everyday culture, etc. The development of science and the formation a certain picture world affected the development of art - the development of natural science knowledge contributed to the formation of the genres of landscape and still life, and the emergence of new technical inventions led to the emergence of new types of art - photography, cinema, design. Household culture is also associated with religious tradition, and with the moral norms prevailing in society, and with such types of art as architecture and decorative arts.

But the values ​​of material culture differ in their characteristics from the values ​​of spiritual culture. Values ​​related to spiritual culture are closer to values ​​of a universal human nature, therefore, as a rule, they have no limits to consumption. Indeed, such moral values, like life, love, friendship, dignity, have existed as long as all human culture. Masterpieces of artistic culture do not change their significance - the “Sistine Madonna”, created by Raphael, is the greatest work of art not only for the Renaissance, but also for modern humanity. Probably, the attitude towards this masterpiece will not change in the future. The values ​​of material culture have temporary limits of consumption. Production equipment wears out, buildings deteriorate. In addition, material assets can become “morally obsolete.” While maintaining physical form, the means of production may not meet the requirements modern technologies. Clothes sometimes go out of fashion faster than they wear out.

The values ​​of spiritual culture very often do not have a monetary expression. It is impossible to imagine that beauty, goodness and truth can be assessed in some fixed units. At the same time, the values ​​of material culture, as a rule, have a certain price. “Inspiration is not for sale, but you can sell a manuscript” (A. Pushkin).

The purpose of material culture values ​​is clearly utilitarian in nature. The values ​​of spiritual culture, for the most part, are not practical in orientation, but sometimes they can also have a utilitarian purpose (for example, such types of art as architecture or design).

Material culture includes several forms.

Production. This includes all means of production, as well as technology and infrastructure (energy sources, transport and communications).

Life This form also includes the real side Everyday life– clothing, food, housing, as well as traditions and customs of family life, raising children, etc.

Body culture. A person’s attitude towards his body is a special form of culture, which is very closely related to forms of spiritual culture and reflects moral, artistic, religious and social norms.

Ecological culture – human relationship to the natural environment.

Spiritual culture includes both scientific and non-scientific knowledge, both theoretical and empirical, views that arose under the direct influence of ideology (for example, political views, legal consciousness), and those that develop spontaneously (for example, social psychology).

Spiritual culture, its features and forms will be discussed in the second section of the textbook.

From the book Culturology: A Textbook for Universities author Apresyan Ruben Grantovich

Section II Spiritual culture

From the book Aryans [Founders of European Civilization (litres)] by Child Gordon

From the book History and Cultural Studies [Ed. second, revised and additional] author Shishova Natalya Vasilievna

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From the book Requests of the Flesh. Food and sex in people's lives author Reznikov Kirill Yurievich

Part three Material culture

From the book of Kumyks. History, culture, traditions author Atabaev Magomed Sultanmuradovich

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Spiritual culture of the Eastern Slavs Diverse and colorful material culture ancient Rus' corresponded to the vibrant, multifaceted, complex spiritual culture of the Eastern Slavs. Since time immemorial, folk culture has developed in Rus' spoken word poetry, wonderful

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3.2. Material culture of Ancient China The formation of the material culture of Ancient China was affected by the uneven development of material production in different parts of the country. From traditional types home production and crafts most characteristic of pottery

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3.3. Spiritual Culture of Ancient China Philosophy in China emerges at the end of the third period in the history of Ancient China (“separate states”) and reaches its highest flowering during the Zhanguo period (“warring kingdoms,” 403–221 BC). At that time there were six main

Material culture

Material culture usually refers to artificially created objects that allow people to optimally adapt to natural and social conditions of life.

Objects of material culture are created to satisfy various human needs and are therefore considered as values. When speaking about the material culture of a particular people, we traditionally mean such specific items as clothing, weapons, utensils, food, jewelry, housing, architectural structures. Modern science, by examining such artifacts, is able to reconstruct the lifestyle of even long-vanished peoples, about whom there is no mention in written sources.

With a broader understanding of material culture, three main elements are seen in it.

The actual objective world created by man is buildings, roads, communications, instruments, objects of art and everyday life. The development of culture is manifested in the constant expansion and complexity of the world of artifacts, the “domestication” of the human environment. It is difficult to imagine the life of a modern person without the most complex artificial devices - computers, television, mobile phones etc., which lie at the basis of modern information culture.

Technologies - means and technical algorithms for creating and using objects objective world. Technologies are material because they are embodied in specific practical methods of activity.

Technical culture is the specific skills, abilities, and abilities of a person. Culture preserves these skills and abilities along with knowledge, transmitting both theoretical and practical experience from generation to generation. However, unlike knowledge, skills and abilities are formed in practical activities, usually a present example. At each stage of cultural development, along with the complexity of technology, skills also become more complex.

Spiritual culture

Spiritual culture, unlike material culture, is not embodied in objects. The sphere of her existence is not things, but ideal activity associated with intellect, emotions, feelings.

The ideal forms of cultural existence do not depend on individual human opinions. This is scientific knowledge, language, established norms of morality and law, etc. Sometimes this category includes the activities of education and mass communication.

Integrating forms of spiritual culture connect disparate elements of public and personal consciousness into a coherent worldview. At the first stages of human development, myths acted as such a regulating and unifying form. In modern times, its place has been taken by religion, philosophy and, to some extent, art.

Subjective spirituality is the refraction of objective forms in the individual consciousness of each individual person. In this regard, we can talk about the culture of an individual person (his knowledge base, ability to make moral choices, religious feelings, culture of behavior, etc.).

The combination of the spiritual and material forms the common space of culture as a complex interconnected system of elements that constantly transform into each other. Thus, spiritual culture - the ideas, plans of the artist - can be embodied in material things - books or sculptures, and reading books or observing objects of art is accompanied by a reverse transition - from material things to knowledge, emotions, feelings.

The quality of each of these elements, as well as the close connection between them, determine the level of moral, aesthetic, intellectual, and ultimately - cultural development any society.

The relationship between material and spiritual culture

At the same time, spiritual culture is inextricably linked with material culture. Any objects or phenomena of material culture are based on a project, embody certain knowledge and become values, satisfying human needs. In other words, material culture is always the embodiment of a certain part of spiritual culture. But spiritual culture can only exist if it is materialized, objectified, and has received one or another material embodiment. Any book, painting, musical composition, like other works of art that are part of spiritual culture, need a material carrier - paper, canvas, paints, musical instruments, etc.

Moreover, it is often difficult to understand what type of culture - material or spiritual - a particular object or phenomenon belongs to. Thus, we will most likely classify any piece of furniture as material culture. But if we are talking about a 300-year-old chest of drawers exhibited in a museum, we should talk about it as an object of spiritual culture. A book, an indisputable object of spiritual culture, can be used to light a stove. But if cultural objects can change their purpose, then criteria must be introduced to distinguish between objects of material and spiritual culture. In this capacity, one can use an assessment of the meaning and purpose of an object: an object or phenomenon that satisfies the primary (biological) needs of a person belongs to material culture; if it satisfies secondary needs associated with the development of human abilities, it is considered an object of spiritual culture.

Between material and spiritual culture there are transitional forms - signs that represent something different from what they themselves are, although this content does not relate to spiritual culture. The most famous form of sign is money, as well as various coupons, tokens, receipts, etc., used by people to indicate payment for all kinds of services. Thus, money - the general market equivalent - can be spent on buying food or clothing (material culture) or purchasing a ticket to a theater or museum (spiritual culture). In other words, money acts as a universal intermediary between objects of material and spiritual culture in modern society. But there is a serious danger in this, since money equalizes these objects among themselves, depersonalizing objects of spiritual culture. At the same time, many people have the illusion that everything has its price, that everything can be bought. In this case, money divides people and degrades the spiritual side of life.

5. Culture is one of the most important characteristics of the specifics of human life. Each individual is a complex biosocial system that functions through interaction with environment what a person needs for his normal functioning, life and development.

Most human needs are satisfied through work. And the labor process is always carried out with the direct participation and guiding influence of human consciousness, his thinking, knowledge, feelings, and will. The system of human culture is a world of things, objects, and now natural environment created by man to satisfy his needs. This means that culture is the “objectified” world of human spirituality.

Culture is a product of human activity, and activity is a person’s way of being in the world. The results of human labor are constantly accumulating, and therefore the cultural system historically develops and is enriched by many generations of people. Everything achieved by humanity in legal, political, government activities, in educational systems, medical, consumer and other types of services, in science and technology, art, religion, philosophy - all this belongs to the world of human culture:

· fields and farms, industrial (factories, factories, etc.) and civil (residential buildings, institutions, etc.) buildings, transport communications (roads, pipelines, bridges, etc.), communication lines, etc. .;

· political, legal, educational and other institutions;

· scientific knowledge, artistic images, religious doctrines and philosophical systems, family culture

It is not easy to find a place on Earth that has not been developed to one degree or another by human labor, that has not been touched by the active hands of man, that has not had the stamp of the human spirit on it.

The world of culture surrounds everyone. Each person is, as it were, immersed in a sea of ​​things, objects of human culture. Moreover, an individual becomes a person insofar as he assimilates the forms of activity for the production and use of cultural objects (developed by previous generations of people). In the family, at school, at a higher educational institution, at work, in communication with other people, we master the system of objective forms of culture, “deobjectify” them for ourselves. Only on this path does a person change himself, develop his inner spiritual world, their knowledge, interests, morals, skills, abilities, worldview, values, needs, etc. The higher the degree of a person’s mastery of cultural achievements, the greater the contribution he can make to its further development.

Culture appeared simultaneously with man himself, and the first cultural phenomena were the tools created by our distant ancestors.

Culture is a single, complex, integrated phenomenon of human nature, which is conditionally (according to the degree of predominance of the spiritual or material components) often divided into humanitarian and natural science cultures.

It is unlikely that today anyone will be able to describe the entire variety of cultural values ​​achieved and being achieved by humanity. We can highlight only some of the most significant areas of human culture today. Such a division is arbitrary, controversial and largely depends on the views of a particular person. Humanitarian culture.

Humanitarian culture in the modern sense is a human worldview, embodied practically and predicted theoretically, based on the belief that the World around us can be imagined in consciousness. In other words, it is a universal complex of material and spiritual values, created exclusively by the subjective (personal) consciousness of man and society. This is morality, religion, art, politics, philosophy, etc., which is included in the concept of spirituality.

Humanitarian culture is focused on human values, such as humanism, democracy, morality, human rights, etc. But the researcher of this culture is located within the problems under consideration. Philosophical systems, religions, and philological studies include features inherent in their creator. His whole life is often inextricably woven into the “fabric” of these systems, religions, etc. Therefore, the research methods used in the field of humanities are strikingly different from the natural sciences and come down mainly to interpretations, interpretations, and comparisons.

Great importance in the humanities they have teleological or finalist explanations, the purpose of which is to reveal the motives and intentions in people’s activities. Interest in such explanations has increased in Lately, it was determined by the results obtained in synergetics, ecology and other natural sciences. But also higher value in humanitarian fields has research method, associated with interpretation, which is usually called hermeneutic.

6. Culture acts as an important factor in the social renewal of society. It is sensitive to all changes occurring in society, and itself has a significant impact on social life, shaping and determining many social processes.

Modern Western sociologists assign a large role to culture in the development of modernization processes. In their opinion, a “breakthrough” of the traditional way of life in a number of countries should occur under the direct influence of their sociocultural contacts with already existing centers of market-industrial culture. In this case, it is necessary to take into account the specific historical conditions of these countries, their traditions, features national character, existing cultural and psychological stereotypes, etc.

Special role cultures in the evolution of society were noted by the classics of world sociological thought. It is enough to cite M. Weber’s famous work “The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism”, where it was shown how the ideological principles of Protestantism determined the formation of the system value orientations, motivation and behavioral stereotypes that formed the basis of capitalist entrepreneurship and significantly contributed to the formation of the bourgeois era.

The role of culture as a factor of social change especially increases during the period of social reforms. This can be clearly seen in the example of our country.

In these conditions, the development of a new cultural policy becomes especially important. Cultural policy is understood as a set of measures to regulate the development of spiritual and value aspects of social life. Culture plays the role of forming value-oriented, optimally organized and socially effective activities.

7. The post-industrial state of human civilization is rightfully associated with the development of the information society - a society whose level is decisively determined by the quantity and quality of accumulated information, its freedom and accessibility. The emergence of the information society is inextricably linked with the awareness of the fundamental role of information in social development, consideration of such phenomena as information resources, new information technologies, and informatization in a broad sociocultural context.

The formation of the information society required ensuring the adequacy of education to the dynamic changes occurring in nature and society, the entire human environment, the increased volume of information, and the rapid development of new information technologies. Of particular importance in the information society is the organization of information education and the improvement of the information culture of the individual.

Today there is every reason to talk about the formation of a new information culture, which can become an element of the general culture of mankind. This will include knowledge about the information environment, the laws of its functioning, and the ability to navigate information flows. Information culture is not yet an indicator of general, but rather professional culture, but over time it will become important factor development of each personality. Concept " information culture"characterizes one of the facets of culture associated with the information aspect of people's lives. The role of this aspect in the information society is constantly increasing; and today the totality of information flows around each person is so large, diverse and ramified that it requires him to know the laws of the information environment and the ability to navigate in information flows, otherwise he will not be able to adapt to life in new conditions, in particular, to change. social structures, the consequence of which will be a significant increase in the number of workers in the field information activities and services.

Currently, there are many definitions of information culture. Let's look at some of them.

IN in a broad sense information culture is understood as a set of principles and real mechanisms that ensure positive interaction between ethnic and national cultures, their connection into the common experience of humanity.

In a narrow sense - optimal ways of handling signs, data, information and presenting them to interested consumers to solve theoretical and practical problems; mechanisms for improving technical environments for the production, storage and transmission of information; development of a training system, preparing a person for effective use information media and information.

Information culture of humanity in different time were shaken by information crises. One of the most significant quantitative information crises led to the emergence of writing. Oral methods of preserving knowledge did not ensure complete preservation of the growing volumes of information and recording of information on a material medium, which gave rise to a new period of information culture - documentary. It included a culture of communication with documents: extracting fixed knowledge, encoding and recording information; documentary search. Handling information has become easier, the way of thinking has undergone changes, but oral forms of information culture not only have not lost their significance, but have also been enriched by a system of relationships with written ones.

The next information crisis brought to life computer technologies that modified the information medium and automated some information processes.

Modern information culture has absorbed all its previous forms and combined them into a single tool. As a special aspect social life it acts as a subject, means and result of social activity, reflects the nature and level of practical activity of people. This is the result of the subject’s activity and the process of preserving what was created, distributing and consuming cultural objects.

Currently, a basis is being created for the formation of a contradiction between the category of individuals whose information culture is formed under the influence of information technology and reflects new connections and relationships of the information society, and the category of individuals whose information culture is determined by traditional approaches. This creates different levels its quality with the same expenditure of effort and time entails objective injustice, which is associated with a decrease in the possibilities of creative manifestation of some subjects compared to others.


Related information.


Culture is human activity to create various kinds of values, as well as the result of such activity. In a general sense, this concept can include everything created by man. However, speaking about material and spiritual culture, we mean different concepts: all of the above belongs to the first category, and the second includes ideas, images, traditions, customs, and theories.

Features of material culture and its differences from spiritual

The material culture of a particular people includes traditional clothes, food, weapons, housing, decorations, various devices. Material culture in a broad sense includes two main elements:

  1. Items, created by hand human (architecture, appliances, household elements). IN in this case Culture is the act of adaptation of a person to the environment, and the environment to the person. Modern information culture is built on the basis of various devices: telephones, the Internet, television.
  2. Technologies created by man. Technologies belong to material culture, and not to spiritual, because they have a real living embodiment. For example, touch technology has found application in new generation phones, tablets and laptops.
  3. Skills and abilities are not just theoretical knowledge, they are their real embodiment. It is because they have a physical image that they are included in this category. In this one can see spiritual and material culture, but it is more correct to speak simply about material culture, as a specific embodiment of a skill.

Accordingly, all elements of culture that do not fit the description of a material form can be classified as spiritual.

Spiritual culture and its relationship with material

The main difference between spiritual and material culture is that one of them does not have an exact physical appearance, while the other does. Spiritual culture is not found in our world, but in the area of ​​intellectual activity, feelings and self-expression.

Initially, mythology was the ideal form of spiritual culture. Myths regulated various kinds of relationships, explained the structure of the world, and could serve as a normative guide. Later, their role was taken by religion, and then philosophy and art were added to it.

It is believed that perfect shape culture cannot be associated with a specific opinion - it is scientific knowledge, moral norms, language. In the same category you can include educational activities and objective media.

However, spiritual culture also exists in a subjective sense - it is a person’s internal baggage, represented by his opinion, moral principles, knowledge, behavior, and religious ideas.

It is also interesting that spiritual culture can smoothly flow into material culture - the sculptor’s idea will be embodied and become an object of material culture. However, material culture also turns into spiritual: reading books, discussing their meaning, a person translates real material culture into subjective spiritual culture.

Material and spiritual culture of Russia

The culture of Russia, like any other country, dates back many centuries. Since the state is multinational, the local culture is multifaceted, it would be difficult to sum it up under one common denominator.

Moreover, each specific period of time is marked by its own cultural objects - in ancient times these were chronicles, everyday life, National costumes, then - numerous paintings, books, monuments, poems. Nowadays, culture still retains many customs, traditions and other parts of the culture of the past, but much is borrowed from other countries. This is a process common to many countries in the 21st century.

Material culture and its types.

Culture is an integral system object with a complex structure. At the same time, the very existence of culture acts as a single process that can be divided into two spheres: material and spiritual. Material culture is divided into: - production and technological culture, which represents the material results of material production and methods of technological activity public person; - reproduction human race, which includes the entire sphere of intimate relationships between a man and a woman. It should be noted that material culture is usually understood not so much as the creation of the objective world of people, but rather the activity of creating “conditions” human existenceʼʼ. The essence of material culture is the embodiment of various human needs, allowing people to adapt to biological and social conditions of life.

Material culture is the human environment. Material culture is created by all types of human labor. It creates the standard of living of society, the nature of its material needs and the possibility of satisfying them. The material culture of society falls into eight categories:

1) animal breeds;

2) plant varieties;

3) soil culture;

4) buildings and structures;

5) tools and equipment;

6) communication routes and means of transport;

7) communications and means of communication;

8) technology.

1. Breeds of animals constitute a special category of material culture, because this category does not include the number of animals of a given breed, but rather the carriers of the breed.

This category of material culture includes not only animals for economic use, but also decorative breeds of dogs, pigeons, etc. The process of transferring wild animals into domestic ones through directed selection and crossing is accompanied by a change in their appearance, gene pool and behavior. But not all tame animals, for example, cheetahs used for hunting, belong to material culture, because did not undergo directed crossing processes.

Wild and domestic animals of the same species can coexist in time (as, for example, pigs and wild boars) or be only domestic.

2. Plant varieties are developed through selection and targeted education. The number of varieties is constantly increasing in each plant species. Unlike animal breeds, plants can be stored in seeds, which contain all the qualities of an adult plant. Seed storage allows you to collect collections of seeds and save them, systematize, classify, etc. conduct all types of activities characteristic of cultural work. Since different types plants have different relationships between seeds and an adult plant, since many plants are propagated by layering and cuttings, crop-forming functions are combined with the distribution of varieties in a given area. This is done by nurseries and seed farms.

3. Soil culture is the most complex and vulnerable component of material culture. Soil is the upper productive layer of the earth, in which saprophytic viruses, bacteria, worms, fungi and other living elements of nature are concentrated between inorganic elements. The productive power of the soil depends on how much and in what combinations these living elements are found with inorganic elements and among themselves. It is important to note that to create a soil culture, it is processed to increase its fertility. Soil treatment includes: mechanical tillage (turning over the top layer, loosening and transferring the soil), fertilizing with humus of organic plant residues and animal waste, chemical fertilizers and microelements, the correct sequence of cultivation of different plants in the same area, water and air regime of the soil (reclamation, irrigation, etc.).

Thanks to cultivation, the soil layer increases in volume, life in it is activated (thanks to the combination of saprophytic living beings), and fertility increases. The soil, being in the same place thanks to human activity, improves. This is soil culture.

Soils are classified according to their quality, location and their productive capacity. Soil maps are being compiled. Soils are rated by their productive power through comparison. A land cadastre is compiled that determines the quality and comparative value of the soil. Inventories have agricultural and economic uses.

4. Buildings and structures are the most visual elements of material culture (the German verb “bauen” means “to build” and “to cultivate the soil”, as well as “to engage in any culture-forming activity”; it well expresses the meaning of the combination of basic forms of material and cultural development of places - ness).

Buildings are the habitats of people with all the diversity of their activities and life, and structures are the results of construction that change conditions economic activity. Buildings usually include housing, premises for monetary, administrative activities, entertainment, information, educational activities, and to the structures of the reclamation system and water management, dams, bridges, premises for production. The boundary between buildings and structures is mobile. Thus, the theater room is a building, and the stage mechanism is a structure. A warehouse can be called both a building and a structure. What they have in common is that they are the result of construction activities.

The culture of buildings and structures, as well as soil, is real estate that should not be destroyed in its functional qualities. This means that the culture of buildings and structures consists of maintaining and constantly improving their useful functions.

Authorities, especially local ones, monitor the maintenance and development of this culture. The role of chambers of commerce and industry is especially great, which, being public organizations, are directly involved in this work (of course, where they exist and where they function correctly). Banks can play a significant role in this cultural creative work, which, however, do not always act correctly, forgetting that their future well-being is connected, first of all, with the correct exploitation of real estate.

5. Tools, devices and equipment - a category of material culture that provides all types of physical and mental labor. Οʜᴎ represent movable property and differ based on the type of activity they serve. Most full list a variety of tools, devices and equipment are trade nomenclatures.

The peculiarity of correctly compiled trade nomenclatures is that they reflect the entire history of improvement of tools, devices and equipment. The principle of culture formation in the development and differentiation of functions and the preservation of early functional analogues.

The difference between tools, fixtures and equipment is that the tool directly affects the material being processed; fixtures serve as an addition to the tool, allowing them to operate with greater accuracy and productivity. Equipment - complexes of tools and devices located in one place of work and everyday life.

Material culture and its types. - concept and types. Classification and features of the category "Material culture and its types." 2017, 2018.