Hawaiian Perspectives

Deep Culture in Societies

There are cultural codes in the collective sub-conscious of all societies which defines within that society what is right and wrong, what is moral and natural, what forms of behavior is appropriate in given circumstances.   These codes derive from the myths and legends, from the deep national memories, from the environmental conditions, from the internal conflicts and from a multitude of other processes which have taken place over long periods of time in a society.  These codes are generally unwritten.  They do not form a constitutive document or are in some explicit statement. They are generally unspoken.  But they are so ingrained in a society that they become the driving force of the society.   You can oftentimes see them in the routines and habits of people, in the fears and pleasures of a people, in their dreams and expectations and the systems of reasoning.

I call these codes the deep culture of a society.

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