how to write essay about culture

Cultural Identity Essay

27 August, 2020

12 minutes read

Author:  Elizabeth Brown

No matter where you study, composing essays of any type and complexity is a critical component in any studying program. Most likely, you have already been assigned the task to write a cultural identity essay, which is an essay that has to do a lot with your personality and cultural background. In essence, writing a cultural identity essay is fundamental for providing the reader with an understanding of who you are and which outlook you have. This may include the topics of religion, traditions, ethnicity, race, and so on. So, what shall you do to compose a winning cultural identity essay?

Cultural Identity Paper: Definitions, Goals & Topics 

Before starting off with a cultural identity essay, it is fundamental to uncover what is particular about this type of paper. First and foremost, it will be rather logical to begin with giving a general and straightforward definition of a cultural identity essay. In essence, cultural identity essay implies outlining the role of the culture in defining your outlook, shaping your personality, points of view regarding a multitude of matters, and forming your qualities and beliefs. Given a simpler definition, a cultural identity essay requires you to write about how culture has influenced your personality and yourself in general. So in this kind of essay you as a narrator need to give an understanding of who you are, which strengths you have, and what your solid life position is.

Yet, the goal of a cultural identity essay is not strictly limited to describing who you are and merely outlining your biography. Instead, this type of essay pursues specific objectives, achieving which is a perfect indicator of how high-quality your essay is. Initially, the primary goal implies outlining your cultural focus and why it makes you peculiar. For instance, if you are a french adolescent living in Canada, you may describe what is so special about it: traditions of the community, beliefs, opinions, approaches. Basically, you may talk about the principles of the society as well as its beliefs that made you become the person you are today.

So far, cultural identity is a rather broad topic, so you will likely have a multitude of fascinating ideas for your paper. For instance, some of the most attention-grabbing topics for a personal cultural identity essay are:

• Memorable traditions of your community
• A cultural event that has influenced your personality 
• Influential people in your community
• Locations and places that tell a lot about your culture and identity

Cultural Identity Essay Structure

As you might have already guessed, composing an essay on cultural identity might turn out to be fascinating but somewhat challenging. Even though the spectrum of topics is rather broad, the question of how to create the most appropriate and appealing structure remains open.

Like any other kind of an academic essay, a cultural identity essay must compose of three parts: introduction, body, and concluding remarks. Let’s take a more detailed look at each of the components:

Introduction 

Starting to write an essay is most likely one of the most time-consuming and mind-challenging procedures. Therefore, you can postpone writing your introduction and approach it right after you finish body paragraphs. Nevertheless, you should think of a suitable topic as well as come up with an explicit thesis. At the beginning of the introduction section, give some hints regarding the matter you are going to discuss. You have to mention your thesis statement after you have briefly guided the reader through the topic. You can also think of indicating some vital information about yourself, which is, of course, relevant to the topic you selected.

Your main body should reveal your ideas and arguments. Most likely, it will consist of 3-5 paragraphs that are more or less equal in size. What you have to keep in mind to compose a sound ‘my cultural identity essay’ is the argumentation. In particular, always remember to reveal an argument and back it up with evidence in each body paragraph. And, of course, try to stick to the topic and make sure that you answer the overall question that you stated in your topic. Besides, always keep your thesis statement in mind: make sure that none of its components is left without your attention and argumentation.

Conclusion 

Finally, after you are all finished with body paragraphs and introduction, briefly summarize all the points in your final remarks section. Paraphrase what you have already revealed in the main body, and make sure you logically lead the reader to the overall argument. Indicate your cultural identity once again and draw a bottom line regarding how your culture has influenced your personality.

Best Tips For Writing Cultural Identity Essay

Writing a ‘cultural identity essay about myself’ might be somewhat challenging at first. However, you will no longer struggle if you take a couple of plain tips into consideration. Following the tips below will give you some sound and reasonable cultural identity essay ideas as well as make the writing process much more pleasant:

• Start off by creating an outline. The reason why most students struggle with creating a cultural identity essay lies behind a weak structure. The best way to organize your ideas and let them flow logically is to come up with a helpful outline. Having a reference to build on is incredibly useful, and it allows your essay to look polished.
• Remember to write about yourself. The task of a cultural identity essay implies not focusing on your culture per se, but to talk about how it shaped your personality. So, switch your focus to describing who you are and what your attitudes and positions are. 
• Think of the most fundamental cultural aspects. Needless to say, you first need to come up with a couple of ideas to be based upon in your paper. So, brainstorm all the possible ideas and try to decide which of them deserve the most attention. In essence, try to determine which of the aspects affected your personality the most.
• Edit and proofread before submitting your paper. Of course, the content and the coherence of your essay’s structure play a crucial role. But the grammatical correctness matters a lot too. Even if you are a native speaker, you may still make accidental errors in the text. To avoid the situation when unintentional mistakes spoil the impression from your essay, always double check your cultural identity essay. 

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How to Write an Essay about Your Culture

Do you need to write an essay about your culture but don’t know where to start? You’ve come to the right place! I’m Constance, and I’ll show you how to write an essay about your culture. I’ll guide you step by step, and we’ll write a sample essay together. Let’s dive in. 

Writing an essay about your culture includes 5 steps:

Step 1. Plan how many words you want in each paragraph.

When you know the exact number of words you need for an essay, planning the word count for each paragraph will be much easier. 

For example, a 300-word essay typically consists of five paragraphs and three key elements:

• The introductory paragraph.
• Three body paragraphs.
• The conclusion, or the concluding paragraph.

Here’s a simple way to distribute 300 words across the five paragraphs in your essay:

You’ll get 300 when you add up these numbers. 

Step 2. Decide on what your main and supporting points will be.

First, you must take a stand, meaning you must decide on your main point. What do you really want to say about your culture? Whatever you want to say, that becomes your thesis. 

For example, “My culture is very rich.” That is enough to get started. You’ll get a better idea of how to expand or tweak your thesis after the next step.

Next, divide your topic using the Power of Three to prove the point that your culture is rich using three supporting ideas.

The Power of Three effectively divides an essay’s main idea into its supporting points. It means your main idea is true because of the three reasons you will provide in the body. So, it is a three-part structure that helps produce your body paragraphs .

Let’s try it for an essay about Filipino culture!

For example, here are three supporting ideas explaining the richness of Filipino culture:

• The Philippines has incredible food .
• Traditional Filipino clothing reflects the country’s heritage.
• Family values in the Philippines are essential.

Great! Now we have everything we need to write an essay about Filipino culture. We’re all set for the next step!

Step 3. Write your introductory paragraph.

Here are the key components of an introductory paragraph you need to remember in writing your essay:

Our first sentence is the introduction, which should pull our reader into the world we want to portray in our essay.

And the rest of the introductory paragraph is our thesis statement. It includes our main idea and three supporting points.

Example of an introductory paragraph about culture

“Having been colonized for centuries, the Philippines boasts a vast heritage. It has a rich culture characterized by food, clothing, and family values. Filipino culture has delicious food inherited from diverse parts of the world and periods of conquest. Traditional Filipino clothing reflects the country’s history, as well. And Filipinos prize their family values probably above all else.”

Look at how the introductory paragraph goes from a general statement to specific ideas that support our main idea.

Our introductory sentence is a general statement that serves as the opening in our essay. It briefly sets the essay’s context. Next comes the thesis statement — our main idea. Finally, we have three supporting ideas for our thesis.

Step 4. Write your essay’s body paragraphs.

Again, a 300-word essay typically has three body paragraphs containing your three supporting ideas. Here’s how to structure a body paragraph:

Looking back at our word count plan, we know that our body paragraphs should have roughly 70 words each. Remember your word plan as you write.

Body Paragraph 1

“The Philippines boasts a diverse food culture. It reflects indigenous flavors and foreign influences, such as American, Spanish, Indian, and Chinese. Whether it’s a typical or special day, Filipinos love eating these various dishes with rice, a staple. For example, rice goes well with curry, noodles, and adobo. It is also common to see various foods like pizza, pancit, lumpia, paella, (Filipino-style) sweet spaghetti, cakes, and ice cream at parties.”

As you can see, the first sentence in this body paragraph is a topic sentence . It gives context to the paragraph and briefly summarizes it.

The second sentence explains why the Philippine food culture is considered diverse. 

The remaining sentences illustrate your main point (topic sentence) by providing examples, starting with rice in sentence 3.

Body Paragraph 2

“Traditional Filipino clothing reflects Philippine cultural heritage. Although Filipinos now conform to current fashion trends in their everyday lives, the traditional clothing style is often used during celebrations. The traditional fashion sense exhibits influences from indigenous tribes, Chinese immigration waves, the Spaniards, and Americans, portraying the chronology of Philippine historical events. For example, the Philippines’ national costume, the baro’t saya, is an elegant blend of Spanish and Filipino clothing styles. Even some modernized forms of clothing also display other global influences.”

Just like Body Paragraph 1, this paragraph follows the same structure outlined in the diagram. It proceeds from a general statement to more specific points :

• The topic sentence.
• An explanation.

Body Paragraph 3

“Family values are vital in the Philippines. The daily lives of most Filipinos revolve around close and extended family, making them known for their family-oriented lifestyle even when they’re overseas. It’s common for children to live with their parents after reaching legal age; some even stay after getting married or obtaining a job. Filipinos also cherish their extended families (aunts, uncles, grandparents, and cousins) and hanging out or celebrating significant events together.”

Once again, this paragraph follows the body paragraph structure. Now, we’re all set for the final step — the conclusion.

Step 5. Write the conclusion.

The easiest way to write a concluding paragraph for your essay on your culture is to restate your main idea and its supporting points using different words. You can even paraphrase your introduction — a time-proven method!

Let’s write the conclusion for our essay.

“Because of its history, the Philippines has a rich, diverse culture rooted in a vast heritage. Filipino cuisine is a blend of indigenous and foreign flavors. The nation’s history is reflected in its traditional clothing. And family values display a distinct Filipino trait.”

Note that this conclusion uses different words to restate the points we’ve already made, including those in the body paragraphs. 

Hope this was helpful. Now go ahead and write an essay about your culture!

Tutor Phil is an e-learning professional who helps adult learners finish their degrees by teaching them academic writing skills.

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What Is Culture Essay Writing – Expert’s Guide

• Essay Tips&Tricks
• Essay Writing Guides

Culture is an important component of human life, which helps to find like-minded people. We should not forget that culture can be expressed in different situations, such as food, music, outlook on life, and even clothing. It is important to understand that despite differences in different cultures, you should always respect and be friendly to others.

Culture Essay Explained

To begin with, let’s figure out what a culture essay is. Simply put, this is a kind of description of a culture, starting from your thoughts and opinions. In society, culture helps to understand what norms exist for people. You can write culture essays on completely different topics related to culture because it manifests itself in all components of our lives. These are dances, art, technology, and even music.

Culture determines what is acceptable and what is unacceptable in any society. Based on this, it can be understood that a culture essay is a popular writing style because it can describe your personal opinion about culture and express your thoughts and views.

What Is the Importance of Culture in Human Life?

Culture plays a very important role in our life. It helps people to ensure social well-being in society and find like-minded people. Culture in society is one of the main life factors that help people express their education and development. You can understand a cultured person or not by the way he communicates with people in society.

For many people, culture is as important a factor as their personal lives and family values. Watching people, you might notice that people who adhere to the same culture immediately have an inextricable connection and many common interests because such people are connected not only by common views on the world but also by tastes in food, traditions, and much more.

How to Write a Culture Essay Outline

To write a successful culture essay, it is important to understand where to start and stick to a clear plan. A writing plan should be in each piece so the reader can understand and navigate the article’s essence.

This is especially true for a research paper and an argumentative essay because, in such reports, you must specifically describe the subject of research and argue your conclusions. But writing structure is just as important for culture essays, so here are the important steps in writing a plan:

First, you need to consider the introduction because it is regarded as one of the most important parts of the essay. Here you should present the most important information discussed in the main part so that the reader is interested and wants to read the text further.

Create a short thesis with which you will convey the essence of the essay to the audience and briefly express your opinion on this topic.

Work on the basic information you will be using. It is very important to write about those things that are interesting to you and that you understand. Suppose this is a new topic for you. In that case, it is best to check the integrity of the information on several sources several times so as not to misinform the reader and arouse the desired interest in your article.

Write your findings. In many essay examples, the author writes his conclusion based on personal experience and thoughts. Never try to write similarly. For a successful culture essay conclusion, noting how you feel and conveying your emotions from personal experience and knowledge is important.

Writing an Introduction to a Culture Essay

The introduction is one of the most important parts of any essay. When starting to write an introduction, you should already understand what you will talk to the reader about in the future. It is important to remember that the information you use in this section should be discussed in the main part and be argued with facts and supported by your real-life examples.

Writing an introduction is often difficult and energy-consuming for a writer because this paragraph should contain only the most important information from your text that will be able to interest the reader.

To make it easier, you can write the introduction after you’ve completed the main text, but it’s important to decide on the topic and abstract first. For example, at the beginning of the culture essay, you need to tell the audience about the issue you will be discussing and then familiarize the readers with the thesis.

Next, talk with the reader about your opinion on this topic and tell a little about yourself so that people can imagine the person who writes about the issue of interest to them.

Writing a Body of a Culture Essay

The body of your culture essay should introduce the reader to the culture you are researching. Therefore, it is important to convey all the emotions when writing so that people have a clear picture and understanding of the culture. A culture essay is a combination of a descriptive essay and an argumentative essay where you also describe and argue your opinion on a given topic.

The body of your essay may include several paragraphs and headings. In each paragraph, you will describe different aspects of this culture and your arguments for them. This section should explain to the reader why you have chosen this particular topic for writing so that people clearly understand your interest in the topic of culture.

Using personal examples and arguments from your life best draws the reader. It is important to write in a language understandable to the reader. Try to use simple, uncomplicated phrases with which you will arouse confidence and pleasant emotions in your audience. Imagine that you are talking to a reader. Writing an essay is a simple and accessible language that will help connect the reader and keep them interested.

Writing a Conclusion for a Culture Essay

After you have written the main part of your essay, you should summarize all of the above. To do this, you must analyze all the information and briefly state it to the reader. It is important not to deviate from your opinion and only try to back it up with appropriate phrases. In conclusion, you can once again repeat your statement about this culture or emphasize its main nuances.

In many essay examples, the authors write a huge paragraph with conclusions, touching on other topics there that have nothing to do with this, so you shouldn’t do it because, in conclusion, the main thing is to write it short and clear so that the reader can immediately understand the whole essence of what you wrote on this section.

Try to choose the right words and not pour water just like that. The main thing in this paragraph is the logical compilation of the results of all of the above.

The Most Interesting Cultural Topics

Culture essays are one of the best ways to do personal research about culture. In this kind of descriptive essay, you can analyze a huge number of topics and traditions of a particular culture and learn about the cultural origins of different types of people.

When choosing a topic for writing a culture essay, you need to be very serious and try to select the case that you will be interested in discussing, and you can describe all aspects of culture in such colors so that the reader can share your point of view and get carried away reading the article. So here are some interesting topics to talk about in your culture essay:

• Similarities between different cultures
• The influence of religion on culture
• The difference between the cultures of other continents
• Gender characteristics and the impact of cultures on them
• The role of culture in the personal growth of a person
• Popular cultures
• How is the Internet changing culture?

Tips for Writing a Successful Culture Essay

It’s no secret that before you start writing an essay, you need to create a so-called draft, in which you indicate for yourself all the most important points of the article and determine the sequence in which information is presented.

In a culture essay, it is important to adhere to the structure for the reader to understand what you are writing about. Here are some tips on how to make your essay successful and interesting:

Be Responsible in Your Topic Selection Process

The cultural topic is very relevant and extensive, so you should have no problem choosing. However, suppose you cannot decide which topic you would like to consider. In that case, you have the opportunity to look at a list of interesting and relevant issues on the Internet and then write an essay with a personal opinion on this matter. You can read other essay examples, but the main thing is not to use another author’s opinion in your article; this essay should be written based on personal experience and your own opinion.

Choosing a topic can seem quite complicated because you have to decide what you will have to communicate with your readers about, having previously studied all the nuances and made certain personal conclusions about it.

Make Sure to Express Your Unique Views

Culture essay aims to express personal views and thoughts on the topic you are discussing. Therefore, try to describe your opinion and understanding of this topic as clearly and reasonably as possible.

Despite this, you can use knowledge and information from other sources, but if you use it in your text, it is important to indicate exactly where you got this information from so that no plagiarism is detected during the critical writing report assessment, which is very important for an essay of this kind.

Avoid Repetition

For example, if you use the same phrase several times in the text, the best option would be to rephrase it so that it does not change its meaning but sounds different at the same time.

Use Only Proven Information

Imagine that you are writing a research paper and carefully studying the chosen topic. In no case do not use fictitious facts in the text. Instead, only reliable information should be supported by your arguments.

Utilize Linear Writing Style

Use the linear writing style of the culture essay. This will help the reader to read your article in a logical and structured way continuously.

Write a Clear Thesis and Stick To Your Position Throughout the Essay

Write in plain language that is easy for the reader to understand. Do not use complicated terms and phrases. The reader should feel as if you are talking to him.

Example of a Culture Essay and Essay Writing Services

We will look at the culture essay, which reveals the meaning of culture and how it changes and develops in the modern world. This one of the decent essay examples discusses how culture affects our lives and explains how different cultures exist worldwide.

Introduction

1.1 Definition of the term “Culture”

1.2 A story about the origin of culture and its development

1.3 Thesis: Culture is one of the main factors in our life and the lives of every person. Although culture changes over time, it remains in each of us

• What does culture mean?

2.1 Culture reflects the inner qualities of a person

2.2 Culture develops according to the development in our life

• Differences between different cultures

3.1 What are the differences, and why do you need to understand cultural differences

• What is the purpose of culture in human life?

Culture is a kind of collection of all parts of society. This is a huge complex of different beliefs and thoughts of people that were created over time. Culture can change depending on the other factors that influence it, as it keeps up with the times, and we all know that concepts and views can change over time. Each country has its own culture and traditions, and people in different countries express themselves in this way.

Having studied the culture of another country, you can understand the way of thinking of the people who live there and understand their values. To understand a person of another nation, it is enough to study his culture in detail.

Since culture is an indicator of human fulfillment, it can change at different times and places and remain individual for each nation.

What Does Culture Mean?

Culture describes the concepts and attitudes of people in different groups. People themselves create their own culture, this does not happen immediately, but after a long time, despite this, it exists. Other groups of people can be of the same culture, but they will still have completely different views on life and concepts. In the process of life, a person’s opinions and thoughts may change, but faith in one’s culture remains unchanged.

Differences Between Different Cultures

The differences between different cultures can depend on many factors, personal moral principles, political views, and even differences in musical tastes or food tastes. For example, in many countries, people do not eat pork meat, while in others, it is the norm. Therefore, when communicating in or coming into a society where there are people of other cultural concepts, it is important to consider other people’s interests so that respect appears in the group.

Understanding cultural differences of this kind will help to find mutual understanding among people and make them a single whole. Each person must respect the culture and views of other people, and only then will understanding and love reign in our world.

What Is the Purpose of Culture in Human Life?

Culture is important in all moments of human life, especially when you are in society. For example, when you come to a new job, you find yourself in a team where everyone has different thoughts and views. Therefore, it is important to respect the opinions of other people and in no case try to prove your point of view to others. Culture is also very important because, to some extent, it helps to find like-minded people and create a warm and friendly atmosphere in society.

If you have any difficulties writing a culture essay, you can always turn to essay writing service , where you will meet real professionals who will answer all your questions and do the hard work for you at an excellent price and in a short time. Moreover, you can be sure that each author has a degree in the field of culture, and your essay will be written with high quality and success.

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• Knowledge Base
• College essay
• How to Write a Diversity Essay | Tips & Examples

How to Write a Diversity Essay | Tips & Examples

Published on November 1, 2021 by Kirsten Courault . Revised on May 31, 2023.

Table of contents

What is a diversity essay, identify how you will enrich the campus community, share stories about your lived experience, explain how your background or identity has affected your life, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about college application essays.

Diversity essays ask students to highlight an important aspect of their identity, background, culture, experience, viewpoints, beliefs, skills, passions, goals, etc.

Diversity essays can come in many forms. Some scholarships are offered specifically for students who come from an underrepresented background or identity in higher education. At highly competitive schools, supplemental diversity essays require students to address how they will enhance the student body with a unique perspective, identity, or background.

In the Common Application and applications for several other colleges, some main essay prompts ask about how your background, identity, or experience has affected you.

Why schools want a diversity essay

Many universities believe a student body representing different perspectives, beliefs, identities, and backgrounds will enhance the campus learning and community experience.

Admissions officers are interested in hearing about how your unique background, identity, beliefs, culture, or characteristics will enrich the campus community.

Through the diversity essay, admissions officers want students to articulate the following:

• What makes them different from other applicants
• Stories related to their background, identity, or experience
• How their unique lived experience has affected their outlook, activities, and goals

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

Think about what aspects of your identity or background make you unique, and choose one that has significantly impacted your life.

For some students, it may be easy to identify what sets them apart from their peers. But if you’re having trouble identifying what makes you different from other applicants, consider your life from an outsider’s perspective. Don’t presume your lived experiences are normal or boring just because you’re used to them.

Some examples of identities or experiences that you might write about include the following:

• Race/ethnicity
• Gender identity
• Sexual orientation
• Nationality
• Socioeconomic status
• Immigration background
• Religion/belief system
• Place of residence
• Family circumstances
• Extracurricular activities related to diversity

Include vulnerable, authentic stories about your lived experiences. Maintain focus on your experience rather than going into too much detail comparing yourself to others or describing their experiences.

Keep the focus on you

Tell a story about how your background, identity, or experience has impacted you. While you can briefly mention another person’s experience to provide context, be sure to keep the essay focused on you. Admissions officers are mostly interested in learning about your lived experience, not anyone else’s.

When I was a baby, my grandmother took me in, even though that meant postponing her retirement and continuing to work full-time at the local hairdresser. Even working every shift she could, she never missed a single school play or soccer game.

She and I had a really special bond, even creating our own special language to leave each other secret notes and messages. She always pushed me to succeed in school, and celebrated every academic achievement like it was worthy of a Nobel Prize. Every month, any leftover tip money she received at work went to a special 509 savings plan for my college education.

When I was in the 10th grade, my grandmother was diagnosed with ALS. We didn’t have health insurance, and what began with quitting soccer eventually led to dropping out of school as her condition worsened. In between her doctor’s appointments, keeping the house tidy, and keeping her comfortable, I took advantage of those few free moments to study for the GED.

In school pictures at Raleigh Elementary School, you could immediately spot me as “that Asian girl.” At lunch, I used to bring leftover fun see noodles, but after my classmates remarked how they smelled disgusting, I begged my mom to make a “regular” lunch of sliced bread, mayonnaise, and deli meat.

Although born and raised in North Carolina, I felt a cultural obligation to learn my “mother tongue” and reconnect with my “homeland.” After two years of all-day Saturday Chinese school, I finally visited Beijing for the first time, expecting I would finally belong. While my face initially assured locals of my Chinese identity, the moment I spoke, my cover was blown. My Chinese was littered with tonal errors, and I was instantly labeled as an “ABC,” American-born Chinese.

I felt culturally homeless.

Speak from your own experience

Highlight your actions, difficulties, and feelings rather than comparing yourself to others. While it may be tempting to write about how you have been more or less fortunate than those around you, keep the focus on you and your unique experiences, as shown below.

I began to despair when the FAFSA website once again filled with red error messages.

I had been at the local library for hours and hadn’t even been able to finish the form, much less the other to-do items for my application.

I am the first person in my family to even consider going to college. My parents work two jobs each, but even then, it’s sometimes very hard to make ends meet. Rather than playing soccer or competing in speech and debate, I help my family by taking care of my younger siblings after school and on the weekends.

“We only speak one language here. Speak proper English!” roared a store owner when I had attempted to buy bread and accidentally used the wrong preposition.

In middle school, I had relentlessly studied English grammar textbooks and received the highest marks.

Leaving Seoul was hard, but living in West Orange, New Jersey was much harder一especially navigating everyday communication with Americans.

After sharing relevant personal stories, make sure to provide insight into how your lived experience has influenced your perspective, activities, and goals. You should also explain how your background led you to apply to this university and why you’re a good fit.

Include your outlook, actions, and goals

Conclude your essay with an insight about how your background or identity has affected your outlook, actions, and goals. You should include specific actions and activities that you have done as a result of your insight.

One night, before the midnight premiere of Avengers: Endgame , I stopped by my best friend Maria’s house. Her mother prepared tamales, churros, and Mexican hot chocolate, packing them all neatly in an Igloo lunch box. As we sat in the line snaking around the AMC theater, I thought back to when Maria and I took salsa classes together and when we belted out Selena’s “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom” at karaoke. In that moment, as I munched on a chicken tamale, I realized how much I admired the beauty, complexity, and joy in Maria’s culture but had suppressed and devalued my own.

The following semester, I joined Model UN. Since then, I have learned how to proudly represent other countries and have gained cultural perspectives other than my own. I now understand that all cultures, including my own, are equal. I still struggle with small triggers, like when I go through airport security and feel a suspicious glance toward me, or when I feel self-conscious for bringing kabsa to school lunch. But in the future, I hope to study and work in international relations to continue learning about other cultures and impart a positive impression of Saudi culture to the world.

The smell of the early morning dew and the welcoming whinnies of my family’s horses are some of my most treasured childhood memories. To this day, our farm remains so rural that we do not have broadband access, and we’re too far away from the closest town for the postal service to reach us.

Going to school regularly was always a struggle: between the unceasing demands of the farm and our lack of connectivity, it was hard to keep up with my studies. Despite being a voracious reader, avid amateur chemist, and active participant in the classroom, emergencies and unforeseen events at the farm meant that I had a lot of unexcused absences.

Although it had challenges, my upbringing taught me resilience, the value of hard work, and the importance of family. Staying up all night to watch a foal being born, successfully saving the animals from a minor fire, and finding ways to soothe a nervous mare afraid of thunder have led to an unbreakable family bond.

Our farm is my family’s birthright and our livelihood, and I am eager to learn how to ensure the farm’s financial and technological success for future generations. In college, I am looking forward to joining a chapter of Future Farmers of America and studying agricultural business to carry my family’s legacy forward.

Tailor your answer to the university

After explaining how your identity or background will enrich the university’s existing student body, you can mention the university organizations, groups, or courses in which you’re interested.

Maybe a larger public school setting will allow you to broaden your community, or a small liberal arts college has a specialized program that will give you space to discover your voice and identity. Perhaps this particular university has an active affinity group you’d like to join.

Demonstrating how a university’s specific programs or clubs are relevant to you can show that you’ve done your research and would be a great addition to the university.

At the University of Michigan Engineering, I want to study engineering not only to emulate my mother’s achievements and strength, but also to forge my own path as an engineer with disabilities. I appreciate the University of Michigan’s long-standing dedication to supporting students with disabilities in ways ranging from accessible housing to assistive technology. At the University of Michigan Engineering, I want to receive a top-notch education and use it to inspire others to strive for their best, regardless of their circumstances.

If you want to know more about academic writing , effective communication , or parts of speech , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

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In addition to your main college essay , some schools and scholarships may ask for a supplementary essay focused on an aspect of your identity or background. This is sometimes called a diversity essay .

Many universities believe a student body composed of different perspectives, beliefs, identities, and backgrounds will enhance the campus learning and community experience.

Admissions officers are interested in hearing about how your unique background, identity, beliefs, culture, or characteristics will enrich the campus community, which is why they assign a diversity essay .

To write an effective diversity essay , include vulnerable, authentic stories about your unique identity, background, or perspective. Provide insight into how your lived experience has influenced your outlook, activities, and goals. If relevant, you should also mention how your background has led you to apply for this university and why you’re a good fit.

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How to Write a Cultural Identity Essay With Tips and Examples

11 December 2023

last updated

Writing a cultural identity essay is an exciting academic exercise that allows students to develop and utilize critical thinking, reflective, and analytical skills. Unlike a standard essay, this type of paper requires learners to use first-person language throughout. In essence, a cultural identity essay is about writers and what makes them identify with a particular cultural orientation. When writing a cultural identity essay, authors should choose a specific identity and focus on it throughout their texts. Moreover, they should reflect and brainstorm, use the “show, not tell” method, utilize transitions to create a natural flow, and proofread their papers to eliminate mistakes and errors. Hence, students need to learn how to write a cultural identity essay to provide high-quality papers to their readers.

Definition of a Cultural Identity Essay

Students undertake different writing exercises in the learning environment to develop their critical thinking, reflective, and analytical skills. Basically, one of these exercises is academic writing , and among different types of essays that students write is a cultural identity essay. In this case, it is a type of essay where authors write about their culture, which entails exploring and explaining the significance of their cultural identity. Moreover, there are numerous topics that instructors may require students to write about in a cultural identity essay. For example, some of these essay topics fall under different disciplines, such as religion, socio-economic status, family, education, ethnicity, and business. In essence, the defining features of a cultural identity essay are what aspects make authors know that they are writing in this type of essay. In turn, these features include language, nationality, gender, history, upbringing, and religion, among many others.

Differences Between a Cultural Identity Essay and Other Papers

Generally, a cultural identity essay is similar to a standard essay regarding an essay structure and an essay outline . However, the point of difference is the topic. While standard essays, such as argumentative, persuasive, and informative essays, require learners to use third-person language, such a paper requires them to use first-person language. In this case, when writing a cultural identity essay, authors should use the word “I” throughout to show the audience that they are writing from their perspective. Indeed, this aspect is the primary objective of a cultural identity essay – to give the writer’s perspective concerning their culture. Besides, another point of difference between a cultural identity essay and other papers is that the former does not require writers to utilize external sources but to write from a personal viewpoint.

List of Possible Examples of Cultural Identity Essay Topics

1. cultural identity and socialization in a learning environment.

Here, a cultural identity essay prompt may require students to discuss the significance of culture in education, focusing on cultural identity and socialization. As such, this topic requires writers to reflect on how culture influences behavior in a learning environment.

2. The Impact of Culture Change on Family

Here, this prompt may require students to explore and discuss how culture impacts a family unit. Moreover, the theme is a family, and the students’ mission would be to explain how culture in all its dynamics affects families in diverse settings.

3. The Role of Language in Building a Cultural Identity

Here, instructions may require students to explore and explain the significance of language in cultural identity. Hence, writers should focus on explaining the place of culture in the sociology discipline, focusing on the connection between language and cultural identity.

4. The Significance of Culture in a Globalized Economy

Here, a cultural identity essay topic may require students to explore and discuss how culture affects individuals and businesses in today’s connected world. Also, the students’ task would be to explain how culture, in all its dynamics, such as language, is essential in business for individuals and enterprises.

5. How Culture Influences Relations in the Workplace

Here, an essay prompt may require students to explore and explain how culture, in all its dynamics, affects or influences social relations at the workplace. In turn, the task of writers, for example, would be to focus on how Human Resource (HR) departments can use culture to enrich workplace relations.

6. The Place of Culture in Individuals’ Self-Concept

Here, an analysis of a theme may require students to reflect on how their cultural orientation has affected their self-concept. Moreover, the student’s task would be to discuss how culture and its dynamics enable individuals to build a strong or weak understanding of themselves.

7. The Importance of Cultural Orientation in a Multicultural Environment

Here, assignment instructions may require students to explore and discuss how their cultural orientation enables them to operate in a culturally diverse environment, such as a school or workplace. In this case, the student’s task would be to explain how cultural characteristics, such as language and religion, facilitate or hamper social competency in a multicultural setting. 

8. How Global Conflicts Disturb Cultural Identity for Refugees

Here, this example of a cultural identity topic may require students to explore and explain how conflicts in today’s world, such as civil unrest, affect the cultural identity of those who flee to foreign countries. Also, the student’s task would be to explain how one’s culture is affected in a new environment with totally different cultural dynamics.

9. The Challenges of Acculturation

Here, a cultural identity essay prompt may require students to explore and explain the challenges that individuals face in identifying with the dominant culture. In particular, the student’s task would be to explain the significance of the dominant culture and what those from other cultures that try to identify with it must confront.

10. Host Country Culture and Multinational Enterprises

Here, this prompt sample may require students to explore and explain how a host country’s culture affects expatriates working for multinational corporations. Besides, the students’ task would be to show how one’s culture defines their behaviors and how that can be affected in a new environment with new cultural characteristics.

11. Compare and Contrast Native Culture and Dominant Culture in the United States

Here, such instructions require students to explain specific areas of similarity and difference between the Native culture and the dominant culture. In turn, the students’ task would be to define the Native culture and the dominant culture and help the audience to understand whether they mean the same thing. Hence, whether they do or do not, students should elaborate.

12. The Objective of Acculturation

Here, this example of a cultural identity essay topic requires students to explore and explain why people prefer to identify with the dominant culture. Moreover, the students’ task would be to note the advantages of the dominant culture over others and the opportunities that one may access to identify with this dominant culture.

13. The Challenges That the LGBTQ Community Faces in the Modern World

Here, essay prompt instructions require students to explore and discuss the challenges that lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgender people face in their normal day-to-day activities. In this case, the students’ task would be to explain the uniqueness of the LGBTQ community and how stereotyping makes their lives miserable in an environment where people are intolerant of different personalities and viewpoints.

14. Dangers of Cultural Intolerance in the Health Care System

Here, instructions may require students to explore and discuss how nurses that are intolerant to cultural differences may jeopardize patients’ lives.

15. Advantages and Disadvantages of Acculturation

Here, a cultural identity essay prompt requires students to discuss the pros and cons of identifying with the dominant culture.

How Students Know if They Write a Cultural Identity Essay

The defining features of a cultural identity essay give students the indication that they need to write this kind of essay. Basically, when learners read instructions regarding their essay topics they need to write about, they should identify one or several defining elements. In turn, these elements include language, nationality, religion, ethnicity, and gender.

Structure of a Cultural Identity Essay

As stated previously, the primary point of similarity between a cultural identity essay and standard papers is an essay structure and an essay outline. Basically, this structure and outline comprise of three main sections: introduction, body, and conclusion. Like in all other essays, writing a cultural identity essay requires students to address specific issues, which are, in essence, the defining characteristics of the essay’s structure and outline.

I. Introduction and Its Defining Characteristics

The introduction is the first paragraph of a cultural identity essay. Here, students introduce themselves to the audience, giving a brief background of their cultural identity. Moreover, rules of academic writing dictate that this part should not exceed 10 percent of the entire paper. In this case, writers should be brief and concise. Then, the most prominent component of this section is a thesis, a statement that appears at the end of an introduction paragraph and whose objective is to indicate the writer’s mission. In summary, the introduction part’s defining features are the writer’s background and thesis statement . In turn, the former gives a hint about a writer, and the latter provides the audience with insight into the writer’s objective in writing a cultural identity essay.

The body of a cultural identity essay is the most significant section of a paper and takes the largest part. Generally, writers use several paragraphs to advance different arguments to explain specific concepts. In a cultural identity essay, writers can use different paragraphs to explain important aspects of their cultural identity. Nonetheless, what determines the number of paragraphs and the content of each is a paper topic. Also, the most prominent defining features of a cultural identity essay’s body are paragraphs, with each advancing a unique concept about the writer’s cultural identity. In turn, paragraphs are where writers provide real-life experiences and other personal anecdotes that help the audience to develop a deeper understanding of authors from a cultural perspective.

III. Conclusion

The conclusion part is the last section of a cultural identity essay. In particular, writers restate a thesis statement and summarize the main points from body paragraphs. Moreover, authors provide concluding remarks about a topic, which is mostly an objective personal opinion. In summary, the conclusion part’s defining features are a restatement of a thesis, a summary of the main points, and the writer’s final thoughts about a topic.

Outline Template for a Cultural Identity Essay

I. Introduction

A. Hook statement/sentence. B. Background information. C. A thesis statement that covers the main ideas from 1 to X in one sentence.

II. Body Paragraphs

A. Idea 1 B. Idea 2 … X. Idea X

A. Restating a thesis statement. B. Summary of the main points from A to X. C. Final thoughts.

An Example of a Cultural Identity Essay

Topic: Identifying as a Naturalist

I. Introduction Sample in a Cultural Identity Essay

The period of birth marks the beginning of one’s identity, with culture playing a significant role. However, from the stage of adolescence going forward, individuals begin to recognize and understand their cultural makeup. In my case, I have come to discover my love for nature, an aspect that I believe has made me a naturalist both in belief and action.

II. Examples of Body Paragraphs in a Cultural Identity Essay

A. idea 1: parents.

Parents play a critical role in shaping the cultural and personal identity of their children. In my case, it is my mother who has instilled in me a love for nature. Although I may not say exactly when this love started, I can only reason that since it was ingrained in me since childhood, it has developed gradually.

B. Idea 2: Naturalism

Today, naturalism defines my interactions with people and the environment. In short, I can say it shapes my worldview. As a lover of nature herself, my mother had this habit of taking me outdoors when I was a toddler. I have seen family photographs of my mother walking through parks and forests holding my hand. What is noticeable in these pictures besides my mother and me is the tree cover that gives the setting such a lovely sight. Moreover, I can now understand why I seem more conversant with the names and species of flowers, trees, and birds than my siblings- my mother was the influence. In turn, my siblings and friends make a joke that I have developed a strong love for nature to the point of identifying myself with the environment. Hence, the basis for this argument is my love for the green color, where even my clothes and toys are mostly green.

III. Conclusion Sample of a Cultural Identity Essay

Naturally, human beings behave in line with their cultural background and orientation. Basically, this behavior is what determines or reflects their cultural identity. In turn, my intense love for nature underscores my naturalist identity. While I may not tell the stage in life when I assumed this identity, I know my mother has played a significant role in shaping it, and this is since childhood.

Summing Up on How to Write a Good Cultural Identity Essay

Like any standard paper, writing a cultural identity essay allows students to build essential skills, such as critical thinking, reflective, and analytical skills. In this case, the essence of a paper is to provide the writer’s cultural identity, background, or orientation. Therefore, in order to learn how to write a good cultural identity essay, students should master the following tips:

• Decide where to focus. Culture is a broad topic, and deciding what to focus on is essential in producing a cultural identity essay. For example, one may have several cultural identities, and addressing all may lead to inconclusive explanations.
• Reflect and brainstorm. Given the close link between one’s cultural identity and personal experiences, learners need to reflect on experiences that would provide the audience with an accurate picture of their cultural identity.
• Adopt the “Show, not tell” approach by providing vivid details about one’s experiences. Using personal anecdotes may be effective in accomplishing this objective.
• Use transitions , such as “therefore,” “thus,” ” additionally,” and “furthermore,” to enhance a natural and logical flow throughout the essay.
• Stay personal by using first-person language to describe one’s background and experiences.
• Proofread a cultural identity essay to eliminate spelling and grammatical mistakes and other notable errors, such as an inconsistent life storyline.

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Home — Essay Samples — Life — Writing Experience — Crafting a Compelling Message on Culture: A How-To Guide

Crafting a Compelling Message on Culture: a How-to Guide

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Published: Mar 18, 2021

Words: 1053 | Pages: 2 | 6 min read

The Importance of Culture Essay

• A better understanding of the characteristics that make every individual unique
• Identify cultural differences among peers and find ways and means to blend this diversity
• Establish how culture can change in society
• What were the characteristics of the parents of the individual?
• How did they raise the individual as a kid?
• What kind of environment was he exposed to?

Harmonize the Points Presented

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How to Write a Cultural Diversity Essay

December 14, 2016

Understanding Cultural Diversity

To write an effective cultural diversity essay, it is crucial to have a clear understanding of what cultural diversity truly means. Cultural diversity refers to the coexistence of different cultures, values, and traditions within a society. It encompasses differences in language, religion, beliefs, customs, and practices. Understanding cultural diversity involves recognizing and appreciating the unique perspectives and experiences that each culture brings.

When writing an essay on cultural diversity, it is important to explore the reasons behind its importance in today’s globalized world. This includes examining how cultural diversity promotes tolerance, understanding, and inclusivity. Additionally, understanding cultural diversity entails acknowledging the challenges and barriers faced by different cultural groups and examining strategies for achieving cultural harmony. By grasping the concept of cultural diversity, you can effectively convey your thoughts and insights in your essay, providing a comprehensive understanding to your readers.

Choosing a Topic for the Essay

Selecting the right topic is vital when writing a cultural diversity essay. With such a broad subject, it is important to narrow down your focus to a specific aspect or issue related to cultural diversity that interests you. Consider topics such as the impact of immigration on cultural diversity, the role of education in promoting cultural acceptance, or the influence of globalization on cultural identity.

When choosing a topic, ensure that it is researchable and allows for a comprehensive exploration of different perspectives. It is important to select a topic that you are passionate about, as this will help you maintain motivation and produce a well-written essay. Furthermore, consider the relevance and significance of your chosen topic in today’s society to ensure that your essay contributes to the discussion and provides valuable insights.

Possible Cultural Diversity Essay Topics:

• The Impact of Immigration on Cultural Diversity
• Cultural Assimilation versus Cultural Preservation
• Cultural Diversity in the Workplace: Benefits and Challenges
• Cultural Stereotypes and their Effects on Society
• Exploring Cultural Identity in a Globalized World
• The Role of Education in Promoting Cultural Acceptance
• Cultural Appropriation: Understanding the Controversy
• Gender Roles and Cultural Diversity
• Traditional versus Modern Practices in Different Cultures
• Cultural Diversity and Social Justice: Addressing Inequality

Organizing Your Thoughts

When writing a cultural diversity essay, it is crucial to organize your thoughts effectively to ensure a coherent and logical flow of ideas. Start by brainstorming and jotting down all the ideas, examples, and arguments that come to mind. Once you have a list of key points, group them into categories or themes that relate to your chosen topic.

Next, create an outline that includes an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. The introduction should provide a brief overview of cultural diversity and present a clear thesis statement. Each body paragraph should focus on a single idea or argument, supported by evidence and examples.

Consider using a logical structure such as comparing and contrasting different perspectives, discussing the historical context, or analyzing the impacts of cultural diversity. Finally, conclude your essay by summarizing your main points and reinforcing the significance of cultural diversity in contemporary society. By organizing your thoughts effectively, you will create a well-structured and impactful cultural diversity essay.

Writing an Effective Introduction

The introduction of a cultural diversity essay is the first opportunity to capture the reader’s attention and provide a clear direction for the essay. To craft an effective introduction, follow these tips:

• Start with a hook: Begin your introduction with an attention-grabbing statement, question, or anecdote that relates to cultural diversity. This will engage the reader and make them curious to learn more.
• Provide background information: Offer a concise background on the topic of cultural diversity, highlighting its significance and relevance in today’s society. This sets the stage for the essay and helps the reader understand the context.
• State the thesis statement: Clearly state your main argument or position on cultural diversity. The thesis statement should be concise, specific, and arguable. It establishes the purpose of the essay and gives the reader a roadmap of what to expect.
• Outline the main points: Briefly mention the main points or arguments that you will discuss in the body of the essay. This gives the reader an overview of the essay’s structure and keeps them engaged.

Remember, the introduction should be concise, captivating, and informative. It should set the tone for the essay and create a strong first impression for the reader. By following these guidelines, you can write an effective introduction that engages the reader and lays the foundation for a compelling cultural diversity essay.

Developing the Main Body

The main body of your cultural diversity essay is where you delve into the key arguments, ideas, and evidence that support your thesis statement. To effectively develop the main body of your essay, consider the following:

• Start with a clear topic sentence: Begin each paragraph with a concise and focused topic sentence that introduces the main point or argument you will discuss. This helps guide the reader through your essay and ensures a coherent flow.
• Provide evidence and examples: Support your arguments with relevant evidence and examples. This can include statistics, research findings, case studies, personal experiences, or cultural anecdotes. Use a mix of primary and secondary sources to strengthen your claims.
• Explore different perspectives: Cultural diversity is a complex and multifaceted topic. Consider discussing different perspectives or contrasting viewpoints within your essay. This demonstrates a comprehensive understanding of the subject and enriches your analysis.
• Use logical transitions: Ensure a smooth transition between paragraphs by using logical transitions. Connect ideas between paragraphs to maintain a cohesive and logical flow of thoughts.
• Consider counterarguments: Address potential counterarguments to your thesis statement. Acknowledge and refute opposing viewpoints to strengthen your own arguments and demonstrate critical thinking.

Remember to maintain a balanced approach, provide sufficient evidence for your claims, and avoid generalizations. By developing a well-structured and evidence-based main body in your cultural diversity essay, you can effectively present your ideas and engage the reader in a thought-provoking discussion.

Avoiding Stereotypes

When writing a cultural diversity essay, it is important to avoid stereotypes and generalizations that can perpetuate prejudice and discrimination. Instead, focus on presenting a nuanced and accurate portrayal of cultural diversity that acknowledges the complexity and diversity of different ethnic, racial, and cultural groups. To avoid stereotypes in your essay, consider the following:

• Avoid using sweeping generalizations or attributing traits to entire groups of people based on their cultural background.
• Use specific examples and evidence to illustrate your points and avoid assumptions.
• Acknowledge the diversity within cultures and avoid treating them as monolithic entities.
• Respect and consider multiple perspectives on cultural diversity, acknowledging that cultural experiences are complex and nuanced.

By avoiding stereotypes, you can present a thoughtful and objective analysis of cultural diversity that recognizes the complexity of the subject and contributes to a more informed and inclusive society.

Including Personal Experiences

When writing a cultural diversity essay, incorporating personal experiences can add depth, authenticity, and a unique perspective to your writing. Personal experiences allow you to connect with the topic on a deeper level and provide firsthand insights into cultural diversity. Here’s how to effectively include personal experiences in your cultural diversity essay:

• Choose relevant experiences: Select personal experiences that directly relate to the topic of cultural diversity. This could include encounters with different cultures, cross-cultural friendships, or experiences that highlight the impact of cultural diversity in your own life.
• Reflect on the significance: Share why these experiences are meaningful to you and how they have shaped your understanding of cultural diversity. Reflecting on your experiences adds a personal touch and demonstrates your engagement with the topic.
• Connect to broader themes: Situate your personal experiences within broader themes or issues related to cultural diversity. This could involve discussing the challenges and benefits of embracing cultural differences or sharing examples that highlight the importance of cultural understanding and acceptance.
• Maintain objectivity: While incorporating personal experiences, it is important to strike a balance between personal perspective and objective analysis. Avoid generalizations and ensure that your personal experiences are grounded in critical thinking and supported by evidence and research.

By including personal experiences, you can add a unique dimension to your cultural diversity essay, fostering a deeper connection with readers and enhancing the overall impact of your writing.

Analyzing Cultural Conflict and Harmony

Cultural diversity can often lead to conflicts or misunderstandings between different groups with different beliefs and values. It is important to analyze these conflicts and seek ways to promote harmony and understanding in your cultural diversity essay. Here are some tips for analyzing cultural conflict and harmony in your essay:

• Identify causes of conflict: Explore the underlying factors that contribute to conflict between different cultures. This could include issues such as cultural stereotypes, prejudice, discrimination, or misunderstanding.
• Discuss potential solutions: Consider ways to promote cultural harmony and understanding. This could include cultural education, intercultural communication, or promoting inclusive policies that support cultural diversity.
• Highlight success stories: Share examples of cultural harmony or success stories where cultural diversity has been successfully embraced and celebrated.
• Acknowledge challenges: Recognize the challenges involved in achieving cultural harmony, including power imbalances, political and economic factors, and historic tensions.

By analyzing cultural conflict and harmony, you can develop a more nuanced understanding of the complexities and opportunities that arise from cultural diversity. This can lead to meaningful insights and solutions that promote a more inclusive and harmonious society.

Writing the Conclusion

The conclusion of your cultural diversity essay should summarize the key points made in the main body and restate the thesis statement in a clear and concise way. Here’s how to write an effective conclusion for your essay:

• Summarize the key arguments: Begin by summarizing the main arguments or findings presented in the main body of your essay. This reminds the reader of the main points and demonstrates the coherence of your writing.
• Restate the thesis statement: The thesis statement should be restated in the conclusion, using different words to maintain interest and reinforce the message.
• Provide final thoughts: Use the conclusion to provide final thoughts or insights on the topic of cultural diversity. This could include a call to action, a prediction, or a reflection on the implications of the topic.
• Avoid introducing new information: The conclusion is not the place to introduce new information or arguments. Ensure that all ideas presented in the conclusion have been discussed in the main body.
• End with impact: End your conclusion with a lasting impact. This could involve a memorable quote, a thought-provoking question, or a powerful statement.

By following these guidelines, you can write a conclusion that reinforces the main message of your cultural diversity essay and leaves a lasting impression on the reader.

Diversity Essay Example

In today’s globalized world, cultural diversity is an undeniable reality. As I reflect upon my own experiences, I am reminded of the profound impact that cultural diversity has had on my life. Growing up in a multicultural neighborhood, I had the privilege of witnessing firsthand the richness that arises from the coexistence of different cultures.

One particular experience stands out in my memory. During a school project, my classmates and I were tasked with creating a presentation about a culture different from our own. I chose to explore the traditions and customs of an indigenous tribe from my country. Through extensive research and engaging conversations with members of that community, I gained a deeper understanding of their unique way of life.

This project taught me a valuable lesson about cultural diversity. It showed me that diversity is not limited to external appearances or superficial differences. It encompasses a wealth of knowledge, traditions, and perspectives that can enrich our lives and broaden our horizons.

Furthermore, this experience highlighted the importance of cultural respect and empathy. I realized that by approaching cultural diversity with an open mind and genuine curiosity, we can foster meaningful connections with individuals from different backgrounds. Rather than viewing diversity as a challenge or obstacle, it should be seen as an opportunity for growth and understanding.

In conclusion, my personal experiences have provided me with profound insights into the importance of embracing cultural diversity. This diversity essay example demonstrates the transformative power that cultural exchange can have on individuals and communities. By sharing our stories and celebrating our differences, we contribute to a more inclusive and harmonious society that values and respects the richness of cultural diversity.

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Cultural Analysis Essay: Topics, Tips, & Example

Writing an essay on cultural issues is an exciting yet a challenging task to complete. Cultural analysis essays are assigned to those who study literature, business, marketing, and social work.

What is a cultural analysis? How to choose a topic for such an assignment? How to write a cultural analysis essay? You’ll find the answers to these questions below. This article contains cultural analysis essay topics, writing tips, together with cultural analysis example added as a bonus.

📝 What Is a Cultural Analysis?

🖊️ how to write a cultural analysis.

• 📃 Choosing a Cultural Analysis Topic?
• 📋 Cultural Analysis Essay Topics

📑 Cultural Analysis: Example of an Essay

🔗 references.

A cultural analysis essay focuses on social and cultural aspects of life : the ways people interact with each other, create communities, etc. It also explains how these interactions are based on the backgrounds and common practices of the participants.

Your cultural analysis essay can be short – for example, a 500-word essay . Or you can go for a long piece of writing. It depends on your topic and the number of arguments you want to cover.

In terms of the style, you can pick an expository , a descriptive , a narrative, or a persuasive type of essay. Your decision will depend on what you aim at when writing this paper.

You might be wondering: how to write a cultural analysis essay? And what exact steps should you take?

• First of all, you need to choose a topic you’re going to explore. It shouldn’t be too broad, as, for example, ‘Culture of Islamic countries.’ It will be best to focus on a particular event or a custom and explore it. Further, we’ll provide you with cultural analysis essay topics.
• Then you can focus on researching, formulating a thesis statement , and creating an outline . The outline is an essential part of your writing, as it helps you to ease the process.
• In the introduction, you should mention your thesis statement and cover what you’re going to discuss in your paper. Remember that it’s vital to intrigue a potential reader in your intro!
• Next, you’re going to focus on the main body . You can split it into several paragraphs. The number of paragraphs will depend on the length of your essay and the number of arguments.
• The conclusion is the last paragraph of your paper. Here, you should confirm your thesis statement by summing up your arguments.

Here , you can learn more about a step-by-step plan for your analytical essay.

📃 Cultural Analysis Topic Ideas: How to Choose

Here, you’ll find three important points that will help you to choose the right topic for your paper.

Cultural Analysis Topics: Point 1

First, choose a society or culture that you want to talk about . Let us take American culture and society as an example.

Cultural Analysis Topics: Point 2

Cultural traditions are reflected in many ways: in literature , cinema, etc. We suggest you use films (this is not boring). You can even write the cultural analysis essay based on your favorite movies .

Cultural Analysis Topics: Point 3

Now, you have to decide on the central issue of your cultural analysis essay . What particular aspect of American culture do you want to discuss, e.g., men/women, drugs , minorities, etc.?

Finally, you need to watch a movie (better twice) that depicts the problem you want to consider . Your major goal boils down to analyzing the film and making the final decision. The question is whether this or that cultural aspect is depicted as it is. This is exactly why the article is called “reflecting the reality.”

As you know, truth is not always shown correctly, especially in movies. For instance, many African Americans living in the United States are depicted as drug pushers or members of some gangs. However, this is not precisely what happens in reality.

Sure, you can take any culture or even sub-culture as the basis of your paper.

📋 80 Cultural Analysis Essay Topics

We’ve prepared 80 exciting topics for your cultural analysis essay. Let’s dive in!

• Changing role of the institution of the family in modern Western society.
• Social Media Role in Promoting Social Change .
• Male and female roles in American society: In the past and nowadays.
• Cultural Changes in America After World War II .
• Cultural stereotypes: How have they occurred?
• A Family System and Social Care Service Users .
• The role of marriage: Western and Eastern countries.
• Cultural Diversity Among the Hispanics .
• How are cultural minorities presented in American media nowadays?
• Cross-Cultural Management Problems .
• The role of traditions in modern American society.
• Role of Social Media in the Curriculum .
• Does the media help in promoting social tolerance?
• Culture and Diversity in Education .
• Origins of racism and discrimination in American society.
• Importance of Social Responsibility .
• The role of migration in modern American culture.
• Intercultural Communication Breakdown .
• New professional ethics in the United States: What has been changed in the last decade?
• A Development of American Society .
• Role of religion in modern American society.
• Social Problem, Its Components and Stages .
• Impact of Latin American culture on US culture.
• Social Media’s Effect on Democracy .

• Cultural unification mechanisms: How does it work? 
• The Meaning of Theology for the Present Society .
• Social media and global culture: A myth or reality? 
• Gender & Society. Intersectionality and Feminist Activism .
• The role of national cultures. 
• Why Make a Step Family a Real Family?
• How is culture used in advertising? 
• Hip-Hop in Japan and Cultural Globalization .
• The role of holidays and celebrations in American culture. 
• Direct and Indirect Social Influences on a Person .
• Multicultural societies: Positive and negative aspects. 
• Gun Control: Social Contract Broken in the US .
• The role of subcultures in American society. 
• Freedom Significance: Social and Political Aspects .
• American Revolution and its role in American culture. 
• Social Issues: The Uses of Global Poverty .
• World War II and its influence on world culture. 
• Effects of Technology on Society .
• The role of religion in Islamic countries. 
• Cultural Safety and Transcultural Nursing .
• The role of feminism in American culture. 
• American Culture Reflection in Sport .
• The role of feminism in post-Soviet countries. 
• Social Media: Ethical Issues and Theories .
• Female and minorities in politics: Why it becomes important nowadays? 
• The Effect of Music on Culture .
• Hip hop culture and its influence on American society. 
• Effect of Gaming on People’s Social Lives .
• Gender and Social Movements .
• Race relations in the United States: Has the situation improved in the 21st century? 
• Heritage and Culture in African American Literature .
• Do social networks support personal identity or suppress it? 
• Culture Diversity and Healthcare Delivery in Australia .
• What are the roots of international culture? 
• Foreignism, Media, Imperialism Influence on Culture .
• Social networks and its impact on national cultures. 
• Family Support and Intervention in Substance Abuse Among Adolescents .
• Mexican culture and its influence on American society. 
• Nuclear family : What has changed in the 21st century? 
• Science, Technology and Society: Implications for Education .
• Freedom of information and its impact on international culture. 
• Popular Music in the Modern Culture .
• Do national cultures lose their significance in the rise of international culture? 
• “Religion in Society: A Sociology of Religion” by Ronald Johnstone .
• How did the technological revolution change European culture? 
• Rap in American Culture .
• Changing female roles in Islamic countries. For this topic, you can choose two Islamic countries: the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia . And discuss and compare the way female roles are changing. 
• Canadian Political Culture .
• Indigenous people and their impact on American culture . Here you can pick one particular area of American culture that indigenous people influenced. It could be, for instance, literature or cinema.
•   Social Media Helps to Bridge Divides .
• The influence of religion on modern American politics . For this topic, you can focus on how Bible teachings are reflected in contemporary American laws. 
• Social Groups and How They Work .
• American popular culture and reasons for its acceptance worldwide . You can discuss the origins of this phenomenon and why American culture got accepted all over the world. 
• Family Structure and Its Effects on Children .
• Fighting gender stereotypes in mass media . For this topic, you can choose European Union and discuss how it fights gender stereotypes and sexism in the media. 
• Teen Pregnancy Prevention in Modern Society .

In this section, we’ve prepared a cultural analysis essay example for you.

You’ll see excerpts from an essay on social networks and their influence on national cultures in the table below. We hope you’ll get inspired by your paper!

Social networks and their impact on national cultures

• Ideas for culture essay & paper topics – California State University, Fresno
• Use of social media to promote national culture worldwide – URFU
• Guidelines for academic papers in Literary or Cultural Studies – Stiftung Universität Hildesheim
• The Practice of Cultural Analysis – Stanford University Press
• Film Analysis – The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• Write Your Essay | UNSW Current Students
• Writing Across Cultures and Contexts: International Students in the Stanford Study of Writing – Stanford University
• Cross-Cultural Analysis – The University of Alabama

A Professional Guide to Crafting Brilliant Cultural Essays

Quick Navigation

• 1. Cultural Essays – A Comprehensive Description
• 2. How to Choose a Topic for a Cultural Essay?
• 3. What Aspect to Choose for Writing Cultural Essays?
• 4. Step-by-Step Guide to Writing Cultural Essays
• 5. Expert Tips to Write Cultural Essays
• 6. Essay Topic Ideas for Cultural Essays
• 7. Summing Up

Culture is a critical aspect of human society, and it plays a significant role in shaping the beliefs, values, and traditions of people. Writing a cultural essay is a powerful tool that enables you to explore and understand diverse cultural perspectives. However, it is not an easy task, as it requires a lot of research, analytical skills, and creativity. Therefore, in this blog post, our essay helper will provide you with a comprehensive guide on how to write an engaging cultural essay.

Cultural Essays – A Comprehensive Description

A cultural essay is a type of academic writing that explores the cultural aspects of a society or community. It critically examines the reasons for beliefs, practices, and attitudes that differentiate one group from another. Our society comprises various cultures, and studying them enables us to understand the reasons for their existence and how they differ from other cultures.

In a cultural essay, the writer aims to analyze and interpret the cultural phenomena they are writing about, presenting their findings in a clear and structured manner. The essay should provide the reader with an understanding of the cultural context, the significance of the phenomena being discussed, and their implications for the society or community being studied.

The primary focus of a cultural analysis essay is to examine the customs, value systems, worldview, and central ideas or values that are unique to a specific group or community of people, which vary among cultures. Cultural analysis papers explore the culture and are also known as ethnographic writing, which involves looking at things from different perspectives.

To write a perfect essay on cultural analysis, you must choose a topic and simplify it to help readers understand your thesis and the paper’s overall purpose. The essay’s thesis must critically discuss the beliefs of the group being analyzed. You must research and gather information from credible sources such as books, articles, interviews, and surveys. You should also use critical thinking skills to analyze and interpret the information gathered and present your arguments logically and persuasively.

How to Choose a Topic for a Cultural Essay?

According to PenMyPaper experts, it is recommended to narrow down the focus to a particular culture when selecting a topic for a cultural essay. Focusing on a particular culture or nation is a great way to choose a topic for a cultural analysis essay. The key is to select a specific aspect or fact to analyze and discuss in the essay. Once you have identified the culture or nation you want to write about, you can then select a specific aspect of that culture to investigate. For example, if you choose to write about the culture of Japan, you can focus on a specific aspect such as the role of the tea ceremony in Japanese culture or the significance of cherry blossom festivals.

Once you have selected a specific aspect of the culture, you can start your research. Look for credible sources such as books, articles, and academic journals that discuss the topic you have chosen. Make sure you gather enough information to support your arguments and to provide a clear understanding of the topic.

It is important to provide clear and detailed explanations so that the readers can easily understand the arguments presented. Avoid making general statements and utilize real-world scenarios and examples to support the arguments and make the essay more captivating for the readers. For instance, if you are discussing the role of the tea ceremony in Japanese culture, you can provide examples of how it is performed and its significance in daily life. Use descriptive language and avoid technical jargon that might be difficult for your readers to understand.

What Aspect to Choose for Writing Cultural Essays?

A cultural analysis paper can focus on various aspects of a particular culture or society. Here are some ideas to help you decide on a specific focus for your cultural paper:

• Religion and Culture: Religion is an essential aspect of many cultures, and it often shapes the way people view the world and interact with others. You can examine how religion influences various cultural practices, such as food, dress, or social norms. It could also explore how different religions interact within a given culture or how religion impacts individual and collective identity.
• Culture and Self-identity: A cultural analysis paper that focuses on self-identity would explore how people develop their sense of self in relation to their cultural background. This could include an examination of how cultural norms and values shape individual behavior, as well as an exploration of how cultural identity is expressed through language, art, and other forms of cultural expression.
• Ethnicity: Ethnicity refers to a shared cultural heritage among a group of people, often including language, religion, and other cultural practices. A cultural analysis paper on ethnicity might explore how ethnicity impacts social and political structures, as well as how it shapes individual identity.
• Cultural Differences: Cultural differences can be found across different geographic regions, ethnic groups, and even within families. You might discuss how cultural differences manifest themselves in language, behavior, or social norms, and how these differences can lead to misunderstandings or conflicts.
• Cultural Diversity: Cultural diversity refers to the variety of cultural practices and traditions that exist within a society or among different societies. Here you can study how different cultural groups interact and coexist within a society, as well as how cultural diversity can impact social and political structures.
• Cultural Values: Cultural values refer to the beliefs and practices that are considered important within a given culture. Here consider talking about how different cultural groups prioritize different values, as well as how these values impact behavior and social structures.
• Cultural Relativism: Cultural relativism is the idea that different cultures should be understood and evaluated on their terms, rather than being judged according to the values and beliefs of another culture. A cultural analysis paper on cultural relativism might explore how this concept has been applied in different contexts, as well as its limitations and criticisms.
• Cultural Norms: Cultural norms refer to the unwritten rules that govern behavior within a given culture. An essay on cultural norms could explore how different cultural groups define and enforce norms, as well as how norms can change over time and how they impact individual behavior and social structures.

These were the typical genres that you may choose to write about, however, you may also consider delving into the following in case you are trying to find narrower themes.

• Gender Roles: Analyze the roles of men and women in a specific culture or society, and examine how these roles have changed over time.
• Food and Cuisine: Explore the food and cuisine of a specific culture or society, and examine how it reflects the values, beliefs, and customs of that culture.
• Religion and Beliefs: Examine the religious beliefs and practices of a specific culture or society, and discuss how they impact daily life and social interactions.
• Language and Communication: Analyze the language and communication patterns of a specific culture or society, and discuss their impacts.
• Social and Political Systems: Examine the social and political systems of a specific culture or society, and discuss their effects on relationships.
• Economic Systems: Analyze the economic systems of a specific culture or society, and discuss how they impact social interactions and relationships.
• Fashion and Style: Analyze the fashion and style of a specific culture or society, and discuss how it reflects the values, beliefs, and customs of that culture.
• Education: Examine the educational systems of a specific culture or society, and discuss how they impact social interactions and relationships.

Remember, when choosing a focus for your cultural analysis paper, it’s important to choose a topic that interests you and is relevant to your audience. Additionally, be sure to conduct thorough research and analysis to provide a comprehensive and informative paper.

Step-by-Step Guide to Writing Cultural Essays

Following is an easy guide to writing a cultural essay effectively.

Step 1: Understanding the basics of cultural essay writing

Before we dive deep into the nitty-gritty of cultural essay writing, it is essential to understand the fundamental elements that make up a good essay. Cultural essays explore cultural aspects, practices, and beliefs. It allows you to examine cultural phenomena, analyze them critically, and present your findings clearly. The key elements of a cultural essay include the introduction, the body, and the conclusion.

Step 2: Crafting a captivating introduction

The introduction is the first impression that your reader will have of your essay, and therefore, it should be captivating and engaging. The introduction should include a hook that grabs the reader’s attention and sets the tone for the essay. You can use a rhetorical question, a quote, a statistic, or an anecdote to hook your readers. Additionally, the introduction should provide background information on the culture or cultural aspect you have chosen to discuss and the thesis statement, which is the main argument of your essay.

Step 3: Conducting research and gathering data

The body of the cultural essay is where you present your analysis and findings. Before you start writing the body, it is essential to conduct thorough research and gather relevant data. You can use primary and secondary sources, such as books, articles, interviews, and surveys, to gather data. Additionally, you should ensure that your sources are credible and reliable.

Step 4: Structuring the body of the essay

In the body of your cultural analysis essay, it’s important to address multiple points related to the culture you’re analyzing. It’s essential to present your arguments in a clear and impressive manner that does justice to the chosen topic. Each point should be addressed in its paragraph, with the first sentence introducing the point and additional sentences elaborating on it before concluding with a kicker sentence that summarizes the argument.

To emphasize the significance of the subject you’ve chosen, explain to the readers why you selected it. You can support your arguments with real-life scenarios and evidence. Using a conversational tone, engage your audience to ensure they comprehend and appreciate the topic both verbally and in writing.

Step 5: Using interactive language to appeal to your audience

Using interactive language is an effective way of engaging your audience and keeping them interested in your essay. Interactive language includes the use of rhetorical questions, personal anecdotes, metaphors, similes, and vivid descriptions. Additionally, you can use active voice, which makes your writing more dynamic and engaging.

Step 6: Writing a compelling conclusion

The conclusion is the final part of the cultural essay, and it should leave a lasting impression on the reader. The conclusion should summarize the main points of the essay and restate the thesis statement. Additionally, the conclusion should leave the reader with a thought-provoking statement, a call to action, or a suggestion for further research.

Looking for an outline for compare and contrast essay ? You are just a click away!

Expert Tips to Write Cultural Essays

Here are some helpful tips for writing a cultural essay effectively:

• Choose a narrow topic: Selecting a narrow topic allows you to go into more depth and detail, making your essay more compelling and informative.
• Conduct thorough research: You need to conduct extensive research on your topic and gather as much information as possible. It is crucial to consult credible sources such as academic journals, books, and reputable websites.
• Use real-life examples: Use real-life examples to make your essay more engaging and relevant to your readers. You can use personal experiences, interviews, or case studies to illustrate your points.
• Organize your essay: Plan and organize your essay before you start writing. Create an outline that includes the main ideas and supporting evidence to ensure that your essay flows logically.
• Use a clear and concise writing style: Use clear and concise language to make your essay easy to understand. Avoid using complex vocabulary and jargon that may confuse your readers.
• Avoid stereotypes and generalizations: Avoid making sweeping generalizations and using stereotypes when writing about a particular culture. Be careful not to make assumptions about a group of people based on their culture.
• Be respectful: Be respectful and sensitive when writing about a culture that is not your own. Avoid being judgmental or critical and approach the topic with an open mind.
• Edit and proofread: After completing your essay, revise it to ensure that it is well-structured, free of errors, and makes sense. Furthermore, it is crucial to ensure that the content you have produced is completely original and plagiarism-free by utilizing plagiarism detection tools .

By following these tips, you can create a well-written and informative cultural essay that engages your readers and presents a unique perspective on the topic.

Essay Topic Ideas for Cultural Essays

By now, you must have gotten a better understanding of what cultural essays mean and how to write one. Now, let us dive into some interesting topics for cultural essays.

• The changing role of the family institution in modern Western society.
• A comparison of male and female roles in American society, both past and present.
• Cultural changes in America following World War II.
• The emergence of cultural stereotypes: causes and effects.
• Analyzing America’s Journey to Independence: A Cultural Perspective.
• The Role of Fashion in Japanese Culture: A Cultural Analysis.
• The Impact of Modern Technology on Personal Relationships: A Cross-Cultural Analysis.
• Critically Examining Negative Cultural Aspects in Disney Films.
• Unpacking the Inherent Racism of the Olympics: An Analysis.
• Investigating the Influence of Literature on Various Aspects of Human Life.
• A comparative analysis of the role of marriage in Western and Eastern countries.
• Exploring cultural diversity among Hispanic communities.
• The portrayal of cultural minorities in American media today.
• Cross-cultural management problems and how to solve them.
• Understanding culture and diversity in education.
• The origins of racism and discrimination in American society.
• Analyzing the role of migration in modern American culture.
• Overcoming intercultural communication breakdowns.
• New professional ethics in the United States: a decade of change.
• The impact of Latin American culture on US society.

Check out our blog for more topic ideas for descriptive essays , expository essays, compare and contrast essays, and much more.                     

Writing a cultural essay can be a daunting task, but with the right approach, it can be an enjoyable and rewarding experience. Writing a cultural essay can be a great opportunity to explore and understand diverse cultural perspectives and share your findings with others, according to our essay writing service . By following the tips, we have shared in this blog post, you can unlock the secrets of writing a captivating cultural essay that will leave a lasting impression on your readers. You can consider checking out more such useful articles on different subjects including synthesis essays, essay hooks, commerce essay topics , critical analysis essays, etc.

Cultural Diversity Essay & Community Essay Examples

If you’ve started to research college application requirements for the schools on your list, you might have come across the “cultural diversity essay.” In this guide, we’ll explore the cultural diversity essay in depth. We will compare the cultural diversity essay to the community essay and discuss how to approach these kinds of supplements. We’ll also provide examples of diversity essays and community essay examples. But first, let’s discuss exactly what a cultural diversity essay is. 

The purpose of the cultural diversity essay in college applications is to show the admissions committee what makes you unique. The cultural diversity essay also lets you describe what type of “ diversity ” you would bring to campus.

We’ll also highlight a diversity essay sample for three college applications. These include the Georgetown application essay , Rice application essay , and Williams application essay . We’ll provide examples of diversity essays for each college. Then, for each of these college essays that worked, we will analyze their strengths to help you craft your own essays. 

Finally, we’ll give you some tips on how to write a cultural diversity essay that will make your applications shine. 

But first, let’s explore the types of college essays you might encounter on your college applications. 

Types of College Essays

College application requirements will differ among schools. However, you’ll submit one piece of writing to nearly every school on your list—the personal statement . A strong personal statement can help you stand out in the admissions process. 

So, how do you know what to write about? That depends on the type of college essay included in your college application requirements. 

There are a few main types of college essays that you might encounter in the college admissions process. Theese include the “Why School ” essay, the “Why Major ” essay, and the extracurricular activity essay. This also includes the type of essay we will focus on in this guide—the cultural diversity essay. 

“Why School” essay

The “Why School ” essay is exactly what it sounds like. For this type of college essay, you’ll need to underscore why you want to go to this particular school. 

However, don’t make the mistake of just listing off what you like about the school. Additionally, don’t just reiterate information you can find on their admissions website. Instead, you’ll want to make connections between what the school offers and how you are a great fit for that college community. 

“Why Major” essay

The idea behind the “Why Major ” essay is similar to that of the “Why School ” essay above. However, instead of writing about the school at large, this essay should highlight why you plan to study your chosen major.

There are plenty of directions you could take with this type of essay. For instance, you might describe how you chose this major, what career you plan to pursue upon graduation, or other details.

Extracurricular Activity essay

The extracurricular activity essay asks you to elaborate on one of the activities that you participated in outside of the classroom. 

For this type of college essay, you’ll need to select an extracurricular activity that you pursued while you were in high school. Bonus points if you can tie your extracurricular activity into your future major, career goals, or other extracurricular activities for college. Overall, your extracurricular activity essay should go beyond your activities list. In doing so, it should highlight why your chosen activity matters to you.

Cultural Diversity essay

The cultural diversity essay is your chance to expound upon diversity in all its forms. Before you write your cultural diversity essay, you should ask yourself some key questions. These questions can include: How will you bring diversity to your future college campus? What unique perspective do you bring to the table? 

Another sub-category of the cultural diversity essay is the gender diversity essay. As its name suggests, this essay would center around the author’s gender. This essay would highlight how gender shapes the way the writer understands the world around them. 

Later, we’ll look at examples of diversity essays and other college essays that worked. But before we do, let’s figure out how to identify a cultural diversity essay in the first place. 

How to identify a ‘cultural diversity’ essay

So, you’re wondering how you’ll be able to identify a cultural diversity essay as you review your college application requirements. 

Aside from the major giveaway of having the word “diversity” in the prompt, a cultural diversity essay will ask you to describe what makes you different from other applicants. In other words, what aspects of your unique culture(s) have influenced your perspective and shaped you into who you are today?

Diversity can refer to race, ethnicity, first-generation status, gender, or anything in between. You can write about a myriad of things in a cultural diversity essay. For instance, you might discuss your personal background, identity, values, experiences, or how you’ve overcome challenges in your life. 

However, don’t feel limited in what you can address in a cultural diversity essay. The words “culture” and “diversity” mean different things to different people. Above all, you’ll want your diversity essays for college to be personal and sincere. 

How is a ‘community’ essay different? 

A community essay can also be considered a cultural diversity essay. In fact, you can think of the community essay as a subcategory of the cultural diversity essay. However, there is a key difference between a community essay and a cultural diversity essay, which we will illustrate below. 

You might have already seen some community essay examples while you were researching college application requirements. But how exactly is a community essay different from a cultural diversity essay?

One way to tell the difference between community essay examples and cultural diversity essay examples is by the prompt. A community essay will highlight, well, community . This means it will focus on how your identity will shape your interactions on campus—not just how it informs your own experiences.

Two common forms to look out for

Community essay examples can take two forms. First, you’ll find community essay examples about your past experiences. These let you show the admissions team how you have positively influenced your own community. 

Other community essay examples, however, will focus on the future. These community essay examples will ask you to detail how you will contribute to your future college community. We refer to these as college community essay examples.

In college community essay examples, you’ll see applicants detail how they might interact with their fellow students. These essays may also discuss how students plan to positively contribute to the campus community. 

As we mentioned above, the community essay, along with community essay examples and college community essay examples, fit into the larger category of the cultural diversity essay. Although we do not have specific community essay examples or college community essay examples in this guide, we will continue to highlight the subtle differences between the two. 

Before we continue the discussion of community essay examples and college community essay examples, let’s start with some examples of cultural diversity essay prompts. For each of the cultural diversity essay prompts, we’ll name the institutions that include these diversity essays for college as part of their college application requirements. 

What are some examples of ‘cultural diversity’ essays? 

Now, you have a better understanding of the similarities and differences between the cultural diversity essay and the community essay. So, next, let’s look at some examples of cultural diversity essay prompts.

The prompts below are from the Georgetown application, Rice application, and Williams application, respectively. As we discuss the similarities and differences between prompts, remember the framework we provided above for what constitutes a cultural diversity essay and a community essay. 

Later in this guide, we’ll provide real examples of diversity essays, including Georgetown essay examples, Rice University essay examples, and Williams supplemental essays examples. These are all considered college essays that worked—meaning that the author was accepted into that particular institution. 

Georgetown Supplementals Essays

Later, we’ll look at Georgetown supplemental essay examples. Diversity essays for Georgetown are a product of this prompt: 

As Georgetown is a diverse community, the Admissions Committee would like to know more about you in your own words. Please submit a brief essay, either personal or creative, which you feel best describes you. 

You might have noticed two keywords in this prompt right away: “diverse” and “community.” These buzzwords indicate that this prompt is a cultural diversity essay. You could even argue that responses to this prompt would result in college community essay examples. After all, the prompt refers to the Georgetown community. 

For this prompt, you’ll want to produce a diversity essay sample that highlights who you are. In order to do that successfully, you’ll need to self-reflect before putting pen to paper. What aspects of your background, personality, or values best describe who you are? How might your presence at Georgetown influence or contribute to their diverse community? 

Additionally, this cultural diversity essay can be personal or creative. So, you have more flexibility with the Georgetown supplemental essays than with other similar diversity essay prompts. Depending on the direction you go, your response to this prompt could be considered a cultural diversity essay, gender diversity essay, or a college community essay. 

Rice University Essays

The current Rice acceptance rate is just 9% , making it a highly selective school. Because the Rice acceptance rate is so low, your personal statement and supplemental essays can make a huge difference. 

The Rice University essay examples we’ll provide below are based on this prompt: 

The quality of Rice’s academic life and the Residential College System are heavily influenced by the unique life experiences and cultural traditions each student brings. What personal perspective would you contribute to life at Rice? 

Breaking down the prompt.

Like the prompt above, this cultural diversity essay asks about your “life experiences,” “cultural traditions,” and personal “perspectives.” These phrases indicate a cultural diversity essay. Keep in mind this may not be the exact prompt you’ll have to answer in your own Rice application. However, future Rice prompts will likely follow a similar framework as this diversity essay sample.

Although this prompt is not as flexible as the Georgetown prompt, it does let you discuss aspects of Rice’s academic life and Residential College System that appeal to you. You can also highlight how your experiences have influenced your personal perspective. 

The prompt also asks about how you would contribute to life at Rice. So, your response could also fall in line with college community essay examples. Remember, college community essay examples are another sub-category of community essay examples. Successful college community essay examples will illustrate the ways in which students would contribute to their future campus community. 

Williams Supplemental Essays

Like the Rice acceptance rate, the Williams acceptance rate is also 9% . Because the Williams acceptance rate is so low, you’ll want to pay close attention to the Williams supplemental essays examples as you begin the writing process. 

The Williams supplemental essays examples below are based on this prompt: 

Every first-year student at Williams lives in an Entry – a thoughtfully constructed microcosm of the student community that’s a defining part of the Williams experience. From the moment they arrive, students find themselves in what’s likely the most diverse collection of backgrounds, perspectives, and interests they’ve ever encountered. What might differentiate you from the 19 other first-year students in an Entry? What perspective would you add to the conversation with your peer(s)?

Reflecting on the prompt.

Immediately, words like “diverse,” “backgrounds,” “perspectives,” “interests,” and “differentiate” should stand out to you. These keywords highlight the fact that this is a cultural diversity essay. Similar to the Rice essay, this may not be the exact prompt you’ll face on your Williams application. However, we can still learn from it.

Like the Georgetown essay, this prompt requires you to put in some self-reflection before you start writing. What aspects of your background differentiate you from other people? How would these differences impact your interactions with peers? 

This prompt also touches on the “student community” and how you would “add to the conversation with your peer(s).” By extension, any strong responses to this prompt could also be considered as college community essay examples. 

Community Essays

All of the prompts above mention campus community. So, you could argue that they are also examples of community essays. 

Like we mentioned above, you can think of community essays as a subcategory of the cultural diversity essay. If the prompt alludes to the campus community, or if your response is centered on how you would interact within that community, your essay likely falls into the world of college community essay examples. 

Regardless of what you would classify the essay as, all successful essays will be thoughtful, personal, and rich with details. We’ll show you examples of this in our “college essays that worked” section below. 

Which schools require a cultural diversity or community essay? 

Besides Georgetown, Rice, and Williams, many other college applications require a cultural diversity essay or community essay. In fact, from the Ivy League to HBCUs and state schools, the cultural diversity essay is a staple across college applications. 

Although we will not provide a diversity essay sample for each of the colleges below, it is helpful to read the prompts. This will build your familiarity with other college applications that require a cultural diversity essay or community essay. Some schools that require a cultural diversity essay or community essay include New York University , Duke University , Harvard University , Johns Hopkins University , and University of Michigan . 

New York University

NYU listed a cultural diversity essay as part of its 2022-2023 college application requirements. Here is the prompt:

NYU was founded on the belief that a student’s identity should not dictate the ability for them to access higher education. That sense of opportunity for all students, of all backgrounds, remains a part of who we are today and a critical part of what makes us a world class university. Our community embraces diversity, in all its forms, as a cornerstone of the NYU experience. We would like to better understand how your experiences would help us to shape and grow our diverse community.

Duke university.

Duke is well-known for its community essay: 

What is your sense of Duke as a university and a community, and why do you consider it a good match for you? If there’s something in particular about our offerings that attracts you, feel free to share that as well.

A top-ranked Ivy League institution, Harvard University also has a cultural diversity essay as part of its college application requirements: 

Harvard has long recognized the importance of student body diversity of all kinds. We welcome you to write about distinctive aspects of your background, personal development, or the intellectual interests you might bring to your Harvard classmates.

Johns hopkins university.

The Johns Hopkins supplement is another example of a cultural diversity essay: 

Founded in the spirit of exploration and discovery, Johns Hopkins University encourages students to share their perspectives, develop their interests, and pursue new experiences. Use this space to share something you’d like the admissions committee to know about you (your interests, your background, your identity, or your community), and how it has shaped what you want to get out of your college experience at Hopkins. 

University of michigan.

The University of Michigan requires a community essay for its application: 

Everyone belongs to many different communities and/or groups defined by (among other things) shared geography, religion, ethnicity, income, cuisine, interest, race, ideology, or intellectual heritage. Choose one of the communities to which you belong and describe that community and your place within it. 

Community essay examples.

The Duke and Michigan prompts are perfect illustrations of community essay examples. However, they have some critical differences. So, if you apply to both of these schools, you’ll have to change the way you approach either of these community essays. 

The Duke prompt asks you to highlight why you are a good match for the Duke community. You’ll also see this prompt in other community essay examples. To write a successful response to this prompt, you’ll need to reference offerings specific to Duke (or whichever college requires this essay). In order to know what to reference, you’ll need to do your research before you start writing. 

Consider the following questions as you write your diversity essay sample if the prompt is similar to Duke University’s

• What values does this college community have? 
• How do these tie in with what you value? 
• Is there something that this college offers that matches your interests, personality, or background?  

On the other hand, the Michigan essay prompt asks you to describe a community that you belong to as well as your place within that community. This is another variation of the prompt for community essay examples. 

To write a successful response to this prompt, you’ll need to identify a community that you belong to. Then, you’ll need to think critically about how you interact with that community. 

Below are some questions to consider as you write your diversity essay sample for colleges like Michigan: 

• Out of all the communities you belong to, which can you highlight in your response? 
• How have you impacted this community? 
• How has this community impacted you?

Now, in the next few sections, we’ll dive into the Georgetown supplemental essay examples, the Rice university essay examples, and the Williams supplemental essays examples. After each diversity essay sample, we’ll include a breakdown of why these are considered college essays that worked. 

Georgetown Essay Examples

As a reminder, the Georgetown essay examples respond to this prompt: 

As Georgetown is a diverse community, the Admissions Committee would like to know more about you in your own words. Please submit a brief essay, either personal or creative, which you feel best describes you.

Here is the excerpt of the diversity essay sample from our Georgetown essay examples: 

Georgetown University Essay Example

The best thing I ever did was skip eight days of school in a row. Despite the protests of teachers over missed class time, I told them that the world is my classroom. The lessons I remember most are those that took place during my annual family vacation to coastal Maine. That rural world is the most authentic and incredible classroom where learning simply happens and becomes exponential. 

Years ago, as I hunted through the rocks and seaweed for seaglass and mussels, I befriended a Maine local hauling her battered kayak on the shore. Though I didn’t realize it at the time, I had found a kindred spirit in Jeanne. Jeanne is a year-round resident who is more than the hard working, rugged Mainer that meets the eye; reserved and humble in nature, she is a wealth of knowledge and is self-taught through necessity. With thoughtful attention to detail, I engineered a primitive ramp made of driftwood and a pulley system to haul her kayak up the cliff. We diligently figured out complex problems and developed solutions through trial and error.

After running out of conventional materials, I recycled and reimagined items that had washed ashore. We expected to succeed, but were not afraid to fail. Working with Jeanne has been the best classroom in the world; without textbooks or technology, she has made a difference in my life. Whether building a basic irrigation system for her organic garden or installing solar panels to harness the sun’s energy, every project has shown me the value of taking action and making an impact. Each year brings a different project with new excitement and unique challenges. My resourcefulness, problem solving ability, and innovative thinking have advanced under her tutelage. 

While exploring the rocky coast of Maine, I embrace every experience as an unparalleled educational opportunity that transcends any classroom environment. I discovered that firsthand experience and real-world application of science are my best teachers. In school, applications of complex calculations and abstract theories are sometimes obscured by grades and structure. In Maine, I expand my love of science and renourish my curious spirit. I am a highly independent, frugal, resilient Mainer living as a southern girl in NC. 

Why this essay worked

This is one of the Georgetown supplemental essay examples that works, and here’s why. The author starts the essay with an interesting hook, which makes the reader want to learn more about this person and their perspective. 

Throughout the essay, the author illustrates their intellectual curiosity. From befriending Jeanne and creating a pulley system to engineering other projects on the rocky coast of Maine, the author demonstrates how they welcome challenges and work to solve problems. 

Further, the author mentions values that matter to them—taking action and making an impact. Both facets are also part of Georgetown’s core values . By making these connections in their essay, the author shows the admissions committee exactly how they would be a great fit for the Georgetown community. 

Finally, the author uses their experience in Maine to showcase their love of science, which is likely the field they will study at Georgetown. Like this writer, you should try to include most important parts of your identity into your essay. This includes things like life experiences, passions, majors, extracurricular activities for college, and more. 

Rice University Essay Examples

The Rice University essay examples are from this prompt: 

The quality of Rice’s academic life and the Residential College System are heavily influenced by the unique life experiences and cultural traditions each student brings. What personal perspective would you contribute to life at Rice? (500-word limit)

Rice university essay example.

Like every applicant, I also have a story to share. A story that makes me who I am and consists of chapters about my life experiences and adventures. Having been born in a different country, my journey to America was one of the most difficult things I had ever experienced. Everything felt different. The atmosphere, the places, the food, and especially the people. Everywhere I looked, I saw something new. Although it was a bit overwhelming, one thing had not changed.

The caring nature of the people was still prevalent in everyday interactions. I was overwhelmed by how supportive and understanding people were of one another. Whether it is race, religion, or culture, everyone was accepted and appreciated. I knew that I could be whoever I wanted to be and that the only limitation was my imagination. Through hard work and persistence I put my all in everything that I did. I get this work ethic from my father since he is living proof that anything can be accomplished with continued determination. Listening to the childhood stories he told me, my dad would reminisce about how he was born in an impoverished area in a third world country during a turbulent and unpredictable time.

Even with a passion for learning, he had to work a laborious job in an attempt to help his parents make ends meet. He talked about how he would study under the street lights when the power went out at home. His parents wanted something better for him, as did he. Not living in America changed nothing about their work ethic. His parents continued to work hard daily, in an attempt to provide for their son. My dad worked and studied countless hours, paying his way through school with jobs and scholarships. His efforts paid off when he finally moved to America and opened his own business. None of it would have been possible without tremendous effort and dedication needed for a better life, values that are instilled within me as well, and this is the perspective that I wish to bring to Rice. 

This diversity essay sample references the author’s unique life experiences and personal perspective, which makes it one example of college essays that worked. The author begins the essay by alluding to their unique story—they were born in a different country and then came to America. Instead of facing this change as a challenge, the author shows how this new experience helped them to feel comfortable with all kinds of people. They also highlight how their diversity was accepted and appreciated. 

Additionally, the author incorporates information about their father’s story, which helps to frame their own values and where those values came from. The values that they chose to highlight also fall in line with the values of the Rice community. 

Williams Supplemental Essay Examples

Let’s read the prompt that inspired so many strong Williams supplemental essays examples again: 

Every first-year student at Williams lives in an Entry—a thoughtfully constructed microcosm of the student community that’s a defining part of the Williams experience. From the moment they arrive, students find themselves in what’s likely the most diverse collection of backgrounds, perspectives and interests they’ve ever encountered. What might differentiate you from the 19 other first-year students in an entry? What perspective(s) would you add to the conversation with your peers?

Williams college essay example.

Through the flow in my head

See you clad in red

But not just the clothes

It’s your whole being

Covering in this sickening blanket

Of heat and pain

Are you in agony, I wonder?

Is this the hell they told me about?

Have we been condemned?

Reduced to nothing but pain

At least we have each other

In our envelopes of crimson

I try in vain

“Take my hands” I shriek

“Let’s protect each other, 

You and me, through this hell”

My body contorts

And deforms into nothingness

You remain the same

Clad in red

With faraway eyes

You, like a statue

Your eyes fixed somewhere else

You never see me

Just the red briefcase in your heart

We aren’t together

It’s always been me alone

While you stand there, aloof, with the briefcase in your heart.

I wrote this poem the day my prayer request for the Uighur Muslims got denied at school. At the time, I was stunned. I was taught to have empathy for those around me. Yet, that empathy disappears when told to extend it to someone different. I can’t comprehend this contradiction and I refuse to. 

At Williams, I hope to become a Community Engagement Fellow at the Davis Center. I hope to use Williams’ support for social justice and advocacy to educate my fellow classmates on social issues around the world. Williams students are not just scholars but also leaders and changemakers. Together, we can strive to better the world through advocacy.

Human’s capability for love is endless. We just need to open our hearts to everyone. 

It’s time to let the briefcase go and look at those around us with our real human eyes.

We see you now. Please forgive us.

As we mentioned above, the Williams acceptance rate is incredibly low. This makes the supplemental essay that much more important. 

This diversity essay sample works because it is personal and memorable. The author chooses to start the essay off with a poem. Which, if done right, will immediately grab the reader’s attention. 

Further, the author contextualizes the poem by explaining the circumstances surrounding it—they wrote it in response to a prayer request that was denied at school. In doing so, they also highlight their own values of empathy and embracing diversity. 

Finally, the author ends their cultural diversity essay by describing what excites them about Williams. They also discuss how they see themselves interacting within the Williams community. This is a key piece of the essay, as it helps the reader understand how the author would be a good fit for Williams. 

The examples provided within this essay also touch on issues that are important to the author, which provides a glimpse into the type of student the author would be on campus. Additionally, this response shows what potential extracurricular activities for college the author might be interested in pursuing while at Williams. 

How to Write a Cultural Diversity Essay

You want your diversity essay to stand out from any other diversity essay sample. But how do you write a successful cultural diversity essay? 

First, consider what pieces of your identity you want to highlight in your essay. Of course, race and ethnicity are important facets of diversity. However, there are plenty of other factors to consider. 

As you brainstorm, think outside the box to figure out what aspects of your identity help make up who you are. Because identity and diversity fall on a spectrum, there is no right or wrong answer here. 

Fit your ideas to the specific school

Once you’ve decided on what you want to represent in your cultural diversity essay, think about how that fits into the college of your choice. Use your cultural diversity essay to make connections to the school. If your college has specific values or programs that align with your identity, then include them in your cultural diversity essay! 

Above all, you should write about something that is important to you. Your cultural diversity essay, gender diversity essay, or community essay will succeed if you are passionate about your topic and willing to get personal. 

Additional Tips for Community & Cultural Diversity Essays

1. start early.

In order to create the strongest diversity essay possible, you’ll want to start early. Filling out college applications is already a time-consuming process. So, you can cut back on additional stress and anxiety by writing your cultural diversity essay as early as possible. 

2. Brainstorm

Writing a cultural diversity essay or community essay is a personal process. To set yourself up for success, take time to brainstorm and reflect on your topic. Overall, you want your cultural diversity essay to be a good indication of who you are and what makes you a unique applicant. 

3. Proofread

We can’t stress this final tip enough. Be sure to proofread your cultural diversity essay before you hit the submit button. Additionally, you can read your essay aloud to hear how it flows. You can also can ask someone you trust, like your college advisor or a teacher, to help proofread your essay as well.

Other CollegeAdvisor Essay Resources to Explore

Looking for additional resources on supplemental essays for the colleges we mentioned above? Do you need help with incorporating extracurricular activities for college into your essays or crafting a strong diversity essay sample? We’ve got you covered. 

Our how to get into Georgetown guide covers additional tips on how to approach the supplemental diversity essay. If you’re wondering how to write about community in your essay, check out our campus community article for an insider’s perspective on Williams College.

Want to learn strategies for writing compelling cultural diversity essays? Check out this Q&A webinar, featuring a former Georgetown admissions officer. And, if you’re still unsure of what to highlight in your community essay, try getting inspiration from a virtual college tour . 

Cultural Diversity Essay & Community Essay Examples – Final Thoughts

Your supplemental essays are an important piece of the college application puzzle. With colleges becoming more competitive than ever, you’ll want to do everything you can to create a strong candidate profile. This includes writing well-crafted responses for a cultural diversity essay, gender diversity essay, or community essay. 

We hope our cultural diversity essay guide helped you learn more about this common type of supplemental essay. As you are writing your own cultural diversity essay or community essay, use the essay examples from Georgetown, Rice, and Williams above as your guide. 

Getting into top schools takes a lot more than a strong resume. Writing specific, thoughtful, and personal responses for a cultural diversity essay, gender diversity essay, or community essay will put you one step closer to maximizing your chances of admission. Good luck!

CollegeAdvisor.com is here to help you with every aspect of the college admissions process. From taking a gap year to completing enrollment , we’re here to help. Register today to receive one-on-one support from an admissions expert as you begin your college application journey.

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5.8: Strategies for Starting Your Cultural Identity Paper

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This chapter summarizes a range of different ideas about literature that all center on the identity of authors, their characters, and (in part) their readers. In each paper we find a close consideration of the way different groups interact: how they perceive and represent each other, how they talk to and about each other, and how they exert power against each other. Whether discussing the effects of colonialism in nineteenth-century Africa, the perils of assimilation for Native Americans in the early twentieth-century United States, or the economic parallels between slavery and whaling in nineteenth-century America, each paper takes seriously the cultural and political realities that underlie the creation of literature, and each sees literature as a force that can shape those cultural and political realities. When reading literary works, you should be attentive to issues of identity, power, assimilation, and/or prejudice.

If you follow these steps, you’ll be well on your way to writing a compelling paper on racial, ethnic, or cultural themes:

• Consider the racial, ethnic, or cultural background of the author. Do the characters in the work come from a similar background? Does the author come from a colonized or minority population? Conversely, does the author come from an imperial or majority population? Does the work seem intended to address issues particular to the author’s background?
• Consider the history of the work’s setting and/or composition. What were the major political realities of the day? Were there major conflicts, settlements, or economic realities that would have shaped the author’s or his or her contemporary readers’ worldviews? Are the settings in the work familiar to the author’s experience, or are they “other” or exotic settings? How might the politics of the day shape the work’s themes, images, settings, or characters?
• Research the reactions of previous critics to the work. Have they noticed particular attitudes toward race, ethnicity, or culture in the text? Do you agree with their assessment, or do you see ideas they have missed? Can you extend, modify, or correct their arguments?
• Consider the possible readers of the work. How do you think members of the groups represented in the work would feel about the way their race, ethnicity, or culture is represented? If you come from a group depicted in the work you’ve chosen, how does that depiction make you feel?

In short, you want to ask how the work you are studying represents the identities of the groups it depicts. If you can begin to answer these questions, you’ll be well on your way to a cultural analysis of a literary text. Remember that you can write a cultural analysis in many modes: you can celebrate a work’s progressive representation of race or you can critique a work’s problematic complicity in negative social attitudes. Either way, you can write a compelling argument about race, culture, and ethnicity in literature.

How to Write an Essay About Cultural Differences

How to Write Research Papers From Start to Finish

Starting your cultural differences essay can be a challenging undertaking. After all, the traditions and social expectations of any culture are so broad that it can be difficult to find a starting point. Choosing a specific aspect of two cultures to research narrows down the topic, leaving you one or two issues to focus on in detail.

Pick Your Topic

When writing an essay on cultural differences, the first question to address is which cultures to write about. The assignment you are given may ask you to compare and contrast two different cultures, or to compare your own culture to a culture with which you are unfamiliar. Pick a culture you are interested in, within the constraints of your assignment. This could be a culture that exists side by side with yours in your town or city, or a culture that exists on the other side of the world. If you are already partially familiar with that culture, pick an aspect of the culture you would like to know more about to ensure that you are engaged in your research.

Conduct Your Research

An encyclopedia may be a good place to begin your search. While an encyclopedia does not go in-depth into the particulars of a culture, it provides a general picture of topics you might want to investigate. These reference books often direct you to more specific references on your topic of interest, such as books, journal articles and online sources. You are likely to find, for example, a variety of sources about different levels of formality expectations in two cultures.

While doing your research, try to note whenever an aspect of a culture strikes you as strange, and ask yourself whether it is a bias based on your own assumptions. This is especially important if you are writing about the differences between your culture and another culture; you do not want your biases to creep into your writing. If possible, interview a member of the culture you are studying to get input on perceived differences.

Structure Your Paper

The next step is writing a thesis statement -- a sentence that expresses the argument of your paper. Since you are writing about a cultural difference, your thesis statement should mention what difference you want to highlight or explain in your paper. For example, if you are an American comparing your social norms of privacy to those of British culture, your thesis statement might go like this:

"The differences in British and Americans standards of privacy are evident in each culture's approach to personal openness and humor."

Once you have your thesis statement, you can plan out the rest of your paper. Outline paragraphs that compare and contrast the two cultures in regard to the issues stated in your thesis. Describe and explore similarities and differences. If possible, provide an explanation for what about the two cultures causes the differences to exist.

Write Your Paper

Begin your paper with an introduction paragraph that includes your thesis statement and additional sentences that define specific topics your paper addresses. Think of your introduction as a way of letting your reader know the topics your paper will cover. Following a well-argued body with strong supporting examples, end your essay with a conclusion paragraph that restates your thesis and the most important points of your cultural comparisons. Ensure that you cite your sources according to the style guide requested by your instructor.

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• Fulbright Commission: Cultural Differences
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Jon Zamboni began writing professionally in 2010. He has previously written for The Spiritual Herald, an urban health care and religious issues newspaper based in New York City, and online music magazine eBurban. Zamboni has a Bachelor of Arts in religious studies from Wesleyan University.

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How to Write Cultural Identity Essay –From Introduction to Conclusion

What is a cultural identity essay.

A cultural identity essay, also known as an identity essay is a piece of writing where you make people know how your place of birth, religion, ethnicity among other things contributed to your personality. Things like the activities you engaged yourself in while you were still a child are also part of your cultural identity. After reading this post, you will be able to understand what is a culture essay. Just keep reading.

Elements of a culture essay

A culture essay enlightens a human of identification with particular people, customs, and societies. The essay should talk about the following elements:

• Place of birth
• Country of birth

The essay follows a structure similar to other academic essays; the only distinction is the topic. Also, you need to write it in the first person which is slightly different from other basic types of academic writing like argumentative or persuasive essays. There are no sources required for this type of essay. You need to tell about your own experience, skills emotions, and your knowledge when writing essays on cultures. It’s easy to write such an essay since you don’t have to research unless you are not knowledgeable when it comes to the formatting.

The accepted format us MLA since an identity essay forms part of the English Language and Literature lessons, which should adhere to the MLA formatting. In most cases, you may need to include some in-text citations to demonstrate your country of origin. It is also good to include sources of famous writers explaining the art, music, literature, and traditions of your native land. You may or may not need to include citations and references as well.

Examples of Ideas to Talk About When Writing a Culture Essay

When writing a culture essay, the subject to write about may not be broad. Ideally, you can select 5 things when writing the essay which can be:

• Unforgettable tradition
• A place of interest
• Your life experience
• A prominent figure
• A place you memories can associate with and more.

You can explain the gratitude of your community towards your participation in safeguarding the rights of uncommon creatures. Also, you may decide to talk about your experience you got after attending a national holiday. You can also talk about place where you were educated about the local meals and describe how to cook the meals and prepare the table.

Culture Identity Essay: The Introduction

A culture identity essay may be intricate or simple and many a time, you will be asked to write such an essay. This is crucial as it is the way you can gauge your skills or research, explanation and also a demonstration of what you are knowledgeable about. This is where you can also express yourself personally or professionally. In this case, you will be required to write an essay.

This is the right time to demonstrate your skills when it comes to research, explanation, and presentation. The first thing is to pick the right topic to write about. This is where you will need to pick a topic that you understand can write well about it. This way, you will be able to flow with the structure and present ideas clearly. Research is necessary at this stage and the topic is selected by teachers. Another important aspect is to establish the ideas.

At this stage, brainstorming and research of the content gathered on the topic comes in handy. To enable you to express an augment to your readers in a better way, you will need to have a thesis statement. A thesis is a statement that is expressed as an augment that follows the introduction.

You will need to come up with the thesis during the planning stage since it forms the basis of the direction you should follow when writing the essay. The thesis helps you to establish what should or should not be included in the essay, from the information you’ve gathered. Once you are done refining what should be in your essay and establish how you will present argument, you can now start writing it. Note that when writing essays about identity the thesis statement can be extensive.

Cultural Identity Essay: The Boy

The body paragraphs of a culture identity essay can be lengthy or short. In fact, this is the bulkiest part of the paper. The body of the essay needs to have 5 paragraphs and different paragraphs should present a different idea. If possible, when the first paragraph has 5 sentences the second paragraph should also contain the same number of sentences.

If you decide to write paragraphs of different lengths, ensure to include some elements that are similar to make it uniform. At this stage, you will need to be very brief so that no paragraphs appears too large than the others. When writing the paragraphs in the body section of the identity essay, remember the following:

• A paragraph should begin with a solid argument.
• Present some evidence from your real-life experiences or sources
• Link the ideas to appear as one by use of transitions.

Note that you need to include a topic sentence in every paragraph to help the reader to know what to expect.

Identity Essays: How to Write the Conclusion

At the conclusion part of an identity essay, you will need to remember that you are summarizing what you’ve already written in the body section. You are only required to pick the main points in the essay or the argument. A reader who bumps into your conclusion should be able to tell what your essay was all about. You should also talk about things that will need to be discussed in the future.

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How to Write a Descriptive Essay for a Cultural Narrative

Soheila battaglia.

Whether you write about another culture or your own, the key to writing an effective cultural narrative is to focus on a single aspect of the culture. Your descriptive essay should have a central idea that guides the content and provides description -- or specific details -- about the topic. The narrative should also include analysis and reflection in which you think about the content, draw connections and come to conclusions.

Explore this article

• Thesis Statement

The content of your essay can address various aspects of culture, including traditions, family, holidays, religious and spiritual practices, gender roles, art, music, methods of communication and oral history. If you're writing about a particular aspect of culture in the U.S., California State University in Fresno suggests writing about topics such as the civil rights movement, racism and discrimination, blues and gospel music or Mexican immigration. Once you have selected a topic, you can compose a thesis statement for your essay.

2 Thesis Statement

Even a personal narrative essay needs to have a main point. So while the essay presents a description of the topic, it should also be guided by a single, clear thesis statement. For example, the main idea of your cultural narrative can be, "The practice of orally passing history and traditions through generations has helped preserve aspects of African culture in American society today." Be as specific as possible in the diction and phrasing of the thesis statement to avoid making the scope of the topic too large to address successfully in a single essay.

According to Butte College, a descriptive essay shows the content rather than tells it. This involves proper organization and the ability to discern between relevant and irrelevant information. In the essay's body paragraphs, give plenty of specific examples to support your main idea. This evidence can come in the form of anecdotes, historical references, hypothetical examples or statistics. Providing details and examples allows the reader to visualize and understand the essay's conceptual claims in more concrete terms.

Since your essay has a main idea, to some degree you must prove that central idea to the reader. Through analysis and reflection you can show the reader how you identified relationships and drew conclusions about the topic. Questions to address while writing include why something happens, how it happens, why it matters, who it affects and what the long-term effects are. The analysis, like the examples, belong in the body paragraphs of your cultural narrative essay.

• 1 California State University, Fresno: Possible Culture Topics for Writing Essays and Papers
• 2 Butte College: Writing a Descriptive Essay
• 3 Palomar College: What is Culture?

About the Author

Soheila Battaglia is a published and award-winning author and filmmaker. She holds an MA in literary cultures from New York University and a BA in ethnic studies from UC Berkeley. She is a college professor of literature and composition.

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What is a cultural essay and how to write it?

Essay paper writing

Academic essay on culture is a work, which develops a student’s creative skills and their capacity to solve non-standard problems. The extent of student’s freedom in writing about culture is quite high in comparison to other types of papers.

For example, a student can choose a topic, style, literature, and other elements on his or her own. In addition to citing key sources, writing culture papers presupposes using journal publications, fiction literature, and everyday facts of contemporary culture.

Before proceeding with writing an essay on cultural peculiarities (of whatever you choose), examine various sources in detail since cultural studies are closely related to such sciences as sociology, art history, philosophy, linguistics, religion, ethnography, and psychology.

Writing about culture is rather a complicated process that includes several steps:

• individual study of great amount of information;
• searching for good books, articles, reports, and other useful information;
• forming a database of examples;
• writing down your own thoughts on a particular topic;
• creating a detailed culture essay outline;
• making up arguments and conclusions.

Ideas for cultural essay topics

Cultural studies is a science that investigates laws of cultural processes, phenomena of the material and spiritual heritage, cultural interests and needs of people, as well as preservation, enhancement, and transmission of cultural values. Cultural studies as an academic discipline appeared in the intersection of philosophy, archeology, history, psychology, ethnography, religious studies, sociology, and art. Therefore, it can legitimately be titled as an integrative sphere of knowledge.

Here are some ideas of general topics for a research paper or an essay in cultural studies:

• Analysis of a system of cultural phenomena in a certain period
• Spiritual heritage of a certain nation and its influence on everyday lives of people
• Types of relationships between cultures of neighboring peoples
• Culture typologies and cultural units
• Problems of social and cultural dynamics
• Cultural codes and communication.

You may also write a culture essay about basic cultural theories with the historical or sociological approach or focus on exploring only specific areas of the science.

How to write a cultural analysis essay?

An analytical paper of any kind always requires a lot of preliminary work. So, how do you start a culture essay, or even, how do you start the preparation stage of the culture essay writing? There is a commonly accepted and effective plan for this process:

• Choose the topic of your interest;
• Select suitable literature;
• Study the sources;
• Collect, generalize, and systematize crucial information;
• Compose a plan;
• Write the essay according to the plan;
• Format and edit it.

How to write introduction of a culture essay?

Introduction of an essay should be catching and attract attention. It should provide a clear idea of what will be discussed next, and the professor should see that you are answering a specific set of questions. So, in a good introduction you should:

• demonstrate your intention to answer the question or solve the problem posed;
• show that you understand the topic;
• outline the structure of your response and the main aspects that you will consider;
• confirm that you have done some research and cite one of your sources;
• be laconic (the introductory part should take up about 8-9% of the total volume of the text).

What is a thesis statement in a cultural studies essay?

A thesis statement is a short and succinct expression containing the main idea. The thesis of an essay about cultures must be formulated clearly and must have an evidence base. In a thesis statement, you should never indicate controversial points that can prompt the reader to discussion. This part expresses the main idea that will further be argued in the paper.

What to include in the body paragraphs?

In the main body you should explain each of the arguments presented in the thesis using examples and illustrations. Information should be clearly and logically structured and the text should be divided into paragraphs – one paragraph per argument. You need to think through the structure of your essay and make sure that the body leads to a conclusion logically.

How to compose a conclusion?

A good conclusion is much more than a simple restatement of ideas expressed in the main part of the work. Different types of essays require different conclusions. If you don’t know how to finish your paper properly, here is a plan of what a conclusion should include:

• A short discussion of the main ideas. It is worth referring to the introduction and drawing parallels using the same keywords, but a different wording. Don’t repeat your arguments word for word;
• Potential application. After restating the main arguments of your paper, propose the ways of applying your research results to a real-life situation;
• A discussion starter. You may use a thought-provoking question, a quote, summary of the results of your research, a possible solution of a problem, or a call to action.

We hope these tips prove effective for writing about culture and will help you compose a good cultural analysis!

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Essays About Culture and Society: Top 5 Examples

Culture and society are complicated topics that can’t exist without each other. See our essays about culture and society examples and prompts for your writing.

Writing essays about culture and society is common among those taking social and cultural studies. As its name suggests, this field explores past and present customs and beliefs within society. This area offers career opportunities in education, medicine, human resources, and others. Creating an essay about this subject requires cultural and social knowledge gained through reliable sources and personal experience.

5 Essay Examples

1. the concept of culture and society by alex adkins, 2. native american culture and society by anonymous on gradesfixer.com, 3. society, culture, and civilization essay by anonymous on ivypanda.com, 4. cultural norms and society by lucille horton, 5. the impact of culture & society on the children’s development by anonymous on gradesfixer.com, 1. defining culture and society, 2. the importance of culture and society, 3. culture and society: the medieval era, 4. the american culture and society today, 5. the influence of korean culture on today’s society, 6. how media influences culture and society, 7. culture and society: lgbtqia+.

“Culture, as often defined in most sociology textbooks, is the way of life of a society. It is the sum of the ideas, beliefs, behaviors, norms, traditions, and activities shared by a particular group of people. According to Giddens (1989), any society cannot exist without a culture.”

Adkin’s essay contains several passages explaining the concept, role, and importance of culture and society. He describes culture as a vital aspect of society, referring to it as the one that binds its citizens. To further discuss the role of culture in society, Adkin mentions Japanese and Chinese cultures to prove that culture sets the difference between societies.

As for society, Adkin says that culture builds and facilitates social institutions to interact with each other. These include family, religion, government, etc., which are responsible for the development of an individual and the type of society. He explains that society changes because of culture. As a person grows up, they are exposed to different situations and realizations that give them new perspectives affecting their cultural heritage.

Looking for more? Check out these essays about culture shock .

“Native Americans are the native people of the North, Central, and South America. There are many types of Native Americans such as Arikara, Iroquois, Pawnee, Sioux, Apache, Eskimo, Cree, Choctaw, Comanche, etc. Cherokee people have a diverse society and culture.”

While the author lists various types of Native American societies, they focus on one prominent tribe from the Iroquoian lineage, the Cherokee. The author shares fascinating facts about the tribe.

The author describes why the Cherokee refer to themselves as cavemen, and Cherokee women are powerful but still equal to men, explaining their matrilineal society. As one of the civilized tribes in America, the Cherokees are a diverse society that accepts other tribes, but they cannot marry someone from the same clan. Cherokee culture includes the Booger mask dance and the Iroquoian language.

“Society can comprise people groups that have not developed civilization yet, as it concerns any relationship of the individuals. Culture is prior to civilization since it shapes the communities, making them highly adaptive to the specific conditions in which they live. Civilization is dependent on both concepts because it absolutizes societal norms and traditions and elevates material culture and virtues to the most complicated stage.”

To understand the concept of man, the author describes society as a group of families conforming to a particular set of customs and practices known as culture. On the other hand, civilization results from prolonged and continuous changes in culture and society. The writer believes that although they are different from each other, these three constructs are interrelated and essential to complete the whole sequence of the modern human experience.

Looking for more? Check out these essays about globalization .

“Different countries have different cultures. This is because different countries are composed of multitudes of different norms. Norms are commonly established when a majority of the society’s population practice a particular or common habit of living.”

In this essay, the writer defines society as an association, culture as a collection of characteristics, and norms as standard practices. Since society is defined by culture, historical events, and norms that define culture, and culture is the most potent aspect of civilization, Horton views cultural norms as the primary support of society. 

The essay also includes examples that explain the topic, such as comparing East and West cultures. Horton believes that while everyone has a different culture, understanding a person’s culture before making a comment or judgment is essential.

“Culture plays an essential job in affecting this improvement, and what is viewed as ‘typical’ advancement change incredibly starting with one culture then onto the next. The general public and culture in which one grows up impact everything from formative developments and child rearing styles to what sorts of hardship one will probably confront.”

In this essay, the author uses their personal experiences to show the real impact of cultural traditions and values ​​on the thought process and worldview as a child grows. As a Muslim, the writer was introduced to various rites and rituals at a young age, such as fasting. They believe this ritual teaches them to control their desires and care for the poor. Ultimately, society significantly impacts youth, but learning about social and cultural differences helps people, especially parents, to guide their child’s developmental process. 

7 Prompts for Essays About Culture and Society

The Oxford Dictionary defines culture as a group’s customs, beliefs, and way of life, while society is people living in a community. Use this prompt and be creative in explaining the meaning of culture and society. Explore and use various dictionaries and add quotations from studies and books such as ” Culture and Society, 1780-1950 .” Then, define culture and society by picking the common ideas gathered through this compiled knowledge. 

Culture is vital to society because one cannot function without the other. For this prompt, delve into the specifics of this connection. Depending on your approach, you can divide the body of your paper into three sections to separate and discuss their importance: culture, society, and culture and society. In the third section, explain the possible impact if one of them does not work correctly. Conclude your essay by summarizing and answering the question, “what is the importance of culture and society?”.

Culture and society constantly change for various reasons, including new technological inventions. For this prompt, identify and discuss the main features and significant influences of the medieval era. Explain the reasons for its changes and why society evolved to new societal norms and cultural changes. Consider whether there’s a chance to bring the positive parts of old cultures and societies to the modern day.

Today, culture in the US is a diverse mix of practices, beliefs, and traditions. This is due to the large number of people immigrating to the US from different countries worldwide. As a culturally diverse country, use this prompt to discuss America’s social and cultural characteristics, such as language, cuisine, music, religious beliefs, and more. Then, explain how Americans keep up with these changes in their normal culture.

Are you interested in writing about diversity? Check out our guide on  how to write an essay about diversity .

If you love music, you’ve probably heard of KPOP or BTS . Korean pop music is just one part of South Korean culture that has traveled globally. In this prompt, discuss the aspects of Korean culture that are prevalent today worldwide. Research when and where these cultural trends began and why they became popular in other parts of the world. To create an engaging essay, conduct interviews with your classmates to ask if they know anything about Korean culture.

Do you want to write about music instead? Check out our  essays about music topic guide !

Any form of media, such as print media, music, and the internet, dramatically influences culture and society. For example, streaming platforms like Netflix and Disney+ are hugely influential in today’s society, particularly among young people. In this essay, discuss today’s most popular forms of media and look at how they can influence culture and society. This could be as simple as influencing slang language, fashion, or popular careers such as becoming an influencer.

Recent studies show that the US has shifted its attitude toward the LGBTQIA+ community. With a rise in Americans who embrace new perspectives and now recognize same-sex marriage and parenthood. To effectively discuss the topic, including current issues within the LGBTQIA+ community, such as violence and bullying, and research the steps taken by government organizations to combat it.

Maria Caballero is a freelance writer who has been writing since high school. She believes that to be a writer doesn't only refer to excellent syntax and semantics but also knowing how to weave words together to communicate to any reader effectively.

View all posts

Free Cultural Studies Essay Examples & Topics

There is a field in academia that analyzes the interactions between anthropological, political, aesthetic, and socioeconomic institutions. It is referred to as cultural studies . This area is interdisciplinary, meaning that it combines and examines several departments. First brought up by British scientists in the 1950s, it is now studied all over the world.

The scope of cultural studies is vast. From history and politics to literature and art, this field looks at how culture is shaped and formed. It also examines the complex interactions of race and gender and how they shape a person’s identity.

In this article, our team has listed some tips and tricks on how to write a cultural studies essay. You will encounter many fascinating aspects in this field that will be exciting to study. That is the reason why we have prepared a list of cultural studies essay topics. You can choose one that catches your eye right here! Finally, you will also find free sample essays that you can use as a source of inspiration for your work.

15 Top Cultural Studies Essay Topics

The work process on an essay begins with a tough choice. After all, there are thousands of things that you can explore. In the list below, you will find cultural studies topics for your analytical paper.

• The role of human agency in cultural studies and how research techniques are chosen.
• Examining generational changes through evolution in music and musical taste in young adults.
• Does popular culture have the power to influence global intercultural and political relationships?
• Different approaches to self-analysis and self-reflection examined through the lens of philosophy.
• Who decides what constitutes a “cultural artifact”?
• The difference in religious and cultural practices between Japanese and Chinese Buddhists.
• Exploring the symbiotic relationship between culture and tradition in the UK.
• Do people understand culture nowadays the same way they understood it a century ago?
• Which factors do we have to take into account when conducting arts and culture research of ancient civilizations?
• Día de Los Muertos: a commentary on an entirely different perspective on death.
• American society as represented in popular graphic novels.
• An analysis of the different approaches to visual culture from the perspective of a corporate logo graphic designer.
• What can French cinema of the 20 th century tell us about the culture of the time?
• Narrative storytelling in different forms of media: novels, television, and video games.
• The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the direction of pop culture.

In case you haven’t found your perfect idea in the list, feel free to try our title generator . It will compose a new topic for your cultural studies essay from scratch.

How to Write a Cultural Studies Essay

With an ideal topic for your research, you start working on your cultural analysis essay. Below you will find all the necessary steps that will lead you to write a flawless paper.

• Pick a focus. You cannot write an entire essay on the prospect of culture alone. Thus, you need to narrow down your field and the scope of your research. Spend some time reading relevant materials to decide what you want your paper to say.
• Formulate your thesis. As the backbone of your assignment, it will carry you through the entire process. Writing a thesis statement brings you one step closer to nailing the whole essay down. Think “What is my paper about?” and come up with a single sentence answer – this will be your statement.
• Provide context for your intro. The introduction is the place for setting the scene for the rest of your paper. Take time to define the terminology. Plus, you should outline what you will talk about in the rest of the essay. Make sure to keep it brief – the introduction shouldn’t take up longer than a paragraph.
• Develop your ideas in the body. It is the place for you to explore the points you’re trying to make. Examine both sides of the argument and provide ample evidence to support your claims. Don’t forget to cite your sources!
• Conclude the paper effectively. The final part is usually the hardest, but you don’t need to make it too complicated. Summarize your findings and restate your thesis statement for the conclusion. Make sure you don’t bring in any new points or arguments at this stage.
• Add references. To show that you’re not pulling your ideas out of thin air, cite your sources. Add a bibliography at the end to prove you’ve done your research. You will need to put them in alphabetical order. So, ensure you do that correctly.

Thank you for reading! Now, you can proceed to read through the examples of essays about cultural studies that we provided below.

616 Best Essay Examples on Cultural Studies

Raymond williams’ “culture is ordinary”.

• Words: 1248

What Is Popular Culture? Definition and Analysis

• Words: 1399

Power and Culture: Relationship and Effects

• Words: 2783

Comparing the US and Italian Cultures

• Words: 2217

“Never Marry a Mexican”: Theme Analysis & Summary

• Words: 2244

Similarities of Asian Countries

• Words: 2356

Cultural Comparison: The United States of America and Japan

Philippines dressing culture and customs.

• Words: 1454

Nok Culture’s Main Characteristic Features

• Words: 1483

The United States of America’s Culture

• Words: 1367

The Influence of Ramayana on the Indian Culture

Pashtun culture: cultural presentation.

• Words: 1083

Chinese Traditional Festivals and Culture

• Words: 2763

The Luo Culture of Kenya

• Words: 3544

UAE and Culture

• Words: 1210

Culture and Development in Nigeria

• Words: 2718

Impact of Globalization on the Maasai Peoples` Culture

• Words: 1736

Art and Science: One Culture or Two, Difference and Similarity

Culture identity: asian culture.

• Words: 1101

Culture and Health Correlation

Saudi traditional clothing.

• Words: 1815

Trobriand Society: Gender and Its Roles

• Words: 3118

African Cultural Traditions and Communication

• Words: 1114

Culture, Subculture, and Their Differences

• Words: 1157

Three Stages of Cultural Development

• Words: 1165

Saudi Arabian Culture

• Words: 1486

The Beautiful Country of Kazakhstan: Kazakh Culture

• Words: 1644

Polygamy in Islam

Kazakhstani culture through hofstede’s theory.

• Words: 1480

Indian Custom and Culture Community

• Words: 2207

American Culture Pros & Cons

Football impact on england’s culture.

• Words: 1096

Chinese Manhua History Development

• Words: 5401

Differences in Culture between America and Sudan

Culturagram of african americans living in jackson, gothic lifestyle as a subculture, taiwan and the u.s. cultural elements.

• Words: 2265

Society, Culture, and Civilization

“signs of life in the usa” by maasik and solomon, cultural diversity and cultural universals relations: anthropological perspective, the jarawa people and their culture.

• Words: 1438

Discussion: Cultural Roots and Routes

• Words: 1469

The Bushmen: Culture and Traditions

Time in mahfouz’s “half a day” and dali’s “persistence of memory”.

• Words: 1092

What Role Does Food Play in Cultural Identity?

• Words: 1199

Cultural Change: Mechanisms and Examples

The nature of people and culture, anne allison: nightwork in japan.

• Words: 1548

Perception of Intelligence in Different Cultures

• Words: 1137

Expanding Chinese Cultural Knowledge in Health Beliefs

• Words: 2291

Anthropological Approach to Culture

Culture of the dominican republic.

• Words: 2229

Dubai’s Food, Dress Code and Culture

• Words: 1124

Non-Material and Material Culture

Late shang dynasty: ritualistic wine vessel – zun.

• Words: 1108

Wheeler’s Theory and Examples of Pilgrimage

Meaning of the machine in the garden, singapore’s culture and social institutions.

• Words: 1288

Is Cultural Relativism a Viable Way to Live?

Cosplay subculture definition, the role of chinese hats in chinese culture.

• Words: 2307

The Māori Culture of New Zealand

• Words: 1326

Hofstede’s Study: Cultural Dimensions

Hells angels as a motorcycle subculture, african civilizations. the bantu culture, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender subculture.

• Words: 2000

Comparison Between the Body Rituals in Nacirema and American Society

Cultural prostitution: okinawa, japan, and hawaii.

• Words: 2370

Indian and Greek Cultures Comparison

• Words: 2789

Ballads and Their Social Functions

• Words: 3314

Africans in Mexico: Influence on the Mexican Culture

Positive psychology and chinese culture.

• Words: 2975

Angelou Maya’s Presentation on the African Culture

• Words: 1107

The History of the Hippie Cultural Movement

• Words: 1485

Birthday Celebrations in the China

• Words: 1664

“Cargo Cult Science” by Richard Feynman

Greetings in etiquette in society by emily post, traditional and nontraditional cultures of the usa, cultural artifacts and the importance of humanities, cultural effects on health care choices.

• Words: 3292

The Essence of Cultural Ecology: The Main Tenets

Theory of the aryan race: historical point of view.

• Words: 2770

African-American Cultural Group and the Provision of Services to African Americans

The mysteries of samothrace and its cultic practices.

• Words: 2846

Researching of Rituals in Culture

• Words: 1174

Meaning of Culture and Its Importance

African american heritage and culture, british punk zines as a commentary on the sociopolitical climate of the 1970s.

• Words: 2223

The Power of a Symbol

Traditions and their impact on personality development.

• Words: 1131

Caribbean Culture and Cuisine: A Melting Pot of Culture

• Words: 1601

Theodor Adorno’s “Culture Industry” Analysis

• Words: 1489

Culture for Sale: The National Museum in Singapore

• Words: 1806

Body Piercing in Different Cultures

• Words: 1589

Italian Heritage and Its Impact on Life in the US

• Words: 1111

Asian Community’s Cultural Values and Attitudes

• Words: 4933

What Is Chinese Culture?

• Words: 1493

Role of Food in Cultural Studies: Globalization and Exchange of Food

India’s cultural heritage: individuality and behavior.

• Words: 1379

Mi’kmaq Culture: Basket Weaving

• Words: 2837

Filial Piety

• Words: 1120

Foot Binding in China in Terms of Women’s Rights

• Words: 1786

Face Concept in Chinese Culture: A Complication to Intercultural Communication

• Words: 1897

Popular Culture in the History of the USA

• Words: 1119

Syncretism in the American Culture

Plants in lakota folklore.

• Words: 3727

Cultural and Institutional Features: United Kingdom and China

• Words: 1033

The Western Conception of Africa in “Things Fall Apart“ by Chinua Achebe

• Words: 2238

Arab Music and Cinema Development: Western Culture Impact

• Words: 3622

The Importance of Cultural Values for a Society

Cultural appropriation: christina aguilera in braids, the university of west indies, the caribbean identity, and the globalization agenda.

• Words: 1393

The History of Guqin in Chinese Culture

• Words: 1652

Exegeses-Ruling Class and Ruling Ideas by Karl Marx

Cultural competence: purnell model.

• Words: 7928

Implications of Korean Culture on Health

• Words: 1439

Cultural Studies: Ideology, Representation

• Words: 1704

Conflict Management in Japanese Culture

World society and culture in mexico.

• Words: 2775

Korean Popular Culture: Attractiveness and Popularity

Essay on Indian Culture for Students and Children

500+ words essay on indian culture.

India is a country that boasts of a rich culture. The culture of India refers to a collection of minor unique cultures. The culture of India comprises of clothing, festivals, languages, religions, music, dance, architecture, food, and art in India. Most noteworthy, Indian culture has been influenced by several foreign cultures throughout its history. Also, the history of India’s culture is several millennia old.

Components of Indian Culture

First of all, Indian origin religions are Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism . All of these religions are based on karma and dharma. Furthermore, these four are called as Indian religions. Indian religions are a major category of world religions along with Abrahamic religions.

Also, many foreign religions are present in India as well. These foreign religions include Abrahamic religions. The Abrahamic religions in India certainly are Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Besides Abrahamic religions, Zoroastrianism and Bahá’í Faith are the other foreign religions which exist in India. Consequently, the presence of so many diverse religions has given rise to tolerance and secularism in Indian culture.

The Joint family system is the prevailing system of Indian culture . Most noteworthy, the family members consist of parents, children, children’s spouses, and offspring. All of these family members live together. Furthermore, the eldest male member is the head of the family.

Arranged marriages are the norm in Indian culture. Probably most Indians have their marriages planned by their parents. In almost all Indian marriages, the bride’s family gives dowry to bridegroom. Weddings are certainly festive occasions in Indian culture. There is involvement of striking decorations, clothing, music, dance, rituals in Indian weddings. Most noteworthy, the divorce rates in India are very low.

India celebrates a huge number of festivals. These festivals are very diverse due to multi-religious and multi-cultural Indian society. Indians greatly value festive occasions. Above all, the whole country joins in the celebrations irrespective of the differences.

Traditional Indian food, arts, music, sports, clothing, and architecture vary significantly across different regions. These components are influenced by various factors. Above all, these factors are geography, climate, culture, and rural/urban setting.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Perceptions of Indian Culture

Indian culture has been an inspiration to many writers. India is certainly a symbol of unity around the world. Indian culture is certainly very complex. Furthermore, the conception of Indian identity poses certain difficulties. However, despite this, a typical Indian culture does exist. The creation of this typical Indian culture results from some internal forces. Above all, these forces are a robust Constitution, universal adult franchise, secular policy , flexible federal structure, etc.

Indian culture is characterized by a strict social hierarchy. Furthermore, Indian children are taught their roles and place in society from an early age. Probably, many Indians believe that gods and spirits have a role in determining their life. Earlier, traditional Hindus were divided into polluting and non-polluting occupations. Now, this difference is declining.

Indian culture is certainly very diverse. Also, Indian children learn and assimilate in the differences. In recent decades, huge changes have taken place in Indian culture. Above all, these changes are female empowerment , westernization, a decline of superstition, higher literacy , improved education, etc.

To sum it up, the culture of India is one of the oldest cultures in the World. Above all, many Indians till stick to the traditional Indian culture in spite of rapid westernization. Indians have demonstrated strong unity irrespective of the diversity among them. Unity in Diversity is the ultimate mantra of Indian culture.

FAQs on Indian Culture

Q1 What are the Indian religions?

A1 Indian religions refer to a major category of religion. Most noteworthy, these religions have their origin in India. Furthermore, the major Indian religions are Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism.

Q2 What are changes that have taken place in Indian culture in recent decades?

A2 Certainly, many changes have taken place in Indian culture in recent decades. Above all, these changes are female empowerment, westernization, a decline of superstition, higher literacy, improved education, etc.

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Stage and Cinema

Arts and Entertainment Reviews

Film: HOW TO WRITE ESSAYS THAT UNCOVER THE SOCIAL AND CULTURAL IMPACT OF MOVIES

by Aveline MacQuoid on July 2, 2023

in Extras , Film

Movies have long captivated audiences with their ability to transport us to different worlds, evoke emotions, and provoke thought. Beyond mere entertainment, movies hold a significant role in shaping and reflecting the social and cultural landscape of our society. They have the power to shed light on pressing social issues, challenge norms, and influence our collective consciousness. As students and scholars, we have the unique opportunity to delve into the social and cultural impact of movies through insightful essays. In this article, we will explore the art of writing essays that uncover the profound influence of movies on society, and provide valuable guidance on how to effectively analyze their impact.

In today’s digital age, where a vast array of online resources and services are readily available, it is essential to approach essay writing with precision and depth. Just as we seek assistance from reputable sources like Ukwritings dissertation service for comprehensive dissertation support, we can apply a similar approach to crafting essays that delve into the social and cultural impact of movies. By examining the intricate threads of storytelling, representation, and audience reception, we can uncover the layers of meaning and significance that movies bring to our collective consciousness.

The purpose of this article is to offer practical guidance on how to write essays that delve into the social and cultural impact of movies. We will explore various key aspects, such as analyzing themes and messages, examining representation and diversity, and assessing audience reception and influence. By honing our critical thinking skills and sharpening our analytical lenses, we can delve into the rich tapestry of social and cultural issues that movies explore. Together, let us embark on a journey of discovery, unlocking the profound insights that movies offer and capturing their enduring impact on our world.

Analyzing Themes and Messages

Movies have a remarkable ability to convey powerful themes and messages that resonate with audiences on a deep level. When writing essays that uncover the social and cultural impact of movies, it is crucial to delve into the underlying themes and messages they convey. By critically analyzing these elements, we can gain profound insights into the intricate relationship between movies and society. Identifying the themes and messages allows us to explore how movies address social issues, challenge cultural norms, and even provide a lens into historical events. For example, movies for students like “Dead Poets Society” not only explore the power of literature and the pursuit of individuality but also shed light on the rigid educational systems and societal expectations that shape young minds.

As we analyze the themes and messages of movies, it is important to examine the social issues and cultural aspects they tackle. Movies have the power to create awareness and initiate conversations about pressing societal concerns. They serve as a mirror that reflects the triumphs, struggles, and complexities of our world. For instance, movies like “ Black Panther ” have sparked discussions about representation, identity, and social justice. By exploring the themes and messages within such movies, we can gain a deeper understanding of the social dynamics at play and the impact they have on our collective consciousness. It is through these thought-provoking analyses that we can uncover the layers of meaning and appreciate the significant social and cultural influence that movies hold.

Examining Representation and Diversity

In recent years, there has been a growing emphasis on representation and diversity in movies. The portrayal of diverse characters and experiences plays a crucial role in shaping our understanding of the world around us. When writing essays that uncover the social and cultural impact of movies, it is essential to examine how movies tackle representation and diversity. Movies have the power to challenge stereotypes, break down barriers, and promote inclusivity. By exploring the diverse range of characters and narratives depicted on screen, we can gain insights into the lived experiences of marginalized communities and appreciate the importance of authentic representation. For example, movies like “Moonlight” and “Crazy Rich Asians” have been hailed for their groundbreaking portrayal of underrepresented communities, shedding light on their stories, struggles, and triumphs.

Examining representation in movies goes beyond mere on-screen visibility. It involves critically analyzing the depth, complexity, and authenticity of the portrayals. Movies have the potential to shape public opinion, challenge biases, and contribute to social change. When movies present diverse perspectives and challenge prevailing narratives, they open up opportunities for dialogue and understanding. By exploring how movies navigate representation and diversity, we can gain a deeper understanding of the social dynamics at play and their impact on viewers’ perceptions. It is through these critical examinations that we can appreciate the transformative power of movies in shaping social and cultural landscapes.

Assessing Audience Reception and Influence

When it comes to writing essays that uncover the social and cultural impact of movies, it is crucial to assess the audience reception and influence of these films. Movies have a significant impact on audience perceptions, beliefs, and behaviors. They can evoke emotional responses, spark conversations, and shape cultural trends. By examining how movies resonate with audiences, we can gain insights into their societal and cultural influence. For example, movies like “Black Panther” not only captivated audiences worldwide but also had a profound impact on discussions surrounding representation and diversity in the film industry, inspiring and empowering marginalized communities.

Understanding audience reception goes beyond box office numbers or critical reviews. It involves considering the social and cultural context in which movies are viewed and how they resonate with different communities. Movies have the power to reflect and reinforce existing cultural values, as well as challenge and subvert them. By analyzing audience reactions and engaging with diverse perspectives, we can uncover the nuanced ways in which movies influence our collective consciousness. By assessing the audience reception and influence of movies, we can gain a comprehensive understanding of their social and cultural impact, allowing us to write insightful essays that explore the profound effects they have on society.

In conclusion, writing essays that uncover the social and cultural impact of movies is a valuable endeavor that allows us to delve deeper into the profound influence of this powerful medium. By analyzing themes, examining representation and diversity, and assessing audience reception and influence, we can unlock a wealth of insights and understanding about the movies that shape and reflect our society.

It is important to approach this task with critical thinking and a keen eye for detail. By exploring the underlying messages and themes portrayed in movies, we can uncover their significance in addressing social issues and cultural norms. Additionally, examining the representation and diversity depicted on screen helps us understand the impact of movies in challenging stereotypes and promoting inclusivity.

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Why the World Still Needs Immanuel Kant

Unlike in Europe, few in the United States will be celebrating the philosopher’s 300th birthday. But Kant’s writing shows that a free, just and moral life is possible — and that’s relevant everywhere.

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By Susan Neiman

The philosopher Susan Neiman is the director of the Einstein Forum in Potsdam, Germany.

• April 17, 2024

When I arrived in Berlin in 1982, I was writing a dissertation on Kant’s conception of reason. It was thrilling to learn that the apartment I’d sublet turned out to be located near Kantstrasse, though at the time I wondered in frustration: Why was there no James Street — Henry or William — in the Cambridge, Mass., I’d left behind; no streets honoring Emerson or Eliot? Were Americans as indifferent to culture as snooty Europeans supposed? It didn’t take long before I, too, could walk down Kantstrasse and turn right on Leibniz without a thought.

It’s harder to ignore the way Germany, like other European nations, sets aside entire years to honor its cultural heroes. This century has already seen an Einstein Year , a Beethoven Year , a Luther Year and a Marx Year , each commemorating some round-numbered anniversary of the hero in question. Federal and local governments provide considerable sums for events that celebrate the thinkers in question and debate their contemporary relevance.

Years before Immanuel Kant’s 300th birthday on April 22, 2024, the Academy of Science in Berlin, to which he once belonged, organized a conference to begin preparations for his tercentennial. A second conference published a report of the proceedings, but when I urged colleagues to use the occasion to create programs for a wider audience, I was met with puzzled silence. Reaching a wider audience is not a talent philosophy professors normally cultivate, but conversations with other cultural institutions showed this case to be especially thorny.

It wasn’t just uneasiness about celebrating “another dead white man,” as one museum director put it. The problems became deeper as the zeitgeist changed. “ Immanuel Kant: A European Thinker ” was a good title for that conference report in 2019, when Brexit seemed to threaten the ideal of European unification Germans supported. Just a few years later, “European” has become a slur. At a time when the Enlightenment is regularly derided as a Eurocentric movement designed to support colonialism, who feels comfortable throwing a yearlong birthday party for its greatest thinker?

Nonetheless, this year’s ceremonies will officially commence on April 22 with a speech by Chancellor Scholz and a memorial lunch that has taken place on the philosopher’s birthday every year since 1805. Two days earlier, President Frank-Walter Steinmeier of Germany will open an exhibit at the presidential palace devoted to Kant’s writing on peace.

The start of the year saw special Kant editions of four prominent German magazines. A Kant movie made for television premiered on March 1, and another is in production. Four exhibits on Kant and the Enlightenment will open in Bonn, Lüneburg, Potsdam and Berlin. The conferences will be numerous, including one organized by the Divan, Berlin’s house for Arab culture.

But why celebrate the Kant year at all?

The philosopher’s occasional autobiographical remarks provide a clue to the answer. As the son of a saddle maker, Kant would have led a workman’s life himself, had a pastor not suggested the bright lad deserved some higher education. He came to love his studies and to “despise the common people who knew nothing,” until “Rousseau set me right,” he wrote. Kant rejected his earlier elitism and declared his philosophy would restore the rights of humanity — otherwise they would be more useless than the work of a common laborer.

Chutzpah indeed. The claim becomes even more astonishing if you read a random page of his texts. How on earth, you may ask, are human rights connected with proving our need to think in categories like “cause” or “substance?” The question is seldom raised, and the autobiographical remarks usually ignored, for traditional readings of Kant focus on his epistemology, or theory of knowledge.

Before Kant, it’s said, philosophers were divided between Rationalists and Empiricists, who were concerned about the sources of knowledge. Does it come from our senses, or our reason? Can we ever know if anything is real? By showing that knowledge requires sensory experience as well as reason, we’re told, Kant refuted the skeptics’ worry that we never know if anything exists at all.

All this is true, but it hardly explains why the poet Heinrich Heine found Kant more ruthlessly revolutionary than Robespierre. Nor does it explain why Kant himself said only pedants care about that kind of skepticism. Ordinary people do not fret over the reality of tables or chairs or billiard balls. They do, however, wonder if ideas like freedom and justice are merely fantasies. Kant’s main goal was to show they are not.

The point is often missed, because Kant was as bad a writer as he was a great philosopher. By the time he finishes proving the existence of the objects of ordinary experience and is ready to show how they differ from ideas of reason, the semester is nearly over. Long-windedness is not, however, the only reason his work is often misinterpreted. Consider the effects of a bad review.

Had Kant died before his 57th birthday, he’d be remembered by a few scholars for some short, early texts. He withdrew from writing them in 1770 to conceive and compose his great “Critique of Pure Reason .” After what scholars call his “silent decade,” Kant pulled the text together in six months and finally published in 1781. For a year and a half, Kant waited for responses. When one finally appeared, it was a hatchet job accusing him of being a Berkeleyan solipsist: someone who denies the existence of ordinary objects.

Any author can imagine Kant’s dismay, and most likely his rage. In haste to refute the distortion of his life’s work, Kant wrote a second edition of the “Critique of Pure Reason,” and more fatefully, the “Prolegomena .” Since the latter is much shorter than the main book, it’s read far more often, and this has skewed the interpretation of Kant’s work as a whole. If the major problem of philosophy were proving the world’s existence, then Kant surely solved it. (Richard Rorty argued that he did, and that philosophy has little more to offer.)

In fact Kant was driven by a question that still plagues us: Are ideas like freedom and justice utopian daydreams, or are they more substantial? Their reality can’t be proven like that of material objects, for those ideas make entirely different claims on us — and some people are completely impervious to their claims. Could philosophy show that acting morally, if not particularly common, is at least possible?

A stunning thought experiment answers that question in his next book, the “Critique of Practical Reason .” Kant asks us to imagine a man who says temptation overwhelms him whenever he passes “a certain house.” (The 18th century was discrete.) But if a gallows were constructed to insure the fellow would be hanged upon exiting the brothel, he’d discover he can resist temptation very well. All mortal temptations fade in the face of threats to life itself.

Yet the same man would hesitate if asked to condemn an innocent man to death, even if a tyrant threatened him to execute him instead. Kant always emphasized the limits of our knowledge, and none of us know if we would crumble when faced with death or torture. Most of us probably would. But all of us know what we should do in such a case, and we know that we could .

This experiment shows we are radically free. Not pleasure but justice can move human beings to deeds that overcome the deepest of animal desires, the love of life. We want to determine the world, not only to be determined by it. We are born and we die as part of nature, but we feel most alive when we go beyond it: To be human is to refuse to accept the world we are given.

At the heart of Kant’s metaphysics stands the difference between the way the world is and the way the world ought to be. His thought experiment is an answer to those who argue that we are helpless in the face of pleasure and can be satisfied with bread and circuses — or artisanal chocolate and the latest iPhone. If that were true, benevolent despotism would be the best form of government.

But if we long, in our best moments, for the dignity of freedom and justice, Kant’s example has political consequences. It’s no surprise he thought the French Revolution confirmed our hopes for moral progress — unlike the followers of his predecessor David Hume, who thought it was dangerous to stray from tradition and habit.

This provides an answer to contemporary critics whose reading of Kant’s work focuses on the ways in which it violates our understanding of racism and sexism. Some of his remarks are undeniably offensive to 21st-century ears. But it’s fatal to forget that his work gave us the tools to fight racism and sexism, by providing the metaphysical basis of every claim to human rights.

Kant argued that each human being must be treated as an end and not as a means — which is why he called colonialism “evil” and congratulated the Chinese and Japanese for denying entry to European invaders. Contemporary dismissals of Enlightenment thinkers forget that those thinkers invented the concept of Eurocentrism, and urged their readers to consider the world from non-European perspectives. Montesquieu put his criticisms of French society in the mouths of fictitious Persians; Lahontan attacked European politics through dialogues with a Native American.

At a time when the advice to “be realistic” is best translated as the advice to decrease your expectations, Kant’s work asks deep questions about what reality is. He insisted that when we think morally, we should abstract from the cultural differences that divide us and recognize the potential human dignity in every human being. This requires the use of our reason. Contrary to trendy views that see reason as an instrument of domination, Kant saw reason’s potential as a tool for liberation.

He also argued that political and social relations must aim toward justice rather than power, however often those may be confused in practice. We’ve come to better understand how racism and sexism can preclude genuine universalism. Should we discard Kant’s commitment to universalism because he did not fully realize it himself — or rather celebrate the fact that we can make moral progress, an idea which Kant would wholeheartedly applaud?

In Germany, it’s now common to hear that the Enlightenment was at very best ambivalent. While it may have been an age of reason, it was also an age of slavery and colonialism: This argument ignores the fact that, like progressive intellectuals everywhere, Enlightenment thinkers did not win all their battles. It also neglects the fact that they fought for them anyway, despite the risks of censorship, exile and even death.

Significantly, many contemporary intellectuals from formerly colonized countries reject those arguments. Thinkers like the Ghanaian Ato Sekyi-Otu, the Nigerian Olufemi Taiwo, the Chilean Carlos Peña, the Brazilian Francisco Bosco or the Indian Benjamin Zachariah are hardly inclined to renounce Enlightenment ideas as Eurocentric.

The problem with ideas like universal human rights is not that they come from Europe, but that they were not realized outside of it. Perhaps we should take a lesson from the Enlightenment and listen to non-Western standpoints?

Arts and Culture Across Europe

A reimagining of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Sunset Boulevard,” starring Nicole Scherzinger as Norma Desmond, the long forgotten silent movie star who descends into madness, was the big winner at this year’s Olivier Awards .

New productions of “Macbeth” and “Hamlet” in Paris follow a French tradition of adapting familiar works . The results are innovative, and sometimes cryptic.

The internet latched on to 16-year-old Felicia Dawkins’ performance as The Unknown at a shambolic Willy Wonka-inspired event . Now she’s heading to a bigger and scarier stage in London.

When activists urged Tate Britain in London to take an offensive artwork off its walls, the institution commissioned Keith Piper  to create a response instead. The result recently went on display.

The new National Holocaust Museum in Amsterdam has been in the works for almost 20 years. It is the first institution to tell the full story  of the persecution of Dutch Jews during World War II.

At a retrospective of John Singer Sargent’s portraits in London, where the American expatriate fled after creating a scandal in Paris, clothes offer both armor and self-expression .

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NPR defends its journalism after senior editor says it has lost the public's trust

David Folkenflik

NPR is defending its journalism and integrity after a senior editor wrote an essay accusing it of losing the public's trust. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

NPR is defending its journalism and integrity after a senior editor wrote an essay accusing it of losing the public's trust.

NPR's top news executive defended its journalism and its commitment to reflecting a diverse array of views on Tuesday after a senior NPR editor wrote a broad critique of how the network has covered some of the most important stories of the age.

"An open-minded spirit no longer exists within NPR, and now, predictably, we don't have an audience that reflects America," writes Uri Berliner.

A strategic emphasis on diversity and inclusion on the basis of race, ethnicity and sexual orientation, promoted by NPR's former CEO, John Lansing, has fed "the absence of viewpoint diversity," Berliner writes.

NPR's chief news executive, Edith Chapin, wrote in a memo to staff Tuesday afternoon that she and the news leadership team strongly reject Berliner's assessment.

"We're proud to stand behind the exceptional work that our desks and shows do to cover a wide range of challenging stories," she wrote. "We believe that inclusion — among our staff, with our sourcing, and in our overall coverage — is critical to telling the nuanced stories of this country and our world."

NPR names tech executive Katherine Maher to lead in turbulent era

She added, "None of our work is above scrutiny or critique. We must have vigorous discussions in the newsroom about how we serve the public as a whole."

A spokesperson for NPR said Chapin, who also serves as the network's chief content officer, would have no further comment.

Praised by NPR's critics

Berliner is a senior editor on NPR's Business Desk. (Disclosure: I, too, am part of the Business Desk, and Berliner has edited many of my past stories. He did not see any version of this article or participate in its preparation before it was posted publicly.)

Berliner's essay , titled "I've Been at NPR for 25 years. Here's How We Lost America's Trust," was published by The Free Press, a website that has welcomed journalists who have concluded that mainstream news outlets have become reflexively liberal.

Berliner writes that as a Subaru-driving, Sarah Lawrence College graduate who "was raised by a lesbian peace activist mother ," he fits the mold of a loyal NPR fan.

Yet Berliner says NPR's news coverage has fallen short on some of the most controversial stories of recent years, from the question of whether former President Donald Trump colluded with Russia in the 2016 election, to the origins of the virus that causes COVID-19, to the significance and provenance of emails leaked from a laptop owned by Hunter Biden weeks before the 2020 election. In addition, he blasted NPR's coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

On each of these stories, Berliner asserts, NPR has suffered from groupthink due to too little diversity of viewpoints in the newsroom.

The essay ricocheted Tuesday around conservative media , with some labeling Berliner a whistleblower . Others picked it up on social media, including Elon Musk, who has lambasted NPR for leaving his social media site, X. (Musk emailed another NPR reporter a link to Berliner's article with a gibe that the reporter was a "quisling" — a World War II reference to someone who collaborates with the enemy.)

When asked for further comment late Tuesday, Berliner declined, saying the essay spoke for itself.

The arguments he raises — and counters — have percolated across U.S. newsrooms in recent years. The #MeToo sexual harassment scandals of 2016 and 2017 forced newsrooms to listen to and heed more junior colleagues. The social justice movement prompted by the killing of George Floyd in 2020 inspired a reckoning in many places. Newsroom leaders often appeared to stand on shaky ground.

Leaders at many newsrooms, including top editors at The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times , lost their jobs. Legendary Washington Post Executive Editor Martin Baron wrote in his memoir that he feared his bonds with the staff were "frayed beyond repair," especially over the degree of self-expression his journalists expected to exert on social media, before he decided to step down in early 2021.

Since then, Baron and others — including leaders of some of these newsrooms — have suggested that the pendulum has swung too far.

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Legendary editor marty baron describes his 'collision of power' with trump and bezos.

New York Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger warned last year against journalists embracing a stance of what he calls "one-side-ism": "where journalists are demonstrating that they're on the side of the righteous."

"I really think that that can create blind spots and echo chambers," he said.

Internal arguments at The Times over the strength of its reporting on accusations that Hamas engaged in sexual assaults as part of a strategy for its Oct. 7 attack on Israel erupted publicly . The paper conducted an investigation to determine the source of a leak over a planned episode of the paper's podcast The Daily on the subject, which months later has not been released. The newsroom guild accused the paper of "targeted interrogation" of journalists of Middle Eastern descent.

Heated pushback in NPR's newsroom

Given Berliner's account of private conversations, several NPR journalists question whether they can now trust him with unguarded assessments about stories in real time. Others express frustration that he had not sought out comment in advance of publication. Berliner acknowledged to me that for this story, he did not seek NPR's approval to publish the piece, nor did he give the network advance notice.

Some of Berliner's NPR colleagues are responding heatedly. Fernando Alfonso, a senior supervising editor for digital news, wrote that he wholeheartedly rejected Berliner's critique of the coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict, for which NPR's journalists, like their peers, periodically put themselves at risk.

Alfonso also took issue with Berliner's concern over the focus on diversity at NPR.

"As a person of color who has often worked in newsrooms with little to no people who look like me, the efforts NPR has made to diversify its workforce and its sources are unique and appropriate given the news industry's long-standing lack of diversity," Alfonso says. "These efforts should be celebrated and not denigrated as Uri has done."

After this story was first published, Berliner contested Alfonso's characterization, saying his criticism of NPR is about the lack of diversity of viewpoints, not its diversity itself.

"I never criticized NPR's priority of achieving a more diverse workforce in terms of race, ethnicity and sexual orientation. I have not 'denigrated' NPR's newsroom diversity goals," Berliner said. "That's wrong."

Questions of diversity

Under former CEO John Lansing, NPR made increasing diversity, both of its staff and its audience, its "North Star" mission. Berliner says in the essay that NPR failed to consider broader diversity of viewpoint, noting, "In D.C., where NPR is headquartered and many of us live, I found 87 registered Democrats working in editorial positions and zero Republicans."

Berliner cited audience estimates that suggested a concurrent falloff in listening by Republicans. (The number of people listening to NPR broadcasts and terrestrial radio broadly has declined since the start of the pandemic.)

Former NPR vice president for news and ombudsman Jeffrey Dvorkin tweeted , "I know Uri. He's not wrong."

Others questioned Berliner's logic. "This probably gets causality somewhat backward," tweeted Semafor Washington editor Jordan Weissmann . "I'd guess that a lot of NPR listeners who voted for [Mitt] Romney have changed how they identify politically."

Similarly, Nieman Lab founder Joshua Benton suggested the rise of Trump alienated many NPR-appreciating Republicans from the GOP.

In recent years, NPR has greatly enhanced the percentage of people of color in its workforce and its executive ranks. Four out of 10 staffers are people of color; nearly half of NPR's leadership team identifies as Black, Asian or Latino.

"The philosophy is: Do you want to serve all of America and make sure it sounds like all of America, or not?" Lansing, who stepped down last month, says in response to Berliner's piece. "I'd welcome the argument against that."

"On radio, we were really lagging in our representation of an audience that makes us look like what America looks like today," Lansing says. The U.S. looks and sounds a lot different than it did in 1971, when NPR's first show was broadcast, Lansing says.

A network spokesperson says new NPR CEO Katherine Maher supports Chapin and her response to Berliner's critique.

The spokesperson says that Maher "believes that it's a healthy thing for a public service newsroom to engage in rigorous consideration of the needs of our audiences, including where we serve our mission well and where we can serve it better."

Disclosure: This story was reported and written by NPR Media Correspondent David Folkenflik and edited by Deputy Business Editor Emily Kopp and Managing Editor Gerry Holmes. Under NPR's protocol for reporting on itself, no NPR corporate official or news executive reviewed this story before it was posted publicly.