Whats does “cultured” mean to you?

[DarkRange55]

When someone is described as being cultured, what does that mean to you?

 

[pyx]

grossly patrician term, but it holds some value. a person distinguishing others by cultured and uncultured ironically enough makes themselves look like a philistine, though. there's essentially no difference in character between the blue-collar roughneck who reads sports journalism and listens to Pearl Jam in his spare time than the European burgher who reads Goethe and listens to Mahler. what ultimately matters is what can be produced by the two. if the two were to really work slaverously at making some lasting artistic contribution, i would gamble that the former probably wouldn't produce something as great as the latter. a lot of great writers were financially stable enough to pursue writing full-time, whereas the roughneck would probably be stymied for such leisures (something i can relate to, as i've worked in warehouses before). but i guess value-laden judgements like that can only be meaningfully articulated through majoritarian preferences, and arguably singers make far more valuable contributions on an economic level. the aesthetic dimension, however, lacks proper definition as of now

it's a tricky business but i think we have certain selection processes for determining what is of more aesthetic or sociocultural value, and it's probably something that extends beyond preference which we are naturally inclined to (as Burke thought). it would be an absolute injustice, for instance, if Taylor Swift were considered a greater writer than Gaddis, and any formal criterion which we currently have for determining such value seems to favour the latter in this scenario

 

[Mirrory Me]

I think culture is about creating structures, ideas and ideology, so there is the basic information about it and also your role in it.

 

[soledad.virgen]

someone smart and cool

 

[whywere]

Cultured to me means this:

1) Opened minded

2) Total non-discriminatory about life

3) Open to helping, nurturing and being progressive

4) Being able to see with one's eyes shut

5) Not self-centered

6) Not greedy and willing to help those with less

AND above all, remembering that everyone is the same, HUMAN.

Walter

 

[JustAnx]

Cult as in culture or as in cults ?

Either way idk , i have an average "english IQ" .

 

[alienfreak]

Socialised, educated, knowledgeable and appreciative of a wide range of intellectual topics such as art, history and politics.

 

[mysteryboy]

Sophisticated and well versed on various subjects

 

[Forever Sleep]

For me, it tends to suggest someone who goes for the more 'elevated' art forms- opera, ballet, classic literature and music. I find it hard to disengage it from ideas of snobbery to be honest.

Like- would you describe someone who had an in depth knowledge of comics, video games, even movies- cultured? They are forms of culture of course but, I think society asigns different amounts of value to things.

Even within say classical music or novels, there will be pieces that are considered highbrow or masterpieces and then, there will be 'popular' classics. Would you describe someone who only reads cheesy romance novels as cultured, compared to someone who reads poetry?

Seeing as I work in a creative field, I actually kind of hate the snobbery around art forms. I think there is value in all sorts of art.

 

[Dr Iron Arc]

I always just think of this Family Guy meme:

 

[star.trip]

In my language the term cultured refers to a person who is quite knowledgeable, expresses himself in a different way, uses more cultured words in his way of speaking and writing.
I don't know what connotation they have in English.

 

[Ironborn]

If someone describes themselves as cultured they are normally the type of person who thinks their shit doesn't stink and is normally a fan of "modern" art.

 

[Pluto]

 

[pilotviolin]

nothing