What are cultural values?

We often use expressions based on the word "value". We discuss material values, complain about the lack of spiritual values, we criticize political ones. But are we thinking about what the very notion of "value" means? The definition says that by this word we mean the significance (material, political, spiritual, etc.) of a certain group of objects. This word also means:

• The qualitative characteristics of objects that determine its importance;
• The monetary expression of the value of something;
• Properties of the phenomenon, subject, object in terms of its harmfulness or utility.

In order not to get confused in terms of value, the scientists proposed a classification that takes into account the qualitative and quantitative characteristics of the concept.

According to the systematization of G. Allport (and there are other typologies), all values are divided into

• Theoretical, giving the leading importance to the search for truth and rational thinking;
• Economic, putting on the first place the benefit and benefit;
• Social, giving preference to human manifestations: tolerance, love, devotion, etc.;
• Aesthetic, evaluating everything else from the position of beauty, harmony;
• Political, preferring only power;
• Religious, including blind faith.

However, not everyone agrees with this typology. Most scientists believe that the cultural values are paramount for all peoples.

What does this concept mean? How do sociologists and other representatives of the scientific world interpret it?

Cultural values are an asset belonging to a certain group: social, ethnic, etc. All of them can be expressed by certain forms of art: oral creativity, artistic images, dances, song creativity, and applied species.

In our country there is a whole structure of the concept of "cultural values", fixed in the legislation. In accordance with the laws of the Russian Federation, this concept includes:

• Works of culture, art;
• Folk crafts, crafts;
• Standards of behavior;
• National or folk languages, local dialects, all dialects;
• Toponyms (names of geographical objects);
• Folk folklore;
• All methods, methods and results of scientific research;
• Building, territory, technology, etc .;
• Objects of cultural, historical or scientific value.

The cultural values of Russia (as, indeed, all countries) are protected by the state. It regulates the order of import or export of their objects, determines the rules for their acquisition, possession, sale.

However, cultural values, according to some experts, are not just historical handicrafts, objects or techniques. Cultural values are only those values that have a certain influence on the human psyche in order to inform the information to the descendants. It can be information about ideology, spirituality, beliefs - all those phenomena that are difficult to tell in another way.

Cultural values are not uniform. They can be different even at the same time for different layers of society. A vivid example of this: historical temples. For the majority in our country, they were almost the main cultural values. However, for the young Soviet power, they were not only of little value. The Bolsheviks considered them harmful, and therefore destroyed. So were lost unique works of architecture that characterized whole epochs. However, not only the temples were lost: a sad fate befell many folk crafts, as well as the languages and culture of small nations.

In order that historical monuments are not destroyed, and the types of crafts or art that are the property of peoples or nationalities, were not lost, the legislation of the Russian Federation gives an accurate definition of the concept of "cultural values of Russia."