Self-expression and Artifacts
Humans may create cultural artifacts for such simple reasons as survival. However, the object will be different from that created by another person, although if they belong to the same culture, some similarities are also likely to exist. The need for self-expression arises from the sense of individuality, which is manifested in one’s unique skills, views, and surroundings. Those belonging to the same culture share most of them, but a person may have an individual approach to creating an everyday object.
A flag, which is an artifact representing an entire nation, operates in a similar way. Each country has one, but it comes in various shapes and colors, allowing for a unique expression. Even if red and blue are common, the Haitian flag places a special meaning in them and adds an emblem that cannot be replicated. The artifact serves to separate Haiti from other countries and reflect its culture. In the future, it will serve as the proof of the nation’s existence, in the same way as a work of art indicates that its creator used to live.
The concepts of culture, individuality, and a nation helped to construct the explanation. By understanding how cultures work, one may surmise that people sharing them are likely to be similar in some ways, which is reflected in their creations. On the other hand, individuality is responsible for differences in cultural representatives. Lastly, a nation possesses a certain culture, has a symbiotic relationship with it, and ensures the creation of its defining artifacts, including a flag.
Creative Expression and Culture
Every person is born into a cultural space, which shapes them and their approaches to self-expression. For instance, an Italian child is likely to be impacted by the Renaissance or classical antiquity, while the Japanese one will use ukiyo-e as a point of reference. However, after being inspired by previous cultural artifacts, a person will create new ones. If deemed significant enough, they can become part of a country’s culture. Similarly, the Haitian flag was informed by the pre-existing culture, as it was meant to represent it. Many designs must have been considered before the best one was selected, which eventually became an essential cultural artifact, potentially impacting how the country is viewed. Thus, the reciprocal relationship is constantly present within a culture, maintaining its stability and enriching it with new meanings.
The explanation was mostly based on the concept of culture, similar to the first one. Once a person gains an understanding of cultural acquisition, including socialization, it becomes clear how humans are originally impacted by it. However, not every human possessing a culture influences one in return, although everyone is capable of making artifacts. Simultaneously, archeological findings are not exactly the best examples of their cultures, but they gain unprecedented value by remaining intact for many ages.
Creative Expression and Today’s Issues
Many of today’s issues, for instance, the environmental ones, can be resolved by creating artifacts. For instance, automobiles without fuel may prevent global warming; space inventions can address overpopulation and the shortage of resources, and other technologies may help bridge the gap between the North and the South. For Haiti, the flag is a reminder of how it stopped being a colony, and the past still haunts the country, hindering proper development (Dupuy, 2019). Whoever designed the artifact ensured that the subsequent generations would inquire about its meaning, pondering over Haiti’s state and discovering the solutions.
An essential concept informing the explanation is a global issue. While the provided examples are some of the most common, colonialism, which affects Haiti, is also widespread, especially in the so-called South. The issues plaguing them can be directly linked to the colonial past, which overwrote the original cultures and forced incompatible values onto the population. However, the solutions will, perhaps, be unique for those countries, as Haiti, being a former French colony, differs from Cuba or Brazil.
Reference
Dupuy, A. (2019). Haiti in the world economy: Class, race, and underdevelopment since 1700. Taylor & Francis Group.