An abstract term for the complex set of beliefs, practices, rules, and traditions groups of people adhere to. Society is always greater than a single individual, and as such it is often defined in the negative as the opposite of the individual, or as that which constrains the individual and prevents him or her from living out their desire. But it is also used in more affirmative terms to classify the ensemble of institutions, organizations, and relationships that give support to the individual. It is often contrasted with culture, with the implication that society is the form to cultureâs content---it is organized and organizing, whereas culture is not. To put it another way, society speaks in the imperative, whereas culture uses the interrogative.