Is it even possible to list the amount of cultures in the world? What exactly is culture? I suppose it depends on who you speak to. To one person there could be 9 different cultures, but to the next person there could be over 9,000. Culture is a mixture of religion, what you eat, what you wear, how you wear it, what language you speak, what you think is right, what you think is wrong, your morals and traditions, etc. Being that my major is international politics, I'm quite sure running into different cultures will be common.
Culture can and does change over time. With so many new technological innovations and the amount of media that is shoved down our throats in Western society, its almost so easy to not know exactly what our culture is.
It is known that American is the land of ALL types of people no matter their beliefs, religion, or race. Though it has not always been the case that everyone gets the same treatment and opportunity, those are the beliefs that the country was built on.
In my comparative literature class we are currently reading No No Boy by John Okada. The book is about the inner struggles Japanese Americans had after WW2. Yesterday, it led to a discussion of how some cultures are more prideful and dominant than others. Quickly, the class divided into two different sides. One being students who are first generation Americans. The other, students who only know "America".
To so many people, its so easy to view American culture as greedy, over-dominant, aggressive, and racist. While others see it as as freedom, education, a "melting pot", and the land of opportunity.
The students in my class who are first generation Americans felt that being in America was stripping away their cultures and traditions that they learned from their home countries. While on the other hand, one student mentioned that she was adopted so it was nearly impossible for her to trace her roots. Therefore, she is extremely happy to have America as her homeland and for her culture to be classified as "American" as it is providing her with so much opportunity.
America is a mush of many different cultures, sometimes making it hard to classify what American culture really is. It's really amazing to see so many cultures come together and be one. The Olympics is really a good way to see the American people come together and be as one. Also, there are times when Americans come together that are much more tragic, for example, 9-11. Being the 14th anniversary since the tragic event, you'll be able to feel a connection through the American community today.
Within comparative literature class of maybe 45 students, 6 different cultures have emerged. Penn State alone has about 46,000 undergrad students. So, that's about 6,133 different cultures. Therefore, I'd definitely fall under the category that their are over 9,000 different types of cultures in the world. It would be extremely hard, probably even impossible to come in contact with all of the different types of cultures in the world.
For this reason, I will attempt to learn more and experience "major" cultures and share it with you through my blog. For the following posts, I will try to focus on one major culture per blog.
Thanks for reading!
I have never thought about exactly what a "culture" is, and by reading your blog have come to realize how hard it is to define. There are so many different aspects that play a part in a culture and it shall be exciting to see how you go about describing them in later posts. I think that the United States is one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world, so it impossible to attribute one culture to the whole nation, as you refer to "American culture". I understand how an individual would feel that he or she loses some of their culture when they move, but I think that is to be expected no matter where you move.
ReplyDeleteI think this post would have been better if you began with the last sentence because as I was reading I wasn't sure what the meaning of the post was.
ReplyDeleteI like how you mentioned 9/11 as talking about your topic. I agree that American culture is not a simple culture but sophisticated. American culture is a combination of cultures from all around the world. Nothing to critic about it because it was really fun to read. Lastly, I am more than happy to talk about Korean culture as well since I am from Korea!
ReplyDeleteI love the topic of your blog. I personally am very interested in discussing and exploring cultures different from my own. I come from a pretty varied background, culturally speaking, which I think makes me more aware of what "culture" is. I know that it's not straightforward and that there are many different aspects that constitute a culture, and I'm excited to discover more about culture through your blog.
ReplyDeleteI'd also like to make a comment about the immigrants vs. born and raised in America thing. I am an immigrant and although sometimes I wish I was closer to my roots, I recognize that in America I have so many more opportunities. My parents sacrificed so much of their own personal lives so that me and my siblings could grow up here. They did that for a reason, because in America you truly do have more freedom. I think that in no other country will you find so many different cultures represented as there are here, and so many chances to expand your own knowledge of other cultures.