In the article, Kraidy(2002) states that the globalization of culture has molded the entire world in the image of Western, mainly American culture, and this globalization of culture is chiefly represented by international mass media. The embrace of Western lifestyles globally has led to the cultural imperialism theory in international communication theory and research, which argues that audiences across the globe are heavily affected by media messages emanating from the Western industrialized countries.
I agree with him that the globalization of culture is chiefly represented by Western, mainly American culture as English is commonly studied most countries of the world, and America is arguably the most powerful country at the moment. Many well-known broadcasters are American and also, American popular culture and its elements are seen as desirable and worthy to be emulated. However, every non-Western country has its own unique culture and society that their inhabitants conform to, and practices such as religion may be strongly ingrained, therefore there would always be taboos and superstitions that contradict Western cultural values. Simple control of global media by Western countries cannot impose their values on others.
Kraidy also mentions that cultural hybridity or hybridization provides the understanding of the interface of globalization and hybridization as a dynamic process and hybrid process of mixed traditions and cultural forms. This view states that it "does not give rise to globalization as a homogenizing force, or does it believe in localization as a resistive force opposed to globalization".
I agree with this view as cultures have always absorbed outside influences and over time, the absorbed influences became integral parts of the cultures. Sometimes, the fact that the influences were originally foreign was subsequently disregarded by the subsequent generations and/or the influences even reinvented. For example, trains and cars were invented by the West but Japan is known for its bullet train and good quality reasonably priced automobiles. Although Western influence is strong mostly due to the economic power of the Western industrialized countries, the Western countries are also influenced by the other countries of the world, whether developed or developing.
The advent of convenient global travel has allowed people to experience the cultures of different countries. With more global travel, people are less likely to be insular and look only through the paradigm of their own culture. They would also be able to evaluate the differences and good and bad points of cultures. In this way, the domination of culture by the West is likely to be counter-balanced due to the better mutual understanding of people from both Western and other countries .
Friday 21 February 2014
Reader Response (1st draft)
In the article, Kraidy(2002) states that the globalization of culture has molded the entire world in the image of Western, mainly American culture, and this globalization of culture is chiefly represented by international mass media. The embrace of Western lifestyles globally has led to the cultural imperialism theory in international communication theory and research, which argues that audiences across the globe are heavily affected by media messages emanating from the Western industrialized countries.
I agree with him that the globalization of culture is chiefly represented by Western, mainly American culture as English is commonly studied most countries of the world, and America is arguably the most powerful country at the moment. Many well-known broadcasters are American and also, American popular culture and its elements are seen as desirable and worthy to be emulated. However, every non-Western country has its own unique culture and social structures that its inhabitants are proud of and taboos and superstitions that contradict the Western cultural values, and Western countries cannot impose their values on others solely through international mass media.
Kraidy also mentions that cultural hybridity or hybridization provides the understanding of the interface of globalization and hybridization as a dynamic process and hybrid process of mixed traditions and cultural forms. This view states that it "does not give rise to globalization as a homogenizing force, or does it believe in localization as a resistive force opposed to globalization".
I agree with this view as cultures have always absorbed outside influences and over time, the absorbed influences became integral parts of the cultures. Sometimes, the fact that the influences were originally foreign was subsequently disregarded by the subsequent generations. Although Western influence is strong mostly due to the economic power of the Western industrialized countries, the Western countries are also influenced by the other countries of the world, whether developed or developing. The advent of convenient global travel has allowed people to experience the cultures of different countries, which I think promotes the understanding of other cultures. With more global travel, people are less likely to be insular and look only through the paradigm of their own culture. In this way, the domination of culture by the West is likely to be counter-balanced.
I agree with him that the globalization of culture is chiefly represented by Western, mainly American culture as English is commonly studied most countries of the world, and America is arguably the most powerful country at the moment. Many well-known broadcasters are American and also, American popular culture and its elements are seen as desirable and worthy to be emulated. However, every non-Western country has its own unique culture and social structures that its inhabitants are proud of and taboos and superstitions that contradict the Western cultural values, and Western countries cannot impose their values on others solely through international mass media.
Kraidy also mentions that cultural hybridity or hybridization provides the understanding of the interface of globalization and hybridization as a dynamic process and hybrid process of mixed traditions and cultural forms. This view states that it "does not give rise to globalization as a homogenizing force, or does it believe in localization as a resistive force opposed to globalization".
I agree with this view as cultures have always absorbed outside influences and over time, the absorbed influences became integral parts of the cultures. Sometimes, the fact that the influences were originally foreign was subsequently disregarded by the subsequent generations. Although Western influence is strong mostly due to the economic power of the Western industrialized countries, the Western countries are also influenced by the other countries of the world, whether developed or developing. The advent of convenient global travel has allowed people to experience the cultures of different countries, which I think promotes the understanding of other cultures. With more global travel, people are less likely to be insular and look only through the paradigm of their own culture. In this way, the domination of culture by the West is likely to be counter-balanced.
Thursday 13 February 2014
Reader Response Summary
In "Globalization of Culture Through the Media", Kraidy(2002) states that the globalization of culture is represented by international mass media, in which the entire world is disproportionately affected
by Western, especially American culture. The role of mass media is therefore contested, as the Western industrialized countries are seen to have intentions and actions when they export their cultural products, such as imposing their sociocultural values on developing countries, which result in the developing countries becoming concerned about economic and cultural domination. The developing countries receive scant and prejudicial coverage in Western media and the Western industrialized countries insist on the "free flow of information", leading the developing countries to accuse the Western countries of justifying their economic and cultural domination. However, cultural hybridity, in which globalization and localization are coequal dynamic processes, gives rise to hybrid traditions and cultural forms which are resilient and dynamic.
by Western, especially American culture. The role of mass media is therefore contested, as the Western industrialized countries are seen to have intentions and actions when they export their cultural products, such as imposing their sociocultural values on developing countries, which result in the developing countries becoming concerned about economic and cultural domination. The developing countries receive scant and prejudicial coverage in Western media and the Western industrialized countries insist on the "free flow of information", leading the developing countries to accuse the Western countries of justifying their economic and cultural domination. However, cultural hybridity, in which globalization and localization are coequal dynamic processes, gives rise to hybrid traditions and cultural forms which are resilient and dynamic.
Monday 3 February 2014
An event that has shaped my life
The learning of foreign languages has shaped my life. I feel that I have learnt many things about myself and others due to this.
In 2007, I decided to learn Japanese. I enrolled into a beginners' class where I struggled with grammar, pronunciation and seemingly simple tasks such as telling time and phone numbers. I also could not express myself. I found these extremely frustrating as it was not what I had expected.
I learnt Japanese for around a year but cannot understand most of it. Now I try to be more understanding of the poor pronunciation and/or grammar of some people because I know that I may actually be worser in ability. Also, I now know that I should not judge others without understanding what they go through.
In the polytechnic, I decided to learn German and I experienced similar difficulties. I still learn German here in NUS, although not in this semester. German grammatical structure is easier for me to understand than that of Japanese due to its similarities to English grammar but I find many grammatical points such as prepositions and cases difficult to understand. I also do not understand why certain words phrased in certain ways have unexpected meanings.
I now realize why non-native English speakers fluent in English often make mistakes with prepositions, misunderstand certain phrases or use strange idioms. I hope that I can become a person able to cope with difficult circumstances.
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