Culture Shock… The Merriam-Webster dictionary describes it as “a sense of confusion and uncertainty sometimes with feelings of anxiety that may affect people exposed to an alien culture or environment without adequate preparation.”
Well this is certainly the feeling I had when I first stepped off the plane a few years ago in India. I can’t remember if it the highway strewn with wandering cattle, or the countless scooters laden with a family and their dog, but as we drove away from the airport towards Delhi, I had a sudden realization that I was in for a cultural surprise. However something hit me that night as I chowed down a ham and cheese toastie while watching The Simpsons in my hotel room. The process of globalization had entrenched western culture into India’s way of life.
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| http://deniseleeyohn.com/bites/2013/05/22/what-went-wrong-with-tata-motors-nano/ |
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| http://ralphvelasco.com/blog/the-highway-code-of-india-2/ |
Globalisation can be defined as “the
closer integration of the countries and peoples of the world, which has been
brought about by the enormous reduction of costs of transportation and
communication, and the breaking down of artificial barriers to the flows of
goods, services, capital, knowledge, and people across borders” (Papa &
Wilkins, 2011, p. 177).
This got me thinking about how western culture has invaded
global boarders over the past several decades, and how my mum had been in this
exact same city about thirty years prior to me. If I was experiencing culture
shock in a westernized version of Delhi, how had it looked before the
infiltration?
Cultural flows are an expression of globalisation that refer
to “that complex whole which includes
knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and
habits acquired by man as a member of society” (Embong, 2011, p. 12). According
to mum, back before globalization had pushed passed the barriers of India’s
boarders, the culture was richer and more prominent than it is today. Being a small, blonde, white woman, one
memory that stood out in her mind was the interminable stares she received from women, men, and children alike as they were not used to seeing western people touring their country. In a way that shows how globalisation and culture flows have effected both the culture and the curious traveller equally.
Embong, A 2011, 'THE
QUESTION OF CULTURE, IDENTITY AND GLOBALISATION: AN UNENDING DEBATE',
Kajian Malaysia: Journal Of Malaysian Studies, 29, pp. 11-22, Academic Search
Complete, EBSCOhost
Papa, M, & Wilkins, D 2011, 'Globalization, lawyers and India: toward a theoretical synthesis of
globalization studies and the sociology of the legal profession',
International Journal Of The Legal Profession, 18, 3, pp. 175-209, Business
Source Complete, EBSCOhost
