Globalization vs. Culture: The Loss Of Identity
A good friend of mine and I were chatting earlier today when the subject turned to how so many countries and people are losing their identity.
This is a true problem that I've been seeing all over the world, and the main reason behind it is unfortunately Globalization. I'm no anti-globalization activist or anything, in fact, I'm totally for globalization, economically and industrially speaking, but we can't neglect the negative effects it has on culture and society.
In this globalized world, cities are becoming clones of each other, and people are converging into fake stereotypes; gone are the unique cities that carry so much history and culture in every corner, lost are the enriching cultural differences and specificities that make a society uniquely what it is; London looks like Paris which looks like Madrid; Restaurants serving this or that country's traditional food are drowned out by the huge fast food chains, beautiful traditional clothing is lost between the new bulk-made looks created by the big brands, people look alike, eat alike and dress alike whether they're in New York, New Delhi or Cairo.
We're losing one of the things that count the most: our identity, the uniqueness in us, that which makes us special and allows us to stand out from the crowd.
Again, I'm all for cultural exchange and value it dearly, and I, more than anyone else, treasure the notion of a global citizen, but still that doesn't mean letting go of our unique cultures to adopt a unified fake money-driven one.
Not Reading And The Destruction Of Culture The Culture of Translation Free Culture Culture has no price Do It, Just Don't Get Caught!In fact that's a very huge threat that gets every year more and more conreat..
I don't know how and what steps should be made to rectifie the misconseption between adopting a better technology, and, adopting a different identity..
great writing, and very alarming topic..
Nice topic mmm
Well I do believe in keeping the past so we can make sense of our present to be able to step into our future, but I don’t see that happening, I see how people started choosing their identities, they are reinventing themselves almost everyday, and I still can’t figure out how do they choose without being filled with gaps, without losing themselves!
Yeah, I totally agree with you. In fact, you have exactly the same idea that I had a great concern about.
The world is changing and becoming more globalized; you might be able to see the American style on the other side of the Earth! And more and more, people are losing what made up what they are now, and their traditions that made up their identity. I really think the schools in every nation should at least teach about the greatness and the history of their culture and country.
I agree with the writer. However, peer pressure as much as globalization and a need to "belong" and appear to belong is also impacting identity. Canadians most recently state what they are "not", i.e. NOT American, but we need to consider our own identity before we can embrace it. Globalization is blurring many lines, making it more difficult for people to feel as though they belong, as though they are united within society and their nation.
My greatest fear is that globalization will continue to encroach on our political autonomy, making it more and more difficult for our governments to resist pressures from transnational corporations whose sole purpose is to increase profits.
