Identity

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Above is a photo of our group. We had to use pictures and tell a story in our own language. I did my portion in a Mexican accent because I didn't know what else to do. Saying it in English seemed boring. Saying the story in your own language is important because just like mathematics, a series of pictures can tell a story without spoken word. The succession of images are the story. By looking at this, we can interpretate what the story is trying to say without the story having to explicitly saying it. 

1) The Last Samurai. This movie is about an enemy soldier being forced to live amongst the samurai. He eventually sympathizes with the samurai and after learning the ways of bushido, he joins them in their last stand against modernization. This would apply to identity because what was once divide, became together.  

2) Lies My Teacher Told Me. A book regarding the fallacies told to American students in American textbooks. I think this would to apply to identity because telling lies to students can create a loss of personal awareness amongst American minorities. American Indians would especially feel alienated by the negative/ little studied aspect they are given by the companies.

3) Freedom Writers. A film. Using the power of writing, a teacher uses notebooks to converse and speak with her troubled students as they struggle with the horrors of living in the "ghetto". By writing, a person can be free of the social barriers and chains impressed to them and can be in a manner that feels natural. In this state, they can feel free to be themselves without fear of being judged.

4) CNN. By looking at this site, you can get news from around the world. This can help form an identity as you sift through articles that speak to you in multiple ways. You can be inspired, disheartened, saddened, etc.

5) This site has a ton of resources pertaining to identity, diversity, globalization, and internationalism.

"Globalization at the cultural level has brought about the fragmentation and multiplication of identities and this may require, paradoxically, a return to the familiar." (Cohen et al.)

When change becomes so profound that everything you find familiar is different, you will begin to resent and form negative feelings toward the negative change. As the feeling gradually becomes worse, you start to engage in more conservative activities to preserve what you find normal. This can be confusing for someone because as they are exposed to change, their identity splits off and becomes confused as they try to figure out who they are in the new kind of society.

"World citizenship is to be embraced, not feared. New forms of post-national understanding, responsibility, the state, justice, art, science and public understanding can emerge. This in turn can lead to more advanced forms of democracy, liberty and mutuality." (Beck)

I don't agree with this quote. Certainly Europe wouldn't agree when the USSR came in after WW II and brought with them new forms of state, justice, and public understanding. No, in fact, they found out that instead of democracy and liberty, they'd work in a salt mine in Siberia if they spoke out against Mother Russia. We look at globalization in this class as nothing but positive but I see many negatives. Eventually, the culture being more affected by the intercultural exchange will feel a loss of identity and resort to the quote made by Cohen. Globalisation is not all positive and I think we should have focused on more negatives so that we could get a true sense of what globalisation truly is. 

Foreign Occupation and Globalization

I was told that foreign occupation is not globalization. I disagree with this statement. Foreign occupation leads to the forced exchange of culture, language, customs, etc. It exposes the submissive culture to the new culture. Foreign occupation has led to countless advances, rebellions, and new ways of thought as well as industry.

Let's look at the example of Alexander the Great:

Alexander the Great conquered the Persian Empire and forcibly brought them under his control in a brilliant campaign. He could have gloated and completely eviscerated Persian culture because at the time, the Persians were considered barbarians by the Greeks. Instead, Alexander gave them Greek art, literature, philosophy, and military tactics. Before then, areas such as Sogdiana and Bactria (modern day Iran and Pakistan) had no last previous contact with Greek culture. This exchange was later called Hellenism.

Hellenism: "Historical spread of Greek culture after Alexander the Great's death"

In perhaps one of the best examples of globalization because of foreign occupation, let's go a bit further: ever hear of Bhudda? I'm not talking about the fat one where you rub his belly and you get good luck. The non fat/proper depiction of Bhudda is partly based on the ideals of Greek art. His figure has Greek traits of perception, depth, and proportion. This all stems back to the influence of Greek thought on Indian cultures that became known as "Indo-Greco" civilization. 

Note: It is important to state that Alexander did try to mix Persian and Greek culture. In one notable example, He had all of his generals take a Persian wife (although historical records state that many of these marriages lasted no more than a year). Alexander also incorporated Persian dress and royal customs into his repertoire as well. 

Key Concepts

Identity: A sense of who you are as a person and how you relate yourself to others. An identity is what you stand behind and believe based on perceptions of yourself and the ones made by family and friends. 

Assimilation: When you bring your culture and mix it with the culture of another until one day, the two merge and are identified or accepted into the majority group.