Cultural Adjustment

I am affable by nature, but a demonstrable recluse. Although I do enjoy the company of others, I much prefer my own. I’ve been this way for as long as I can remember. In grade four, when all the other kids were running around playing tag or cops & robbers, I can remember sitting on the park bench and getting lost in Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn or Walter Farley’s Black Stallion. - It’s a somewhat amusing, if not disquieting thought that a child would have such a stark preference for the company of the dead over that of the living.

German culture in many respects is not all that different from North American culture. Though the national languages are different, almost everyone here speaks English; and though foods I am not as familiar with such as schnitzel and horse radish are noticeably ubiquitous, so are the more provincial Big Mac and Subway sandwich delicacies. I don’t believe that one needs to make any substantial social adjustments to get by in Germany, especially as a transient visitor. But I have attempted to do what I can to better appreciate my time here.

If there is one thing which I have tried to overcome or change about myself in order to get the most out of my experience, it has been my proclivity for solitude. I’ve tried to spend some time with my fellow interns from York here in Germany, I’ve gotten to know a number of the students living in Bonn University’s student residence, and I’ve made the cordial acquaintance of many of the local shop keepers in my adopted neighbourhood. I’ve even went as far as to allow my neighbours to take me dancing despite the fact I have two left feet; and allow one of my fellow interns to take me out for drinks, even though the taste of alcohol always makes my stomach turn. Although I very much appreciate the value of these experiences, I don’t think they’ve helped me to better appreciate the culture.

What has allowed me to better appreciate the subtle cultural differences between home and Germany has been the study of the language. To speak German, you are required to make a distinction between informal speech and formal speech. This is not simply a matter of slang vs. appropriate vernacular, but a bona fide academic distinction of a grammatical order. For instance, to say “how are you?” formally, one would say “Wie geht es Ihnen?” To say “how are you?” informally, one would say “Wie geht es dir?” The language implicitly demands of you that you calibrate the manner in which you speak to someone based on who that person is. One way of making this distinction is if that person is under the age of 16. What I’m trying to highlight is that there is an implicit assumption that different people are to be spoken to differently, not just in content, but in structure. I will leave it up to the reader to decide if there are any substantive pros or cons to such a grammatical arrangement; what is really important is to pause and ask what implicit assumptions does the English language ask us to make.

“Nietzsche’s affinities to analytical philosophy... are nowhere more evident than in his preoccupation with language. Common sense is after all expressed in ordinary language; in speaking the language we have learned from infancy, we are implicitly prescribing how the world is to be viewed and comprehended: ‘Every word is a preconceived judgment’. Through our speech we perpetuate errors of a philosophical order”. – Arthur C. Danto.

In what manner is my world view limited by my language? That is one of the profound questions that this foreign experience has inspired me to ask myself. And if I am to question the veracity of my world view through the lens of my language, then I must stop to question the veracity of my world view through the lens of my race, my sex, etc.

Debate on Indeed...

Hello Larissa; I hope this message finds you in good cheer:

Before I begin, I would like to thank you for taking the time to read my last blog post and offering a critical retort to my views. The resolve to sit down in front of a computer and read the self-indulgent, cliché infested ranting of an armature writer is impressive, to say the least. Despite the fact that I am diametrically opposed to your point of view on the matter, I appreciate that the depth of your comments showed you had taken the time to really understand where I was coming from, and not crudely reduce my position to an oversimplified “fear of tourism”. With that said, there are a few points in your retort that I must address.

1) To your first question, on the matter of benevolence: Generally speaking, benevolence is the showing of kindness or goodwill by performing good or charitable acts and not seeking to make a profit. But when seeking to do good deeds abroad, the extra caveat of “do no harm” must also be added to the equation. As you very well know, the good intentions of foreign agents can often lead to the unforeseen destabilization of a local culture, economy, or environment. That is why my definition of benevolence is to empower others to empower themselves. One example of this is the work of organizations providing micro-finance to poor regions across the world, so as to economically empower people, often poor and uneducated women, to take control of their own economic well being. No reasonable person could maintain any churlish objection to traveling for the sake of such work.

2) On your second point about studying and working abroad as selfish; although your point is well taken, I believe it is somewhat short sighted. Let us take Germany for example, where the cost of an education in one of its very fine universities is extremely minimal. Some of the best and brightest students from all over the world come to study in these fine institutions in fields as diverse as medicine, philosophy, linguistics, engineering, etc. The two requirements for admission to these universities are that students be brilliant, and that they learn the German language.

Germany is a first world country with a well educated population and an excellent social and economic structure. The disparities between the extremely rich and the extremely poor are nowhere as distinct as in North America. Although this sounds like an ideal society, one of the consequences of such social cohesion is a declining population. The plain truth is that well educated people with happy lives tend not to have very many children. For all that the German culture has achieved, it is unequivocally a dying society.

In a stroke of social engineering genius, the German government has given the best and brightest from around the world every incentive to come to Germany, be integrated into the culture, learn trades and skills that will contribute to German society, and then be given every opportunity to stay. If they choose not to stay, they go back home speaking the language and bringing back something of the culture to a new environment. Although a good and affordable education is in the self interest of anyone traveling in search of an education, it is also in the best interests of the host country to provide it. I do not see how this reciprocal relationship could be characterized as selfish.

3) On your last point, regarding tourism: Though I run the risk of being a little too hyperbolic in my characterization of the concept, I believe it to be insidiously evil at its very core. It adds no value to the individual traveler, while often giving a false sense of accomplishment and erudition that would have been better served by opening a book. And though it may add value to a society’s local economy, to have monuments of a civilization’s history be gawked at as part of an “exotic experience” subtracts from the dignity of a people.

It is one thing to study a society, its history, its culture, and then choose to travel there for a more profound understanding of that culture. This may be called traveling for the sake of study. It is a totally different thing to go just because it’s nice to say that you’ve been there. I can’t tell you how angry it makes me when I think of those aristocrats from the West, and their hunting trips to the African savannah. Their characterization of the local populace as “noble savages” could only be justified by the misguided sense of superiority one may allow themselves in the absence of any real understanding of a civilization.

I am in no way accusing anyone who desires to see the world as having the conceit of those Western aristocrats, but the indulgence of that impulse to travel for traveling sake is a slippery slope to the degradation of character. Like I said earlier, if there is anything in the constitution of one’s character that is worth revering, then it must necessarily be born of the circumstances and environment in which that character was constituted. To travel for the sake of work, study, or benevolence is always going to be edifying, but to travel for anything else is a pernicious pursuit.

“It is for want of self-culture that the superstition of Travelling, whose idols are Italy, England, Egypt, retains its fascination for all educated [North] Americans. They who made England, Italy, or Greece venerable in the imagination did so by sticking fast where they were, like an axis of the earth. In manly hours, we feel that duty is our place. The soul is no traveller; the wise man stays at home, and when his necessities, his duties, on any occasion call him from his house, or into foreign lands, he is at home still, and shall make men sensible by the expression of his countenance, that he goes the missionary of wisdom and virtue, and visits cities and men like a sovereign, and not like an interloper or a valet. I have no churlish objection to the circumnavigation of the globe, for the purposes of art, of study, and benevolence, so that the man is first domesticated, or does not go abroad with the hope of finding somewhat greater than he knows. He who travels to be amused, or to get somewhat which he does not carry, travels away from himself, and grows old even in youth among old things. In Thebes, in Palmyra, his will and mind have become old and dilapidated as they. He carries ruins to ruins.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

And yes, I sure do like Emerson. But George Santayana seems to be more akin to my soul:

Traveling

“It is for want of self-culture that the superstition of Travelling, whose idols are Italy, England, Egypt, retains its fascination for all educated [North] Americans. They who made England, Italy, or Greece venerable in the imagination did so by sticking fast where they were, like an axis of the earth. In manly hours, we feel that duty is our place. The soul is no traveller; the wise man stays at home, and when his necessities, his duties, on any occasion call him from his house, or into foreign lands, he is at home still, and shall make men sensible by the expression of his countenance, that he goes the missionary of wisdom and virtue, and visits cities and men like a sovereign, and not like an interloper or a valet. I have no churlish objection to the circumnavigation of the globe, for the purposes of art, of study, and benevolence, so that the man is first domesticated, or does not go abroad with the hope of finding somewhat greater than he knows. He who travels to be amused, or to get somewhat which he does not carry, travels away from himself, and grows old even in youth among old things. In Thebes, in Palmyra, his will and mind have become old and dilapidated as they. He carries ruins to ruins.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

In putting together my application to participate in this year’s internship program, the above mentioned quote stayed scorched in my mind. In each step of the process, I made sure to take inventory of my motivations for going abroad. There are very few things in this world I find more odious than those who claim to be trying to “find themselves” at destinations in which they have no roots; such sentiments usually betray a frivolity of character. If there is anything in the constitution of one’s character that is worth revering, then it must necessarily be born of the circumstances and environment in which that character was constituted. I think the world of myself, so I therefore think the world of my community and country. I am a Canadian patriot, a Jane & Finch loyalist, and an Opoku Family partisan. Though I do not begrudge anyone who may; I did not come to Germany to take pictures of monuments I nor my relations had any hand in creating. I did not come to try foods, nor drink beers, nor visit historical sites.

However, I too have no churlish objection to going abroad for the purposes of study, work, or benevolence; and Bonn, Germany has turned out to be an excellent destination for all three. The hospitality of its residents, the ease and convenience of its public transit system, the generous affordability of its accommodations, and the social conscientiousness of its government has made my stay in Bonn quite pleasant – if only the weather were more consistent.

Let me speak first of how the environment here can shape one’s learning. In Germany, the cost of admission to its universities is €500 per semester. It is €500 if you choose to take one class, or if you choose to take ten classes. It is €500 if you are a German citizen, or if you are an international student. Anyone and everyone in the world who is willing to come to Germany is able to earn a university degree if they are willing to pay €500 per semester; with the one caveat that you also are willing to learn the German language. Although I am not taking any classes here, I am trying to learn the language. I do most of my studying at Universitäts- und Landesbibliothek Bonn (The University and State Library of Bonn). It is a beautiful building, situated right next to the Rhine River, overlooking luscious green hills and a quaint little village of suburban houses. It is truly a sight to be seen, and an inspirational environment in which to study. To know that you are studying in the same university that Karl Marx and Friedrich Nietzsche once studied, can’t help but to stir up a sense of awe as you resolutely trudge through your text books. The students in the dormitory in which I live are extremely kind and patient; they take the time to thoughtfully correct my grammar in conversation, and do what they can to add to my very limited vocabulary. Though I would trade Bonn University for the familiar campuses of York University any day, my experience here has been incredibly valuable.

Now, the work experience here thus far has also been fairly pleasant. I am interning for an organization called the African Youth Foundation. Although I am not aware of any official title for my position, other than intern, I have been given a fair amount of latitude in the execution of my duties. It seems that my mandate is to do everything I can to help economically empower African youth residing in Africa, or the Diaspora here in Europe. I’ve undertaken a few initiatives, though I rather not speak of them yet since I don’t know if any of them will work. I promise to have a whole lot more to say about the particulars of my work experience once I have a clearer idea of whether or not I’ve been effective. I will say that the fact that Bonn is host to a number of very important NGO’s and UN delegations has made the prospect of my success far more promising.

To be Cultured

“The word of ambition at the present day is Culture. Whilst all the world is in pursuit of power, and of wealth as a means of power, culture corrects the theory of success. A man is the prisoner of his power. A topical memory makes him an almanac; a talent for debate, a disputant; skill to get money makes him a miser, that is, a beggar. Culture reduces these inflammations by invoking the aid of other powers against the dominant talent, and by appealing to the rank of powers. It watches success. For performance, Nature has no mercy, and sacrifices the performer to get it done; makes a dropsy or a tympany of him. If she wants a thumb, she makes one at the cost of arms and legs, and any excess of power in one part is usually paid for at once by some defect in a contiguous part.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

“MAN is born free; and everywhere he is in chains”. In reading a few of the blog posts already submitted by my fellow interns, I found it striking that the meaning given to the word “culture” was subscribed to in such a uniform manner. Almost everyone seems to identify the concept of “culture” with a nationalistic connotation; a system of values, interests, and hobbies that contribute to the definition of the social and individual identity. Although a number of writers seemed to grapple with some of the derivative concerns of this conception of culture – whether it can be more individualistic than nationalistic, whether culture is a malevolent or benign influence, whether the Canadian identity has anything that can be called a “culture”, etc. – none seemed to delve into the actual nature of culture as it relates to the generic human experience. Being somewhat of a contrarian and suspicious of any uniformity of ideas, I’ve decided to wade into the utility of culture as a tempering influence in the pursuit of excellence. In a word, I wish to speak of what it means to be cultured, as opposed to speaking of culture itself.

All elements of culture are the un-codified, intangible social norms of a discernible body of peoples, which allow for the civil interaction of human beings. Man is at once, a social creature and an isolated individual. It is man’s culture that allows him to step from under the shadow of his isolation and into communion with his kin. What else is language if not a cultural convention created to facilitate communication? To understand that in a particular society, one burps to thank the chef, or avoids eye contact to show respect, is to have a greater capacity to communicate with others within that society.

Not only does culture facilitate communication between individuals, it is the sole means, outside codified law, to communicate the values of a society from one generation to the next, or to instil those values in any new entrants into that society. It is the true perception and observance of these values that delineate the cultured from the uncultured. It is the degree to which one understands not only what are the tenets of any particular culture, but also the social context from which they are derived, that one can consider themselves cultured.

Herein lies culture’s tempering influence upon individual ambition; for this appreciation of societal values, in its proper context, is only gained through the study of history, philosophy, geography, religion, and a host of other disciplines. One cannot imagine a truly cultured soul who has made itself familiar with Lord Christ’s sermon on the mount, Aristotle’s definition of the good and of friendship, Emerson’s dissertation on self reliance, Galileo’s reverence for intellectual honesty, or the courageous exploits of King Leonidas and his brave 300; having that crude and crass ambition that has so come to define our age. With culture comes the understanding that to make money, or prestige, or some other shallow measure of success your principal concern in life is to betray a lack of depth or purpose in the conduct of that life.

“It is one of those fables, which, out of an unknown antiquity, convey an unlooked-for wisdom, that the gods, in the beginning, divided Man into men, that he might be more helpful to himself; just as the hand was divided into fingers, the better to answer its end.” That maxim will be the principal motivation for any cultured individual in all his exploits; for though man is an isolated individual, he is principally a social creature. Culture reminds us of this, and requires of us that we act accordingly.