In Martha Nussbaum's essay "Citizens of the World," she addresses the role of respect, cultural inquiry, and awareness in one's own habits and differences in others. This essay struck a chord with my own thoughts and self-inquiry. What are the habits I acquired that I believe are best? What kind of lens do I see the world through? What are my prejudices and judgements? In traveling, I hoped to smudge the lines of cultural differences by living with locals, doing things as they do without any expectation or pre-conceived notion of how things should be done. What I discovered, however, was that even if I was ready to leave my habits behind, other cultures weren't as prepared, and smudging all cultural barriers sometimes seemed harder than I would have liked. In all cases, everyone learned more from each other. In India, I learned to trust in fate and life and the serendipities that occur. In Africa, I learned how to live in the simplest way, growing my meals, my life on my back, hardship on every side of the road.
Wanting to blend these differences together requires some ethical inquiry. According to Nussbaum, "ethical inquiry requires a climate in which the young are encouraged to be critical of their habits and conventions; and such critical inquiry, in turn, requires awareness that life contains other possibilities" (54). I am in agreement that those of younger ages will be more inclined to question themselves and explore the other possibilities of our own humankind. This critical and ethical inquiry, however, does not mean that one should give up their original habits and traditions, but merely adopt an awareness that sometimes the way we do things is not always the best.
Nussabaum illustrates this in her essay when mentioning the role of language. We forget, to a certain extent, how much language plays in our daily habits and how easily we forget that everyone finds their language easiest to speak. Nussbaum says that "we should not suppose -- and most of us do not suppose -- that English is best just because it is our own, that works of literature written in English are superior to those written in other languages, and so forth" (62). English is becoming incredibly widespread, but did we ever stop to think that even though a large portion of people speak it, perhaps it is not the "best" language to have the global population learn?
This awareness is key to eventually being able to fully respect other cultures, and it is a step into becoming what Nussbaum calls a "world citizen," or someone who considers humanity as a whole, a part of their focus when creating a better world in which to live. We cannot solve our problems by thinking individually, and only concerned with our concentric circles that are so close to home. Nussbaum explains this in detail, emphasizing that our problems can be solved if we all work as one. We do not have to isolate ourselves, we can help each other.
I am grateful that I chose to attempt to smudge the lines of cultural barriers. I believe that it is the best way to learn more about other people, and, ultimately about yourself. Even if you go back to living as you were and as you know, at least the idea of knowing other people live in equally wonderful ways can exist.
You did an excellent job of integrating your personal experiences with the concept of world citizenship. It was interesting and arose an apt point, is it really that difficult to accept and understand different cultures? For you, the answer is a definite no. Clearly, many people throughout the world have immense issues relieving themselves of the ignorance hindering their "acceptance." What do you believe has enabled you to achieve such open mindedness?
ReplyDeleteThanks Jake! It was confusing sometimes traveling in third world countries. They are overwhelmingly hospitable and incredibly kind, but sometimes completely skeptical and judgmental when it came to our habitual differences. Sometimes it was lack of dis-interest, but usually not a lack of dis-respect. If they were curious about my culture, then they usually coupled that curiosity with the assumption that all Americans are the same, for example, though this is generally speaking.
ReplyDeleteWe can credit this skepticism to an extent to the lack of education, especially about international topics. But mostly, they would be content with how they did things without a strong desire to know that other ways could be "better".
I grew up with exchange students drifting in and out of my house during my childhood. This definitely had a huge effect on my desire to travel and general curiosity. My dad was also in the Vietnam war and used to tell stories of this "far off distant land" even if they were accompanied with painful memories. My parents are very liberal and never question the habits of other cultures or judge those different from them. My brother is the opposite of me; he has no desire to travel whatsoever. He is still culture-curious and conscious of others and would never judge another culture's habitual practices based on his own traditions.
I personally believe that one's parents play a very large part in education. I've noticed a persons ideals either line up fairly well with their parents or they are completely the opposite. In this case I'm glad you followed suit with your parents.
ReplyDeleteI also think that traveling is one of the best ways to learn to be open minded and respect other cultures. Learning in the classroom is definitely a positive but getting out there yourself is a different level (but I'm sure you know that). Good job getting out there and experiencing the world.