Amy Unrau
Final Paper
Comm 405
Professor Conway
Effects of Cultural Globalizations
Today’s world holds people who come from many different types of cultures. All of the different types of people either live their life like their original culture, completely recognize many different types of cultures, or are somewhere in between. Whether or not all of these people can live in harmony is questionable. Jan Nederveen Pieterse and Samuel P. Huntington have differing views on whether or not society can function correctly with the all of the very different types of cultural views. Pieterse believes that the world can function very well with the hybridity that come from the western culture. Huntington, on the other hand, believes that the mixing of cultures causes chaos and in turn causes “cultures to clash”. In the information society that we live in today, technology increases globalization of foreign cultures. It also constantly influences the way we live our everyday life. Both authors’ theories are, in fact, very true. I believe that bringing different cultures together can cause problem, which we have seen throughout history with racially discriminating wars, segregation, and slavery. However, I more so believe that cultural hybridity can make an information society better.
The NBC show “The Office” originally aired in the United States in March of 2005. This show is based off of the award winning BBC version. The American version takes on the same sitcom/documentary style format as the original version does, but uses American culture to progress its plot. This makes the American version of the show a hybrid. The show has been a huge success for NBC, which would fit Pieterse’s theory that good things can come from hybridity. This show can be seen in many countries and is usually a hit with the culture that it is directed towards. However, when a different culture views another’s version, they do not find it entertaining. This goes along with Huntington’s theory that cultures clash when they come in contact with each other. Both theorists’ ideas work when describing the show in multiple aspects, but there is one more factor that decides who has a stronger theory. The format of the show combines two different types of shows. It is sitcom based, because it has characters, developing story plots, and is placed in prime time viewing periods. It also has a documentary style format where characters reference the camera many times throughout the show and even do personal interviews. These two types of show are very different, yet they work together in a very successful way. Therefore, Pieterse’s theory overpowers Huntington’s chaos theory.
The three different clips that I chose to use from “The Office” come from episode 2 of the first season which is called “Diversity Day”. The clips show Michael, the boss, trying to diversify the office by getting everyone to place cue cards on their forehead which have a certain race or culture written on it. After placing it on their heads, Michael has all of the others come up and treat that person like their culture. Eventually, Michael wants everyone to try to guess what culture is on their forehead by listening to the stereotypes that are said to them. Pieterse’s theories of cultural difference, cultural convergence, and hybridity all apply in this clip, along with Huntington’s theory of the clash of civilizations and rise of western culture.
Pieterse defines cultural differentialism on page 42of his book “Globalization and Culture”. He says “differences are regarded as immutable and generating rivalry and conflict”. He says there are only three ways to break down cultural differentialism. Those three are culture difference or lasting different, cultural convergence or growing sameness, or cultural hybridization or ongoing mixing. He defines cultural difference as an absolute difference between different cultures. He says that cultural convergence takes place when cultures have indistinguishable traits from one another. He then defines hybridity as “traveling culture”. By this, he means that cultures adapt different aspects from other cultures, bringing them together in a new way. Pieterse believes that hybridity is an overall great idea. He believes it can make the world flourish and grow with new ideas, but he also admits that there can be some problems. He describes those problems in a similar, yet less pessimistic and dramatic way that Huntington describes his theories.
Huntington’s idea about the clash of civilizations comes from the same theories that Pieterse attempts to argue. On the first page of the article “The Clash of Civilizations?”, Huntington says “The clash of civilizations will be the battle lines of the future.” He then goes on to say, “Conflict between civilizations will be the latest phase of the evolution of conflict in the modern world.” By this, he means that people are always looking to define themselves by their own culture, which in turn causes problems and will ultimately cause problems within the world. One of the main influences of cultural clashing, according to Huntington, is the rise of western culture. He refers to western culture as the newer cultures that have an “emergence of the modern international system”. He believes that one day, people will acknowledge our difference and cause a “war” based on those disparities.
In the “Diversity Day” clips from “The Office, cultural difference is seen by how each person in the office acts differently when they come in contact with a different card. For example, Dwight says “Shalom, I’d like to apply for a loan.” This statement implies that Pam has the word Jewish written on her card. Pam eventually looks at Dwight’s card, which says “Asian”, and replies to his statement by saying that the culture is generally a bad driver. This shows that each culture has its own individual traits that no other culture has. This then gives distinct differences between cultures.
The “Diversity Day” clip also portrays Pieterse’s theory of cultural convergence or growing sameness. Every character knows how to act around each cue card. The characters use stereotypical statements that have become globally known. A very common stereotype that we see Stanley talk about is the success of the Jewish culture. When something becomes globally known, usually it is a result of cultures converging and getting to know and understand other cultures. Also, the characters in the show are all wearing the same type of clothing and speaking the English language. These types of dress and language are widely known throughout the world, and the similarities between the American culture and other English speaking cultures will be very close.
“Diversity Day” greatly shows Pieterse’s theory of hybridity. When two different cultures come together and make something that did not exist before, we have a hybrid. The example that we see in the clips is seen in Kelly. She is has an Indian heritage, but has the attitude and social characteristics of a girl that one might find to be from California. She has both traits, but does not identify with one more so than the other. This can also be seen in Stanley. He is an African American. He has many traits that his native African heritage has, but also takes on traits that Americans have. Even though Stanley is a part of both cultures, he does not directly identify with one more so than the other. We can also see hybridity within the boss, Michael. He greatly wants to be a hybrid. He initiates the game, trying to get all of the different cultural traits involved. This is because he loves being like everyone else. He does a comedic skit that was originally performed by Chris Rock. Michael then has to take on “African” traits. He does this because he feels that he is a hybrid and can ethically do so, without getting the African community upset.
Huntington’s theory that cultures clash when they come in contact with each other is seen in the clips. No matter what, everyone will eventually act like and identify with their culture. Even though it is forced in the clip, the characters all eventually act like their culture. When people identify with their own culture, it can sometimes cause problems. People usually tend to praise their culture at a higher level than others. Also, when Michael pretends to be an Indian convenient store owner towards Kelly, she gets very upset and slaps him. If you constantly define yourself in a specific way, it can offend people and cause others to become upset.
The clash of cultures can also be seen outside of “The Office”. One great example of this is patriotism, whether it is for a person’s country, or even for a person’s favorite team. There is a whole movie based off of the rivalry between European soccer teams, called “Green Street Hooligans”. In this movie, people fight against one another purely because the other person hails towards a difference soccer team. This same concept can be found on the University of North Dakota campus. During the latest hockey season of 2009-2010, a fighting Sioux fan and a Minnesota gopher fan became involved with a very physical fight, just because they were from different schools.
Western culture is a large part of how the plot develops in the “Diversity Day” clip. Western culture is known as a “melting pot” of many different cultures. The culture develops knowledge of many different cultures from around the world. Stereotypes are based off of both knowledge and lack of knowledge of a culture. When you know a little bit about a culture, you can make assumptions about it. At the same time, when you do not know everything about the culture, you tend to fill in the blanks. You can see this stereotypical assumption when Dwight and Pam have a conversation. Pam says that his race card is typically a bad driver. Dwight, in turn, believes he has the word “woman” written on his card.
When you watch the full version of “Diversity Day”, you see that the whole office ends up working together and ignores large differences, but also embrace each other’s differing qualities. With this in mind, one might think, “So, which theorist is correct?” From the evidence given in the clip, you can see that both have strong theories of cultures coming together and bringing cultural success and chaos. In the end, you can see the office ultimately comes together. If you watch the episodes in the rest of the season and the following seasons after that, you come to see that that particular office is the number one branch of the company. Each character eventually sets asides his or her differences and works as a team. You can also see this in everyday, real life situations. The world functions. Even though there are times when conflict arises between different cultures, most of the time people get together and work for a cause. Therefore, I agree with Pieterse that cultural hybridity brings newer and greater ideas, which in turn makes society a better place. Without hybridity, we would not have many of the things that the world knows and loves today like clothing fashion, ethnic restaurant chains that can be found in almost every country, and advances is technology.
Today’s world is an information based society where the more knowledge one has, the further that person can get. Technology has very much increased how much and how fast one can obtain the information that he or she seeks. The social implication that comes from technology is that the world’s knowledge is now global and not just location specific. Some say, that technology defaces communication, but as the world population grows, ideas grow, and technology makes life different than it has been in the past. Some say society is losing its core communication values as technology progresses. After analyzing the theories of many authors, I find that communication values do not become lost. I believe that some people misinterpret the newer ways of communication. The act of communication has been changing from the beginning of time. It started with very little, then moved to cave drawings, then to face to face verbal and written, and now through a greater electronic technology. Communication has grown and is continuing to grow. It has and will go on to become something bigger and better than society has ever had the ability to experience.
Works Cited
“About the Office.” The Office, NBC.com. http://www.nbc.com/The_Office/about/
“Diversity Day.” The Office. Season 1, Episode 2. March 2007.
< http://www.tbs.com/stories/story/0,,114918,00.html>
Huntington, Samuel P. “The Clash of Civilizations?” Foreign Affairs 72.3 (1993): 22-49.
Nederveen Pieterse, Jan. Globalization and Culture: Global Mélange. New York: Rowman and
Littlefield, 2004.
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