“Cultural Homogenization and Commodification”

Lecture #8: “Cultural Homogenization and Commodification”
Staffan Appelgren

Seminar Papers- Graded seminar papers will be returned tomorrow, September 23. In the future, make sure to read all of the articles before you decide what to write about. Also, stick to the articles; include all relevant articles and arguments; keep quotations to a minimum.

The Phenomenon of Language
- Languages with a limited number of speakers are disappearing.
- There are approximately 6,000 languages in existence today but 4% of these languages are spoken by 96% of the world’s population.
- 1,500 languages are spoken by less than 1,000 people.
- Every two weeks, a language disappears.
- By 2050, approximately 3,000 languages will remain.
- One of the causes of the eradication of minority languages in bilingualism.

Culture
- Can we say the same thing about cultures; are they also disappearing?
- Newspapers feature stories about dying languages, why don’t they discuss dying cultures?
- The above questions are difficult to answer because culture, unlike language, is difficult to delimit.
- What counts as language is a political decision. Culture, however, is a process of creating meaning.
- One can argue that anthropologists have departed from the idea of humans as meaning creating and seeking.
- Of course, there is an evolving understanding of what a culture is and how it is created.

Definitions of Culture
- Some contend that culture results from artistic production such as the production of books, films, dance, etc.
o This definition is not often discussed in social science contexts.
o We will not discuss this definition during today’s lecture.
- Culture can also be described as coming from objects this is also known as material culture.
o Counter-argument: We ascribe meaning to these objects; they don’t have inherent meaning.
o This definition is similar to Susan Wright’s ideas and arguments.
- One can also define culture as politicized/ commodified through the construction of identity.
o This is derived from symbols, clothes, traditions, etc.
o This definition is often related to in-group similarities.
o This definition is also similar to Susan Wright’s ideas and arguments.
- Finally, culture can be defined as the process of creating meaning.
o This is the definition most often used by anthropologists.
o This definition is process oriented.
o According to this definition, culture is not what you have; it’s what you do.

The Meanings of Culture (Susan Wright)
- Old: Culture is bounded, defined, unchanging, has an underlying system of meanings and is identical.
- New: Culture is an active process with various definitions. It is understood differently by different positioned people. Cultural sites are not bounded. Concept formation is historically specific.
- According to Appelgren, what really goes on in everyday life is “meaning creation.”
- The old understanding of static culture often reappears, especially in identity politics, but is easily questioned.
- An example of the application of the old understanding occurs in Sweden when culture is linked to crime. The majority population asserts that honor-related violence is related to “immigrant culture.” However, when domestic violence occurs in a “Swedish” household it is not related to Swedish culture.
- In other words, old understandings of culture are often invoked to explain peoples’ actions.

Globalization with Agency
- According to Appelgren, it is simply not true that the local only reacts to global forces.
- Agency does exist.

Questions about Cultural Homogenization
- Are we condemned to conformity?
- Are there prospects for difference?
- If yes, what kinds of differences are possible?
- The answers to these questions depend on what kind of culture we are talking about.
- In other words, what kind of culture is reflected by global brands like McDonald’s and Coco Cola?

Cultural Imperialism
- There are unequal flows in a globalized world.
- Cultural imperialism is often associated with Westernization.
- Globalization as cultural imperialism is seen as an extension of colonialism, domination and oppression.
- It is a “soft power” but one with profound implications for individuals.
- The result of cultural imperialism is that local cultures become extinct and replaced by Western culture.
- According to John Tomlinson…
o Cultural imperialism is much more than Westernization.
o Cultural imperialism “involves the institution worldwide of western visions of basic social-cultural reality…”
o The transformations that result from cultural imperialism are very deep and profound.
- According to Inda and Rosaldo…
o Cultural imperialism “entails the dissemination of all facets of the West’s way of being…”
o Note: When the West is discussed in these terms, it is no longer a geographic indicator.
- According to George Ritzer and his theory of McDonaldization…
o Increasing standardization occurs throughout societies and nations.
o Services and products are increasingly standardized and mass-produced.
o This occurs through two different processes: the “grobalization” of nothing and the “glocalization” of something.

Positives Aspects of Cultural Imperialism
- So far, globalization has been taken as negative leading to a loss of diversity but this assumption can be questioned.
- Culture as meaning creation continuously changes.
- People continue to create meanings regardless of globalization.
- If we do try to preserve culture, we must ask ourselves who are we to decide what to preserve and what not to preserve.
- Many cultural brokers try to intervene for others. This is problematic.
- There are problems with preservation.
- Some theorists have pointed to a multitude of positive aspects of cultural imperialism including improved health-care and education, the proliferation of values such as democracy, tolerance, equality, empathy and solidarity, and the protection of human rights.
- George Ritzer provides the tongue-in-cheek theory of the Golden Arches Conflict Prevention.
o According to this theory, no country that has a McDonald’s goes to war with any other country that has a McDonald’s.
o The first exception was NATO’s bombing of Yugoslavia.

Objections to Cultural Imperialism
- Some contend that people are not passive receivers/ consumers. The mere presence of global products does not prove that Western values and understandings are also present.
o A bottle of Coca Cola is understood differently in different contexts and locations.
o Culture is not the property of objects.
o People have agency and the ability to ascribe meanings.
o A classic example is the American television series “Dallas.” This series had a global audience but, according to Tomlinson, viewers consumed the series differently depending on their culture and location.
- Some object to cultural imperialism because it rests on the idea that the Center talks to the Periphery.
o According to Rosaldo, flows occur in the opposite direction. In other words, the Periphery talks back.
o This is shown through “The Peripheralization of the Core” and the existence of global cities in which the whole world is present such as New York, London, Tokyo, etc.
- Finally, some object to cultural imperialism because it centers on the West.
o Cultural Imperialism theory ignores the fact that there are a number of flows that circumvent or ignore the West.
o Those who object argue that there is not one center but that globalization is multi-centered.
o It is impossible to divide the world into two entities: The West and the Rest.

Beyond Cultural Imperialism
- The argument for homogenization is problematic when you focus on how identity is produced.
- In fact, there are increasing possibilities for difference in a globalized world.
- According to Richard Wilk…
o Asserting difference is encouraged in the global community where there are “Structures of Common Difference.”
o There is hegemony of structure not hegemony of content.
o Global structures orchestrate diversity but they do so in a uniform way through a common grammar for the production of difference. This grammar is universal and important because it must be used in order to be recognized and understood by the global community. In other words, in order to be recognized as an indigenous group, the group must conform to these “Structures of Common Difference.” This connects to the idea of culture as a means of creating identities.
o Wilk gives the example of the production of national culture in Belize beginning in the 1990s. Before the 1990s, no national identity existed to unite the inhabitants of Belize. The country was understood, by its citizens, as a mix of people without a unifying identity. This changes during the 1990s and beauty contents played an important role.

The Production of Identity in a Global World (John Tomlinson)
- Global forces are not a threat to cultural identity.
- Globalization actually produces differences.
- This is a critique of the writings of Manuel Castells.
- Identity construction is modern phenomenon.
o In pre-modern societies, identity was not of primary importance.
o This is true especially in relation to identities responding to and being built on sexuality, gender, etc.
- Globalization is the spread of modernity and, with modernity, identity making proliferates.

Concluding Questions
- Why, then, is culture so important?
- Does the modern world threaten culture?