I have always been fascinated by the term "cultural shock". Every time I thought of it, I imagined a scene of a an Amish woman walking on the beaches of Rio de Janeiro, looking at all the women in tiny bikinis. If this really happened, how would the Amish woman feel? What would she think?
So naive of me. I imagined that culture shock happening in extreme situations such as the one described above, but never with me. After a year living abroad, I learned that culture shock is a much more ordinary event, happening every day with us all. And I think it's good.
I can illustrate the phenomenon with a simple anecdote. I was in a class one day, and one of the students brought her three-week-old baby to class. She had a presentation to make, so she asked the professor to hold the baby for her while she spoke. The professor's behavior was what really amazed me.
In my country, women hold babies in a very maternal way, either talking to the baby with that "baby voice" or caressing the baby's head. The professor did nothing of that sort. While holding the baby, she concentrated all her attention to the student's presentation, as she was supposed to. I, on the other hand, could not do what I was supposed to.
I could not believe how serious and professional my professor was. I could not stop staring at her. She was holding a baby, for God's sake! I thought she was cold, terribly cold to that poor little creature who did not ask to be in a university class in a cold morning. Or was I exaggerating?
The question, then, is: what is the problem with having a cultural shock? I know the answer for that. The problem is not the cultural shock; cultural judgment is what is really problematic.
On my way home after that class, I reflected on my behavior. Who was I to keep staring at my professor during a class, judging her because she was not cuddling the baby as if women in my culture do? I learned a good lesson, then: I am going to experience lots of cultural shocks in my journey here, and they are supposed to enrich me, not to make me judge others.
F.
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Wow, very interesting indeed
ReplyDeleteFIrst of all, great text. Now, yeah judgement is a terrible thing, really "Narciso acha feio o que não é espelho". I still add that what we call OUR culture is constructed in our imagination. When distant, we tend to see a well delineated dichotomy between us and them, when in reality the very thing we are being critical about could be happening in our culture too. Feeling comfortable should be a desirable state of being, both at home (whatever we call it) and abroad. As you pointed out, judgement can prevent one from learning, which is the whole point in getting to know other cultures, whatever other means. As I always say, nothing is simple. Isn't it great?
ReplyDeleteYes, it is great indeed, in my opinion. We are always looking for "simplicity", but life is not simple. Can we learn to deal with multiple points of view? Can we learn that at school? At home? How?
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