Youtube URL
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHmgqcDGRXI
This week, our readings discuss cultural adaptation and anxiety, and while reading I was reminded of my (and my roommates’) latest Netflix obsession: An Idiot Abroad. This show is about a man named Karl (originally from the U.K.) who is not exactly the picture of cultural cognizance or cultural sensitivity. Karl’s friends, Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, send him to visit different locations around the world for two reasons: 1) to expose Karl to different cultures in order to give him a broader perspective and 2) to laugh at Karl’s culture shock and anxiety. Karl travels to these different countries for a few days and has worldly experiences that cannot be had in his home in London. While commentating and whining along the way, Karl treks these foreign lands, interacts with people of a different culture, eats unfamiliar food, and endures a multitude of physical and emotional discomforts. Unfortunately, because he spends a limited amount of time in these locations, it’s difficult to put labels to how he handles difficult and uncomfortable situations. Last night, as I watched him eating and sleeping in a cave in Jordan and making comments such as “it’s not so bad,” I wondered if this meant Karl had adapted to some degree and, if not, where is that line drawn? Do we know, that we’re adapting, assimilating, or acculturating as it happens and when can we say we’ve done these things?
While I was serving in Peace Corps, I would often stay in hostels and frequent the western restaurants along with the many different types of tourists that were traveling to, or sometime through Mongolia. Some of these travelers simply wished that the Grand Siberian Railway somehow skipped over Mongolia on their way to Being. They didn't want to be in Mongolia, and didn't do much other than go to the Chinese embassy for a visa. Others really did want to explore Mongolia and to learn about the culture. Talking with them about my experiences was at times interesting, at times annoying. One of the more annoying discussions occurred towards the end of my service with a tourist who had spent 6 months going 19 of the 21 provinces. This accomplishment allowed him to claim that he knew more about Mongolian culture than the me and another volunteer. Though we tried our best to avoid the conversation, it was truly interesting to see how he tried to measure up against ourselves. "How many villages have you been to?" "Have you eaten this/that?" "How many Facebook friends have you made?" "How many gers (Mongolian homes) had you slept in?" "How much of this food or this drink can you stomach?" For this particular tourist, many of his proudest accomplishments were fairly superficial. Ever since that conversation, I also wondered how long it would take to adapt (or assimilate or acculturate) and if you could really adapt if you continuously moved from one town to the next. In one sense however, I have decided for myself that there really does have to be a level of intention of living in a new culture. Not just traveling from place to place. Being a tourist and being a someone who lives in another culture seem to have different mindsets, and thus differing abilities to adapt/assimilate/etc.
ReplyDeleteI also am a huge fan of this show, mostly because of Karl's dry sense of humor. I think that he has a tendency to say things that a lot of people might think in certain situations, but don't say. This I find quite endearing. I do think the show represents how the vast majority of people travel. I believe, for many people, these small interactions with other cultures can increase their culture awareness over time. I certainly understand that a week, 2 weeks or even 2 months of emersion with another culture can typically not assimilate someone into that culture. However, for those that are unable to spend an extended period of time living with a culture outside of their own, small interactions are better then nothing. These smaller interactions can lead to cultural tolerance, new perspectives and self-reflexivity.
ReplyDeleteThe phrase, "the more you know, the more you don't know" comes to mind. When pursuing education, does one know when they've become intelligent? Or does the exposure to intelligent ideas, theories and people just drive them to pursue it more so. I really enjoy this show, because on some level, anyone who has stepped out of their comfort zone for any length of time can relate. Of course, someone who spends a year immersing in a foreign culture will have many more experiences to draw from. But there is always a first time, and we all go through it. Personally, I feel the whole "I have traveled to 17 different countries," or "well I spent 2 years in Timor Este" is misrepresenting what traveling is all about. The pursuit of knowledge, of self understanding and of enlightening experiences should be the goal. Not one-upping each other with our travel resumes to reflect a type of cultural capital that cheapens the experience. So Karl, with your dry humor and hilarious reactions, go forth into the world. Explore.
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