Human’s Identity in a Globalized World
Salomon Djakpa
Professor Ralph Satterthwaite English 14-001
17 March 2013 Human’s Identity in a Globalized World
Globalization has become a highly debated concept around the world. Globalization can be simply understood as “a process of global economical, political and cultural integration” (thefreedictionary.com). Today the world has become global and integral and all of its major parts are completely interconnected like in a tiny village. Globalization is an everyday process that brings a cultural unification and changes people’s psychology. Globalization is happening almost everywhere in the world and having various impacts on people. It is a process that is bringing the world smaller and smaller and also imposing a change on people’s cultural level. People’s identity is changing because of globalization. Globalization has made the world we are living today more complex and culturally pluralized. Many people migrate to new places and are forced to adopt a new culture. However, their traditions might not fade away because they will always be part of their identity.
Certain people believe that there is a connection between globalization and Americanization. However, in his essay “Globalization vs. Americanization”, Andrew Lam argues that there is a difference between globalization and Americanization even though it is sometimes hard to make that distinction. His essay interprets the divergences among cultures in the twenty-first century and how living in this century has blurred those distinctions. In his essay, Lam uses his own life experience to tell how globalization has changed his behaviors, thoughts and feelings. He believes that “man’s identity is in conflict” as a result of globalization. Many people often migrate to a new place and their identity becomes disturbed as a result of this dislocation. I believe Lam’s assertion can be true and totally agree with it because people can tend to follow their own culture as well as their new culture.
Professor Ralph Satterthwaite English 14-001
17 March 2013 Human’s Identity in a Globalized World
Globalization has become a highly debated concept around the world. Globalization can be simply understood as “a process of global economical, political and cultural integration” (thefreedictionary.com). Today the world has become global and integral and all of its major parts are completely interconnected like in a tiny village. Globalization is an everyday process that brings a cultural unification and changes people’s psychology. Globalization is happening almost everywhere in the world and having various impacts on people. It is a process that is bringing the world smaller and smaller and also imposing a change on people’s cultural level. People’s identity is changing because of globalization. Globalization has made the world we are living today more complex and culturally pluralized. Many people migrate to new places and are forced to adopt a new culture. However, their traditions might not fade away because they will always be part of their identity.
Certain people believe that there is a connection between globalization and Americanization. However, in his essay “Globalization vs. Americanization”, Andrew Lam argues that there is a difference between globalization and Americanization even though it is sometimes hard to make that distinction. His essay interprets the divergences among cultures in the twenty-first century and how living in this century has blurred those distinctions. In his essay, Lam uses his own life experience to tell how globalization has changed his behaviors, thoughts and feelings. He believes that “man’s identity is in conflict” as a result of globalization. Many people often migrate to a new place and their identity becomes disturbed as a result of this dislocation. I believe Lam’s assertion can be true and totally agree with it because people can tend to follow their own culture as well as their new culture.
Cited: Lam, Andrew. "Globalization vs. Americanization." AlterNet. (2004): 2. Web. 20 Feb. 2013.