After watching the movie in class, I better understood the extent to which American culture influences other countries. While the movie illustrated the prominence of second hand clothing in Zambia, Pietra Rivoli writes about Tanzania. Rivoli states, “The most stunning scenery in Tanzania is not the savannah landscape but the African women…Many of the African women in Dar Es Salaam are draped in brilliantly colored native cloth…The men are muted background to this scenery. Almost all of the men and boys in Dar Es Salaam were mitumba – clothing thrown away by Americans” (189-190). Second hand clothing has authority in various countries where poverty is prevalent. I found it difficult to uncover articles that further explained countries such as Tanzania and Zambia’s interest in American lifestyle.
What I did find is an article about China and the effects American lifestyle has had on the people. China has been a popular topic of interest in the past decade because of its growing global influence. China has become more industrialized and more of a competitor in the free market. When China connected with Western countries they adopted the Western way of life as well. Not all aspects of Western lifestyle have positive effects. A new study was released that provides evidence on the impact diet and exercise are having on cancer. People in China are adopting America’s bad habits claims the article titled, “American Health Habits Influence China.” The article states, “Many Chinese urban areas have adopted a Western lifestyle and diet, which has led to a massive increase in the number of people diagnosed with cancer.” For example, breast cancer rates have increased by thirty-seven percent in just ten years. China is now fearful that unhealthy lifestyle changes occurring in urban cities will spread to the radically changing rural areas. Zhang Jin, the chief breast cancer surgeon at Tinajin Cancer Institute and Hospital states, "When China connected with Western countries, we imported their lifestyles too.” Connected is an important word in understanding why other countries find America so appealing. America has been a powerhouse nation for many decades now possessing basic freedoms and independent individuals with access to many technologies. America has an image and as globalization grew China connected with America and captured the image of America through products. Second hand clothing and fatty snacks are other countries pieces of American culture. The more pieces of American culture these countries come in contact with the more appealing America appears to become.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/02/26/eveningnews/main4832554.shtml
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Lauren this is really interesting. When I think about globalization I usually think about big businesses, industry, technology, and innovation. I dont usually think about normal day to day living habits such as how American's eat. It was interesting to see how much America affects different parts of the world in all different aspects of life. When I started reading the part about eating habit's in your post I was expecting to read about obesisty, possibly blaming McDonalds. It was interesting to read about breast cancer. I really enjoyed reading your post.
ReplyDelete