It was a typical 3 am chat with my roommate, and while it started off as usual, eventually the conversation steered to this… or something along these lines:
Me: So, since you’ve lived in India and America, which place do like more?
Roommate: India—it’s home.
Me: That’s true… You know, when I was five, my mother really wanted to move back to Bombay, and we were seriously considering it, too. But, as you can see, it didn’t end up working out in the end. Sometimes, I wonder how my life would be if my family did move to Bombay after all.
Roommate: It would have probably been more beneficial for you. You see, Americans don’t really have a culture, so it’s important that we stay in touch with ours.
….. @_@
Unfortunately, it’s not the first time I’ve heard that comment. Actually, I probably hear it in some shape or form whenever I go to visit my family in Bombay…and every single time I hear it, it never fails to infuriate me. At the time of this conversation, I held back; however, it’s about time I address this widespread misconception once and for all.
Look, I get it. The United States doesn’t have thousands and thousands of years’ worth of history to display…or at least we do, but it was erased when Europe intervened. We were isolated from most of the world for thousands of years, and when we were finally integrated with the Afro-Eurasian world in the 1400s, most of the culture that was authentically American was eradicated. It was immediately replaced with a unique blend of English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese cultures, and over the centuries, that blend has started to become more and more inclusive.
On the other hand, this blend of cultures has morphed into something entirely new, and that something IS American culture. At the end of the day, despite the fact that the US is a young country, there are many traditions, customs, and ideals that are associated with America—and those are what define our nation. In the United States, we:
- obsess over American football
- adamantly support our right to property, self-defense, and freedom of speech—more than any other nation does
- believe in tipping workers for a service they provide
- love capitalism and the idea of a competitive market
- have distinct American holidays such as Thanksgiving and July 4th
- play lacrosse—which is inspired by Native Americans, by the way
… and the list goes on and on.
At the end of the day, just like with any other nation, we have a set of values, customs, and material objects that define us and ONLY us. If that isn’t culture, then what is? Sure, we don’t necessarily have architecture that dates centuries, especially in a modern and consistently upgraded city like New York, but then couldn’t one argue that our tendency to want to strive for modernity is a part of our culture?
Therefore, just because America is different and has developed in a way that is unique from other nations, that doesn’t mean that we are inferior in any way. We aren’t some cultureless void just because we don’t have our own versions of the Buckingham Palace and Colosseum, or because we don’t have a never ending list of wars and battles of conquest (though we have our fair share). Modernity isn’t the same as a lack of culture or of losing culture, and it’s about time to start differentiating between the two.
Feature photo credit: Originally from F.W. Beers and Co. — Cartographer, uploaded on Wikimedia Commons
The post To Those Who Think America is a Cultureless Void appeared first on Culture Shock.
