ATA3:

For my third assignment, I chose the blog of Temple University student Susannah Duncan who wrote about her experiences studying abroad in Tokyo this fall. More importantly, about her anxiety felt towards getting out of her comfort zone and living in a new country was what initially caught my interest. I have such a passion for traveling in theory, but imagine that I’d experience culture shock more seriously than others. Although this is not because of a lack of ability to understand foreign cultures, it’s just that my sensory overload and tendency to get distracted would have me all over the place. I worry that in turn, the new culture and area may affect my studies, which may then prevent me from ever enjoying the study abroad experience.

Retrieved from: https://templeuabroad.blog/category/author/2018-fall/susannah-duncan/

However, for Susannah, the journey to Japan was filled with the worries described earlier, but also a sense of wonder and a craving for exploration of her new environment. I made the analogy of how being in Tokyo for her is like going to the mall or a theme park for the first time as a child. Everything is so surreal and colorful and trying to figure out your surroundings, even when tough, still feels rewarding. Ultimately, she discovers that many of the comforts we enjoy here in the states exist in their own form in Tokyo, such as convenience stores (pictured above in her own comic strip) and a relatively simple metro system. I learned from this assignment that using any familiar concepts to build up your confidence is a great way to adapt to a new culture.

ATA2:

My second assignment revolved around which American value stands out to me the most and served an important role in my life. As shown in the above two images, I felt that change has impacted me throughout my life and has been the only thing keeping me going at times. In the first picture above, I was in ninth grade and anxious about nearly everything, including my appearance, style, and especially my sexuality. I had not yet come out of the closet or even explored my feelings towards guys and was afraid of my safety if I came out to my friends and family. In the second picture, taken in June the day of my interview at Banfield, I felt confident in every aspect of my self and was very relieved that I was about to get a real job soon after graduating with my Associate’s degree.

Ultimately, the difference between these pictures is only about six years, which may seem like a lot, but in sixth grade, I had no idea of what the future would hold for me and was truly lost. I knew that I could change, and relied on this to keep me going, but lacked the ability to really do so and felt hopeless that my change would come anytime soon. I had truly convinced myself that I would never be happy with being my true self and continued to change only to match other people’s expectations. However, this all changed when I graduated high school and gained the confidence that I needed to live after coming out in 11th grade with pride. I learned to accept myself for who I am and to live for myself, and this was all primarily due to sticking with the American value of change.

ATA1:

It has been quite eye-opening for me to complete this assignment on cultural sensitivity and realize that I have a significant amount of room to grow in my understanding of other cultures. Even though I can understand that culture is a component of our collective survival, I tend to generalize certain unique elements of other societies across the world. There are also darker aspects of how other people live, such as the collective bathing in the toxic Ganges river in India. I think in the West we often insult other cultures, such as India, for being disgusting and having poor hygiene. However, there have to be reasons behind the odd behaviors of people from other cultures that I wish to learn.

Kim, Hyung. November 8, 2012. Why Nacirema, Not American? Retrieved from: http://celtilish.blogspot.com/2012/11/body-ritual-among-nacirema.html

     In order to put things into perspective, I decided to take the insight from this assignment by thinking about my past studies. I took an anthropology course last semester at RCC where we learned about the intriguing Nacirema people and their odd rituals. As it turns out, this North American tribe with their focus on the physical body is a satirical take on American culture. With my fresh perspective, I realize now how unfair it is for us to sit on our high horses and judge other cultures for their behaviors. Our society and country at its core thrive on selfish behavior, so we judge the way Norway taxes its citizens to help everyone go to school. We only believe we have to care about ourselves and our families, and so we demonize cultures that do not adhere to our strict codes of conduct. I hope to learn the ways to help others put forth the effort to understand other cultures from a more humble point of view.