Chapter 51 Change worry about "Westernization" to positive "Westernization"

Your perspective is unique.There are quite a few scholars talking about "cultural globalization" now, but not many like you. Concerns about globalization are widespread in developing countries, and China is no exception.There have been many articles talking about "cultural globalization", which is very controversial.Mike Featherstone's point of view may be more pertinent. The prospect of a unified global culture is slim. More precisely, global culture is a diverse culture.There are two parallel but opposite trends here, one is the globalization of industrial culture, popular culture, and the partial acceptance of Western cultural values ​​by non-Western; the other is the revival of local and national Cherish your own cultural traditions more.National cultural values ​​will not die, but will be passed on through change.Scholars from China, Japan, and Korea have conducted surveys on youth values. The results show that the values ​​of youth in the three countries have a clear orientation towards modernization. At the same time, more than 80% of them advocate inheriting traditional national culture, but they are not enemies of the West.The orientation of youth shows the power of cultural inheritance and heralds the future direction.Therefore, instead of sitting worrying about the dangers of "Westernization", it is better to strengthen the ability of "Westernization" by doing it in a down-to-earth manner.

It is very interesting to "Westernize" and not "Westernize". For any culture to be understood by another culture, it must be filtered and screened by another culture. Cultural misunderstandings are inevitable.What's more, there are deliberate misinterpretations, that is, "demonizing" propaganda of other cultures, which are more likely to have a negative impact on international relations.Samuel Berger, former US National Security Affairs Assistant, said that too many Americans study Chinese dragons, but only see sharp teeth and scales, and too many Chinese study American eagles, but only see ferocious ones. Eyes and hard talons.

Some people oppose "cultural globalization" while opposing economic globalization, and say that "cultural globalization" means cultural colonization and cultural imperialism. Do you have any similar or opposite views on this? First, the so-called "cultural globalization" is not that simple.We see two trends, which are opposite and parallel.One is the globalization of popular culture and industrial civilization, and this is globalization.For example, boys and girls all over the world wear jeans. This is the globalization of popular culture. And the draft.reality show. That's how "Super Girl" came about. That's how "Dancing Forest Conference" came about. That's how "Come on, good boy" came about.The "first heartbeat" that was urgently called to a halt by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television also came about in this way.

All of these things are.And listening to popular music, Elvis Presley, Lennon, and Michael Jackson are all products of industrial civilization. Even in Africa and the great desert, there is still a piece of it, all of which are high-rise buildings, modern buildings, and things of industrial civilization.This is a trend. French writer Le Clézio cursed this trend as war.In her novel "War", she angrily condemned those buildings, tunnels, railways, construction sites, TV station towers, and highway forks. Internal organs.She also angrily denounced the Paris Metro, the docks in Dakar, the brick walls in Khabarovsk, the monopole pumps in Addis Ababa, and the concrete mixers in Dar es Salaam.Perhaps, industrial civilization is not being questioned until today.Perhaps when Watt invented the first steam engine, human beings were doomed to be trapped in their own preset traps.Otherwise, why did Dickens write at the beginning of the verse: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times; it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of ignorance; it was the age of faith, it was Time of doubt; it was the season of sunshine, it was the season of darkness; it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair; we had everything before us, and we had nothing before us; To heaven, we are all going straight to hell."

Your thinking is not without reason.Because of globalization, everything related to industrial civilization is globalizing, people are more worried about losing themselves, so there is a parallel but opposite trend, that is, more emphasis on national culture.We must see that the nationalization of culture, or localization of culture, is also being strengthened.Therefore, those who agree with the mention of "cultural globalization" only talk about one aspect; those who oppose the mention of "cultural globalization" only see one aspect. As far as I know, you disagree with the mention of "cultural globalization".

Generally speaking, I do not agree with the mention of "cultural globalization".Because of "cultural globalization", people think that cultures all over the world are the same, homogenized, and convergent, but this is not the case.On the one hand, such a popularization and globalization of industrial civilization exists objectively, and is an irresistible development trend.However, on the other hand, people are also paying more attention to their own culture, and they need to think about the prospects of development in their own cultural construction.Such a trend, a trend of paying more attention to cultural diversity will not disappear.No matter how industrialized and modernized we are, the tendency to focus on cultural diversity will not disappear.If you look at developed countries in Europe, industrialization and modernization have developed so much, but their culture has not disappeared.

At the end of the last century, Jospin, then French Prime Minister, visited China. During his stay in Shanghai, he invited Chinese people from all walks of life to meet at the Shanghai Grand Theater designed by the French.During the meeting, a Chinese scholar stood up and asked: "Culture and language are closely related. Facing the 'Englishization' of the world and the 'integration' of the global economy, how does the French government maintain the status of French and how does it promote French culture?" Spann did not answer the question directly, but made a principled thinking.He said that the loss of a national language means the end of the national civilization.No country that maintains national cultural values ​​will allow its own language to be replaced by English.As far as the world is concerned, the economy can be globalized, and even the currency can be integrated, but the culture must encourage diversification.He also believes that it is in the spirit of cultural diversity that French culture has been continuously developed and enriched while respecting other national cultures.

Strengthening the health of disadvantaged cultures requires a long process and cannot be accomplished overnight.But in this process, China should also constantly cultivate and enhance its cultural influence on the region and the world.Although they are generally weak, they can have the right to initiate and take the lead on a certain issue.Follow the development trend of the times, safeguard the common interests of all mankind, and combine China's national interests with those of other countries and the interests of all mankind, and China's propositions will definitely get more responses.

The strengthening of weak cultures is not only the result of modernization, but also the result of consciously accumulating experience.In this sense, China's rich cultural resources and intellectual wisdom need to be deeply excavated and refined.