Cultural Whiplash
Posted by C. Holland on Sep 10, 2009Mentanna over at “Musings From a French-Fried Texan” continues her assimilation back into her home country with a fascinating post entitled “Whiplash”. I can relate on a small scale as we’ve just recently hosted several sets of American friends in our home. It took me by surprise that their American behaviour shocked me so much as it definitely would not have several years ago. Favourite quote:
“this kind of encounter would never have taken place in france. as a matter of fact, it often takes about 6 months and 16 conversations before you even learn someone’s name. getting to know a frenchie can be exceedingly frustrating due to the excruciatingly slow pace at which personal information is exchanged. one must never forget that intimacy in france is measured in years not minutes.”
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September 10th, 2009 at 1:27 pm
I’m going to quote a whole paragraph from William Langewiesche’s excellent article “The Pirate Latitudes” (Vanity Fair, APR 2009). It’s worth it to read the whole article to see the full extent of the cultural differences between the various nationalities on board the ship.
>>Many of the trips were full charters. Among the national groups, the French were the easiest to handle, if not necessarily to like. They slept late, savored the refined cuisine, and demanded little of an itinerary beyond the chance to lie in the sun. They could be imperious with the waiters and maids, but overall they were simple to satisfy. American passengers were different—individually more accessible than the French, but collectively exhausting. The problem seemed to stem from a lack of skepticism, or of philosophical distance from themselves. Certainly this was not true of all Americans, but it did seem to apply to the types who came to these cruises. They sincerely regarded traveling on the Ponant as an opportunity for self-improvement. They would read up beforehand (from recommended lists), and then appear for the trips with sunblock creams and special shoes, accompanied by lecturers who were expected to enrich their minds. They were nice people, but of the sort who go for swims wearing long-brimmed visors and drawstring hats. Rather than lingering late in the Ponant’s bar, they retired after dining because they wanted to be fresh for sunrise departures and goal-oriented hikes. They did not walk, but trekked. They did not like long lunches of nouvelle cuisine. Midday they preferred quick meals of barbecued burgers and New York cheesecake, or Caesar salad. They did not mean to offend. But their tastes were insulting to the chef, and upsetting by birthright to the crew.<<
September 10th, 2009 at 1:30 pm
I omitted the link:
http://tinyurl.com/ccufzf
Long link:
http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2009/04/somali-pirates200904?currentPage=1
September 10th, 2009 at 11:40 pm
I, too, was surprised last week when I took one of our Native American elders (seniors) to the doctor in teh city last week. I thought the young technician was very rude and “processed” the elder way too quickly… then I realized how much I’ve changed. Our changes in culture are simply a trip from the reservation to the city… which can be surprising since it’s only a 45 min drive…
September 11th, 2009 at 4:37 pm
@Greg: Good article. After reading what you quoted, I had an “a-ha” moment when I read “collectively exhausting”. I’ve been hosting my brother here this week (and had other Americans stay with us this summer), and it’s so true that some personality types are so driven when on holiday. They’ve all been very nice to us, but the sheer amount of us driving and entertaining them packed into just a few days or a week is just that–exhausting.
@Roxie: Thanks for the insight. The longer I live in a different culture, the more I realise how specific to even a small area that culture can be.
September 14th, 2009 at 1:27 pm
Haha! I’m glad the article was useful. I thought this quote was very illuminating as well:
“The problem [of the Americans] seemed to stem from a lack of skepticism, or of philosophical distance from themselves.”
The way Americans put everything on the table at once (not to mention wearing their emotions on their sleeves) leaves no sense of mystery or intrigue. Europeans always seemed so mysterious and detached to me and I think this captures it – they are “philosophically distanced from themselves.”