In the late 20th century some people could be regarded or see themselves as victims of globalisation Essay Example For Students

In the late 20th century some people could be regarded or see themselves as victims of globalisation Essay Critically evaluate the way composers have represented these people to show how globalisation has created ways of thinking that have affected them. Globalisation has seen the erosion of traditional boundaries, in order for technology to expand the communication of universal truths, collapsing time and distance, and homogenise global and local constructions of reality into a single cultural identity. This culture of cultures, however, maintains values which perpetuate negative impacts upon the local, victimising ones cultural environment and identity on various levels as can be seen in Seamus Heaneys poems Digging and Requiem for the Croppies, and Annie Proulxs novel- The Shipping News. These texts along with others including Yasumara Morimaras visual The Slaughter Cabinet II, the film Snow Falling on Cedar, and the Television series Star Trek: Voyager; use various techniques and paradigms to illustrate how retreating becomes a way of challenging the status quo, through preserving the local. These texts illustrate the way globalisation has created different ways of thinking, which have often emphasised the way one struggles to exclude the global, or balance both cultural forces. These different ways of thinking have often come to existence, as a result of individuals who become aware of the disintegration of the qualities which make their local traditional and enlightening. In Heaneys Digging, the composers use of structural divisions symbolically supports the process of retreating, exploring his Irish heritage. The exclamation of by god and abstract notion of the old man, for instance, conveys a sense of admiration for the traditional connections between the Irish and their land By god, the old man could handle a spade. Just like his old man. The political discourse, however, created by the pens quality of being snug as a gun; and the irony where the pen or the Global is needed to communicate local values; indicates that the composer has accepted that the victimisation of the local is inevitable and inescapable. These Global forces, however, has led Heaney to suggest to the responder that although the past cannot be replaced, and a total complete return ca n be made, there is an alternate way to dig and follow men like them, using strategies of the global against itself The squat pen rests, ill dig with it. Globalisation has superseded national boundaries, influencing ones interpretations of their lives to a degree in which they are forced to respond through conforming to standards, revolting or suffering as victims unable to find an identity or community to belong to. Similar to Digging, the use of structural divisions in The Shipping News, significantly symbolises Quoyles retreat, and reveals to the responder the vast contrasts between global and local values. Quoyles childhood, for instance, imaginatively describes the global as superficial and unaccommodating failure of a normal appearanceat sixteen he was buried under a casement of flesh All one can do in these global situations which affect ones perception is to invent stratagems to deflect stares. This depiction of the global as lacking in substance and individualism is further emphasised by Petal Bear, whos Thin. Moist. Hot. Appearances are contrasted to the black humour in her death, when she attempts to sell their children to a paedophile, and dies in a car crash. The composer hence, highlights the predictability and negative impacts the global has on an individual. Newfoundlands contrasting celebrations of local traditions, such as the Christmas pageant in chapter thirty four, illustrates the way the local is supportive a sweep of best clothesthe puff of scented bodies, a murmur like bees over a red field The metaphor of the bees quite obviously suggests that the local community is content, as a result of simplicities the gathering of a small crowd of people. Within this communal atmosphere, Quoyles character is able to develop, as seen in his last conversation with Tert Card wife! not going down there, shes staying right here. Stay home where she belongs. With which in reaction, Quoyle, walks off to his children, symbolic of Proulxs portrayal of the local as renewing ones faith in life. Essentially, through contrasting global and local settings, the composer antagonises the Globals victimisation of individuals, and transforms Quoyles experiences into a symbol of the locals growing strength through its struggle with the global. Lifetime Goals and Achievements EssayGlobalisation may be extremely influential to a degree, where it may become an obstruction to those retreating from victimisation. In Snow Falling on Cedars the composers multiculturalism of American and Japanese local communities, retreating from an all destructive global community, exemplifies the way the local may adapt through integrating retreating communities together. The contrast of flashbacks however illustrates the extent to which global attitudes affect the local. The parade scene, for instance, is similar to the Christmas Pageant, and contrasts to the flashbacks of World War II, where Japanese fellow citizens are placed into concentration camps. The discontinuation of the music, the spatial distance between the boat exporting the Japanese people and the island creates a dramatic visual impact, convincing us that, at times, the chance the local spirit retreat, after the erosion of communal values, is relatively less. Retreating from the global constitutes an exclusion of global ways and a preservation of contrasting traditional values in order to avoid a victimisation the global perpetuates. As the texts show through creating symbolic relationships with global and local concepts, globalisation has created a vast tapestry of ideals and values. The representations of ones retreat, suggest that the global is all consuming, and negatively impacts upon local culture, as consumerism, materialism and hedonism erode traditions and identity. Retreating is thus more preferable, however, may not always be possible due to the degree cultures have become standardised. Some of the composers, however, illustrate that the global can provide benefits to accommodate the inadequacies of the local. And in turn, most of the texts point to the ideal that there is a need to integrate global and local aspects a glocalised culture, in order to substantially support ones identity in the 20th century.