REFLECTION
1. CRITICAL INSIGHT.
At the beginning I was so concern about this class, I didn’t know what was about. When we start to explore the basic culture terms I learn that I leaved in the mainstream and I didn’t know, and that almost everybody experience the culture shock phenomenon, I learn too that the subculture it’s not something bad or erratic they only are a small groups that have a different behavior from the main groups, and the ethnocentrism doesn’t means the same that the racism, we only need to be able to view and understand the other culture on its own terms and actually this means the cultural relativism.
And if I want live plenty my new adoptative culture I need to understand that the culture is determined for different behaviors; for example in the government, education, business areas, everybody knows that exist rules and we know the reasons of the rules so this is the technical culture, but then we can found the formal culture in the different traditions, arts, rituals that eventually exists rules but we don’t know why; and the last one the informal culture the one that is below the water, no because is bad just because is 99% imitation, no rules no reason just like the friendship or the prays to god.
It is fun to think that USA is a salad bowl, a lot of cultures, ethnicities in just one country, blending their own culture and the new adoptive culture; I think the huge cultural diversity makes America a great place not only for live also economically, opinion that I share with the writer Richard Blanco in the poem One day, in this beautiful poem we can appreciate the sacrifices, hopes, and feelings that many people have, looking the same objective under one sky, our American sky.
2. AHA.
My aha moment was when I was reading the articles regarding “Culture Shock”, in all the links explain the concept of culture, the stages and the different feelings that can happen; I remember that I was reading and thinking how the people can feel those all things, and if I’m be honest I can’t believe it; and then I read: …..another feeling can be Anxiety for cleanest, that means the intense desire to have everything clean at home, car etc.…. OMG!! I start to laughing and in that moment I understood why when I came to Chicago (the first months) all the day I just wanted to clean my home, nobody believes me, mi mom was concern about that, even me; I cannot understand was going on, because at my country I hate the cleanup time. So, yes I had culture shock symptoms, but this one was my aha moment.
3. I DIDN’T KNOW THAT.
How big is the ‘culture shock phenomenon’ which involves an entire science, I mean is a complete and specifically assignment to study. Symptoms, stages and processes that affect a lot of people even to generations and the funny thing is that most people don't even know that it exists and unless is happening to you.
