Question 17 for teachers and students

[iuliamanicea]

Sometimes cultures cannot be woven together, do you think this could be true? If yes, which aspects are not compatible? If not, why?

[Romania_PaulaDozsa11F]

I think the main reason for which cultures cannot be woven together sometimes is the lack of a means of communication. However, due to English and other widespread languages, most people nowadays can communicate even though they are from different countries and therefore find common aspects in their cultures.

[Bulgaria_polinamoskova]

Each country has its own "character". These idiosyncratic traits are to be preserved. When it comes to national traditions and history, countries have to be distinct from one another in order to preserve the national identity.

[Romania_StoicaVlad]

Although each country is different in its way, I think that Europe is getting more united every day.

[ebruturkey]

cultures need a good understanding but not ignorance

[Andreea Dumitru]

Some people who oppose the whole phenomenon of globalization do so by invoking the disappearance of cultural identity as one of the consequences. In other words, they fear that cultures will become interwoven to the point of losing their defining characteristics. I think that is a fear without foundation, as, for example, the melting pot of the United States managed to include a large number of different cultural backgrounds, and, although blended, they retained most of their defining features.
Furthermore, I think the phenomenon of things being mixed together is perfectly natural, and unavoidable, especially when it comes to cultures, and the only way to avoid such a thing is to opt for a policy of isolationism, which is definitely not productive.
Last but not least, I believe some of the elements which people consider as being impossible to assimilate are not actually part of culture, but remnants of an old, antiquated, and, most importantly, non-democratic way of thinking. For example, some people say that treating women as second-rank citizens, not granted all the rights of their male counterparts, is part of a country's tradition, and must be respected. I strongly disagree with such a stance, and I believe elements of culture are extremely flexible, and quite easy to mix, as long as such elements are in agreement with all the basic human rights and freedoms. In other words, the example mentioned above is not one of cultural incompatibility between two cultures, but one of one country needing to revise its human rights policy.
To sum it all up, I don't believe there is such a thing as incompatible cultures. All of them are the result of a variety of human communities interacting with each other and with other communities over time, so they are a mixture of customs and influences to begin with.

[AYSEGUL_TURKEY]

Yes, every culture is not compatible. Because different countries have different thoughts and behaviors. it can be difficult to adapt

[sweden_helenahedqvist]

Maybe all cultures can not be woven together and that might not be what we are aiming for. I think all cultures can learn to respect the fact that we are the same but yet different and that is OK. Respect that is built on information, interest in each other and possibilities to meet and share opinions and experiences - just like we are doing at our meetings. An open mind is important.

[Spain_inakivaldes]

The world is made of the differents countries, with differents rules, culture and history. We can try to understand other points of view but not change the cultures.

[Grazyna_Poland]

The countries are different but some of points in culture or history we have common. During the meetings we can compare them.