Identity

Closely related to the concept of culture are the notions of individual, social and national identities. Identity, particularly in the age of globalization, is never a fixed reality, a pre-given identification; it is a dynamic and evolving reality. “Cultural identity is a matter of becoming as well as being. It belongs to the future as much as to the past. It is not something which already exists, transcending places, time, history and culture. Cultural identities come from somewhere, they have histories. But like everything which is historical, they undergo constant transformation” (Hall, 1990). “Identity is never a priori, not a finished product” (Bhabba, 1986). “Things fall apart, the centre cannot hold” (“Yeats”). This famous quotation from Yeats, which he wrote in the aftermath of the First World War, has often been used to highlight the current sense of cultural fragmentation and dislocation of the individual in the new world dominated by globalization.

In this new world, individual identities, group identity, cultural and ethnic identity, as well as national identity are no longer clearly defined concepts to which individuals and groups can relate and find their own identification. Identity is no longer conceptualized as a given but rather as something which is constantly negotiated and struggled over (Saint-Jacques, 2002). In this world, the individual’s activity has been diversifying and group membership becomes more pluralistic; belonging to a number of groups means that the individual will have several identities or multiple identities. The case of immigrants is a good example. In a recent article, Van Oudenhoven, Ward and Masgoret write that immigrants may give up parts of their cultural heritage without giving up their cultural identity (2006), Hybridity and multiple identities (whether affirmed or negated) are part of the human condition, and we should begin considering them as “normal” (Boyland, 2005).

In their recent paper, Bhatia and Ram (2009) rightly make the point that acculturation and immigrant identity is not only an individual process: “We call for a shift from conceptualizing acculturation and immigrant identity as an individual process to a more broad, contextual, and political phenomenon”. Their research shows clearly that the acculturation experiences of Indian immigrants living in the diaspora in the United States “are constructed through a dynamic, back-and-forth play concurrently between structure and self, being privileged and marginalized, caught in the web of socio-political and historical forces”. Human beings are living at the same time within particular cultural settings, on the one hand, and between different cultural environments, on the other one. Bayart (2005) argues that identities are fluid, never homogenous and sometimes invented. Fixed cultural identities never exist.

Globalization can be a profoundly enriching process, opening minds to new ideas and experiences, and strengthening the finest values of humanity. “The homogenizing influences of globalization that are most often condemned by the new nationalists and by cultural romanticists are actually positive: globalization promotes integration and the removal not only of cultural barriers but of many of the negative dimensions of culture. Globalization is a vital step toward both a more stable world and better lives for the people in it” (Rothkopf, 1997). This new approach to intercultural understanding might help intercultural communication.

Instruction:This text is consructedaround three problems: the opposition of strong uncertainty-avoidance cultures vs. weak uncertainty-avoidance cultures, the dichotomy of individualism vs. collectivism and four aspects of identities: individual, social, cultural and national identities. You are expected to highlight these problems basing onexplicit facts and details given in the passage. You have to locate and identify the information and determine the author’s idea, purpose, attitude, etc. If you are not sure from your first reading where to look for specific answers, use scanningtechniques. The order of facts or details in the text follows the order in which ideas are presented in the passage. In other words, the opening information you need will usually come near the beginning of the passage; the next factual information will follow that, and so on. Knowing this should help you locate the information you need.

• Focus on one or two key words as you read the stem of each question. Lock these words in your mind.

• Scan the passage looking for the key words or their synonyms. Look only for these words. Do NOT try to read every word of the passage.

• It may help to focus your attention. Don't reread the passage completely – just look for key words.

• When you find the key words in the passage, carefully read the sentence in which they occur. You may have to read the sentence preceding or following that sentence as well.

• Compare the information you read with possible answer choices.

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<== попередня сторінка	\|	наступна сторінка ==>
Individualism versus Collectivism, the Case of Japan	\|	Factual Questions

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