Westernization Essay

The lack of understanding among peoples, ethnic and social groups became one of unsolved problems that is referred to the third millennium by the end of the second one. Moreover, the lack of understanding and commitment to achieve superiority over the others have led to a long and devastating wars between nations, the protracted ethnic conflicts and the domination of authoritarian groups. Some states and governments, understanding these fundamental aspects, are trying to find ways to establish peace throughout the world, while others saw the war and dominance over others as a way to survive. They develop appropriate ideologies to justify such behavior. In the frames of this paper we are going to talk about the fact that the spread of global communications technology, such as the Internet, has lead to a worrying trend of Westernization in countries around the world. Dwelling on specific characteristics of Westernization we are going to discuss the previous statement basing on three following area such as culture, politics and business.
First of all it is necessary to mention that many societies realize a radical transformation which led to profound changes in economic, political, social and cultural levels in recent years. Increasingly significant place in society is occupied by market relations. We can note that privatization of state and collective property, and its transition to private one is greatly increased in numbers. Considering rapidly changing events in the world, everything that was mentioned above can be explained by rapid approaching of the worrying trend of Westernization in all countries across the globe.
At the beginning of the trend of Westernization discussion it will be good to mention that it is difficult to give a unique definition to the concept of ‘Westernization’ because its value varies according to location. For example, Americans, most likely, hearing the phrase ‘resident of the East’ associate it with the Japanese and Koreans, and the Israelis – with the Moroccans, Yemenis and Iraqis. Thus, there are as many definitions as there are many commentators.
Thinking about Western civilization in historical context Winkler (2007) mentioned that it becomes understandable that researchers at the Western civilization call it differently: a technological, industrial, scientific and technical. But regardless of the name, Western society is opposite to traditional Eastern society in many ways, though it also has sufficiently deep historical roots.
The Internet, being the most significant invention of our era helps not only to form new system of values, but it ‘helps’ to spoil the old one. Laue (2007) mentioned that it is good that in the willing to be similar to Western countries other countries put active, creative and transforming human activities on the first place, but it is really bad that countries begin to loose their cultural, political and technological identity. The ideals of civilization are continuously updated, going by powerful pace of progress. The absolute value has acquired scientific knowledge, significantly extending the intellectual forces, the inventive faculties of a person; his ability to transform the world, but national values has been somehow replaced. Thus, the ‘contemplation’ of traditional society was resisted to the beginning activity of Western societies.
In contrast to traditional societies, where the paramount meaning has the collective form of human society, western civilization put forward independent, autonomous identity as the most important value, which in turn formed the basis for developing ideas about inalienable human rights, on civil society and the legal state.
Observing technological aspect of the problem we can mention that the sphere of technological development is positively impacted by Westernization, because scientific discoveries and technological innovations, in particular, an invention of production line, allowed to begin mass production. The industrial world has sought to increase the volume, speed, power. Almost all sectors were and are dominated by the mania for giants: huge company, a giant construction site, grand buildings, etc. People believed in good forecasts connected with further development of technology when information went from mouth to mouth, and nowadays the situation has the same nature, but the Internet allows to spread information in more fast and effective way.
Analyzing the spreading of Westernization in political sense we see that the essence of Westernization is the intrusion of the social structure, economy, political system, ideology, culture and lifestyle, similar to those that exist in western countries to non-Western peoples and countries. Ideologically and in promoting it is portrayed as a humane, selfless and liberation mission of the West, which then represented the focus of all conceivable virtues. We are free, rich and happy inspires the Western ideology and propaganda to people tending them to Westernization in one or another way, – and we want to help you become as free, wealthy and happy, as we are. But for this you need to do at home, in your own countries, such things which we will advise you to do. Botz-Bornstein and Hengelbrock (2006) stated that this is the essence of Westernization in words, while, actually, Westernization (in this specific sense presented here) has no real purpose to bring the intended victim to such a prosperous state because countries will loose the capacity for independent existence and development, including the sphere of influence and operation of the western countries, to attach them to the Western world not as an equal and equipotent partners, but to put the role of the zone of colonization on them.
Cultural area of Westernization shows that the influence of the western world on other countries in the field of culture is deeply contradictory. It helps to perpetuate the subordinate position of these countries in the world market, often leads to the destruction of previous forms of culture, morals and values without a substitute them with new ones, to undermine the spiritual potential of society. Therefore, the expansion of the West meets the public’s negative attitude and policies of many states designed to resist the cultural expansion of the West, or at least to accept its restriction. This expansion is increasingly being defined in international documents as cultural imperialism.
According to Beck, Sznaider and Winter (2003), the latest studies underline that imperialism can take many forms and can operate in different spheres. Typically the five forms of imperialism are lists in literature: economic, political, military, communications and cultural. The concept of ‘cultural imperialism’ is usually disclosed as the use of political and economic power to exalt and spread the values and customs of foreign cultures through the culture of another nation. Listed types of imperialism are present continuously, but the role assigned to each of them, may change that leads to the restructuring of the methods of action – depending both on the global situation and the capabilities, which imperialism can invoke in a given country.
According to Meyer (1988), characteristic features of cultural imperialism are the following in the sphere of culture itself:
transference of lifestyle and consumer orientations inherent in Western society;
implanting of western culture as a universal, excluding the contribution of other cultures;
tendency to achieve prosperity through cultural relations and policy objectives;
one-way flow of information – from the ‘center’ to the ‘periphery’ (i.e., from the major Western companies in the entertainment industry or media and communications to large audiences in other countries);
the formation of social and cultural elite, which should facilitate the approval of pro-Western orientation, and thus serve as a pillar of Western influence.
Westernization does not preclude voluntary participation in it and even encourage the passionate desire to go that route. There are powerful temptations, and indoctrination to do this more delicately. But under all circumstances, Westernization has active operations from the West, not excluding the violence. Voluntary on the part of the country that should be westernized does not mean that all people unanimously accept this way of country’s evolution. There is a struggle between different categories of citizens for and against the Westernization on domestic level.
Cultural expansion is an important part and prerequisite for the activities of transnational corporations that dominate the various spheres of public life in developing countries. Activities of transnational corporations are not limited to the economy; they are supplemented by political pressure on the government or the opposition forces and the intense social and cultural influence. Transnational corporations introduce appropriate social and spiritual mechanisms in the host society for its successful functioning. The result is not only changes people’s consumption, but also leads to the reconstruction of the whole system of value orientations which become the dominant purpose of consumption. For example, it becomes understandable that transnational companies attach importance to socio-cultural investment, to ensure the interests of their production in the business area. They provide the production of such a mass culture that leads to the idealization of life, ideologies, values, philosophy and art metropolises, their uncritical acceptance, creating a feeling of inferiority in relation to their own cultures.
Transnational companies pretend to change ideologizing of its activities, which reduces supposedly only for the production and sale of goods, provision of business culture and consumer culture, which supposedly means their orientation on material interests. In fact, instead of myths, in which donned human relations in pre-industrial societies, capitalism establishes commodity fetishism. The product is not only sells, it operates largely as a part of appropriate lifestyle, proposed by the large mass media system, including mass culture and advertising.
Thus, summarizing the information it is necessary to say that cultural, political and business expansion of the West, an aggressive assault of mass culture in modern society is so obvious that it even does not require special proof. Hinds (2003) stated that the ideas to imagine Westernization as an extension of the Europeanization is completely unfounded. They are oppositely directed processes (with external purely formal similarity) in their aims and results. In addition to this Keiji et al (1990) presented the claim that many diseases of the West are also inherent in other countries of the world nowadays. But this is only a consequence of unthinking Westernization of lifestyles, the terrible price the world pay for the abandonment of own ethnic and cultural identity.
In conclusion, we have discussed the trend of Westernization in specific details dwelling on its cultural, political and business aspects. All of the above discussed, of course, does not exclude the trend of penetration of Western culture and its fairly wide distribution, but there is undoubted objective limits of such extension.