Culture vs. Culture
Finally back 'home' in San Jose, I've been thinking about the differences in culture between Costa Rica and Nicaragua. Though I didn't get a chance to really get to know the people of Nicaragua, I did notice that, in general, the people there are much more distant and less courteous at first glance than those here in Costa Rica. Now, I don't mean to say that they are rude; they just don't seem to possess the same smiley gene and over-the-top politeness that is common to Ticos (by the way, Tico means Costa Rican).
This difference was intriguing to me. I've been pondering over the cause of this difference, and what to make of it. One of my travel friends suggested the influence of the recent dictatorship of Luis Somoza Debayle ending in 1979 (see http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/COLDnicaragua.htm).
Now, compare that to the history of Costa Rica which won its independence without any gunshots and has abolished its army (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Costa_rica).
After considering these historical differences further, I am really quite fascinated at how strong of an influence a society's history can have on their culture. Perhaps an understanding of history is always necessary in order to fully understand people.
But does this mean that one culture is necessarily more or less friendly than another?
My conclusion is thus:
People are people and wherever there are people there are good people and there are bad people. There are friendly people and there are cold people. Some friendly people are cold on the inside. Some cold people are friendly on the inside. I suppose the following is also true, that some good people are bad on the inside, and some bad people are good on the inside.
Because a society's history has such a great influence on its people, perhaps, at least on the outside, the people will possess common characteristics or attitudes. But still, because people are people, it is always wise to look deeper before making any judgments concerning who a person really is.
So, can you ever legitimately say that one culture is better than another?
How about we leave this up to a discussion on the comments page of this blog entry. Please, if you would like to offer any thoughts concerning my ramblings, please leave me a comment by clicking on the comments link below.
posted by Sam H at 6:38 PM
8 Comments:
I thought it'd be cool to get a good discussion going here. Perhaps a few comments that may lead to a future blog on corruption in government.
Wayne, I'd love to hear some of your insights on the history of Central America.
Holy cow! That is probably the best Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle analogy that I have ever heard in my life!
I suppose that not only can we not know the precise conditions of any one particle at a specific time, but that Wave Theory also stands true.
"Wave functions are often interpreted as describing the probability of finding their corresponding particle at a given point in space at a given time" (Wikipedia: Wave-Partical Duality).
You can make very accurate calculations concerning the probability that a certain particle - or person, if you will - will exhibit certain characteristics.
And then, of course, we have to come back to the semantics of what we mean by "good", or "culture".
Well I had some really wise things to say about people and freedom and happiness... but I think I'll leave the theorizin' and philosophizin' to the kollege kids!! There's no way us older and wiser un's can keep up with 'em!
Holy Moly! This is the most rediculous discussion I have ever seen.
1. You can't facutally argue about things that are "better", "worse", "good", and "bad". Its worthless.
2. If any discussion boils down to semantics, you know there is no answer, you are talking out your butt, and wasting your time.
3. One person's observations of a society over a few days don't constitute enough evidence to draw conclusions about a culture.
3. The wave theory is NOT true for anything related to sociology. Its a QUANTUM MECHANICS LAW. Relating the two makes you feel cool, but look dumb.
4. Whats really funny is, after reading everyone's posts again, I think most of us agree that this is a rediculous question.
Clearly I'm in a bad mood and I'm not sure why I myself wasted time on this issue either...
But your trip sounds pretty fun, I'll give you that.
Well, my goodness! These banterings certainly are getting lively! With only a very little mention of corruption OR government! And what about the HISTORY of CENTRAL AMERICA??? It appears the initial question has been largely ignored in the name of social theorizing!
I would just add a couple of thoughts to the discussion. It is true that God has given all of us agency of thought and judgment and belief, and of course my thoughts and judgments and beliefs are not always the same as yours. Also, they are subject to changes in my circumstances and feelings, therefore what I believe or judge to be true can change from time to time. However, truth is truth. It does not change based on who believes it. Truth that is not believed has only to be discovered to then become a thought and then a judgment, and ultimately a belief.
Personally, what I believe (not a statement of fact, but only my belief), based on what I know of Sam… that he is uncommonly sensitive to feelings and perceptions of things around him…, is that the people in Nicaragua probably generally are more somber and inwardly drawn than the people in Costa Rica. And I’m sure there are any number of reasons why, including the ones that have been theorized in this blog. I also believe that freedom and democracy result in a happier, more open and satisfied people. I won’t pretend to know as much about the history and politics of any of the countries in Central America as I’m sure others of you do. But I have observed that the presence of freedom, or the lack of it, has a huge impact on the culture/society/standards/happiness of any group of people. The American people (referring here to the United States of America) demonstrated many aspects of our culture/society/standards when we were attacked on Sept 11, 2001. I have heard it said, and I believe it to be true, that our attackers expected to have a much more detrimental effect on our culture/society than they ultimately had. They didn’t count on the strength of mind that freedom produces. Instead of crumbling, we grew stronger. You see, freedom and democracy result in open minds and free wills. And that makes the people more independent in their thinking and somewhat arrogant in the defense of what they determine to be their space and their rights. It spoke volumes to me to see the rush of patriotism and camaraderie that drew us together as a nation. And as I thought about it at the time, my conclusion was that this country was founded and blessed to be a free land so that the gospel could have the fertile soil of open, free minds to be planted and to grow. That is what I still believe.
So, Samuel, use you sensitive feelings and your open mind to find as much truth as you possibly can, wherever you are. If you will honestly ponder and search for it, you’ll find it. After all the hypothesizing and philosophizing are sorted through, the buts and what ifs cleared away, truth remains. One plus one is still two. The world is still… well, it’s not exactly round, but it is shaped the way it is. Truth is truth.
I was going to write something truly profound, but I can see that we have nearly exhuasted this discussion.
You guys have a lot of time on your hands.
Hi everyone, I just want to say (if anyone wants to hear a foreign opinion) that I am absolutely agree with wayne's last comments. Truth is truth, and wayne has mentioned one.
However, I'm afraid my english is too poor to give an opinion about cultures, or semantic. But, I have a question in reference to one of the theories you have talked about: I am Spanish, does it means that I am less friendly than an Norwegian just because of the dictatorship in Spain till 1975? And why would you say cubans seem always so happy? I think that when you say that people needs democracy to be happy, you commit a basical mistake: you are judging hapiness from your own point of view. You live in a democracy, so you think everbody needs it (and I'm not talking about freedom; I don't think democracy necesary means freedom). My friend can't understand how can anyone lives without a phone movile, just because she has one. Well, maybe the movile makes her life easier, but it definetely doesn't make her happier. Maybe people in N doesn't need the same things you need to be happy, maybe they are already happy in their own way and, most of all, maybe they don't need to express kindness in the same way you do.
Once again, sorry about my english (and my interference in your discussion). I hope you understand what I'm trying to say. Thanks for your blog, very interesting! :-)
Whoah! Quite a response!
I am pleased to say that I got what I wanted from the blog. Y'all's comments helped me to understand a few things about culture a bit better.
Wayne, your insights on the US's interactions with Latin America are interesting. It reminds me of the book The Good Earth which depicts how the rich got even richer by benefitting from the incredible poverty of others. Not a good thing.
Keith, you found the quote I was looking for, which I instead replaced with some quantum theory jibberish.
I suppose my original question wasn't well defined, of was perhaps a bit silly. I was just trying to articulate some of my wonderings concerning the apparant differences I noted in culture. Then, when I was excited to get back to the "nice" Ticos I started to wonder if they were really necessarily "nicer".
I've always considered myself a culturalist, as opposed to a racist. I think it is wrong to judge a person based on their race. However, I think that when you understand a person's culture then you can understand the person a lot better... especially if you realize that the person is not going to fit every expectation you have of them based on their culture.
At any rate... I need to get to posting my new blog reporting on my trip to the Carribean coast!
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