Scholarly look on globalization and cultural imperialism Essay

Scholarly look on globalization and cultural imperialism - Essay Example After the sad period of historical drama characterized by cultural alienation of a part of humanity, a period that has really drawn and painted figures of otherness, the world today offers us an image of osmosis of cultures. The temptation is great and inevitable for African thinker invited to talk about the globalization of culture and its impact on the question of the other, to return to the historical drama lived or suffered by the continent. Indeed, the African intellectual, inheriting a long history and trying to forge a new future, cannot apprehend the otherness through the mesh of interculturality, having no memory of the past. The slave trade, colonization, the structural dependency, alienation radical incurred by the companies to which we belong, challenge us when we think and consider the phenomenon of multiculturalism. (Thomas) At the time of the Renaissance, the discovery of other worlds to the West was a discovery of other peoples and cultures (Lughod). During this meeti ng, Africa has suffered the deep culture shock. For centuries it remained the subject of pure curiosity, and reduced to the status of an "object" of gaze. In the testimony of missionaries, the African was ranked just before the hippos and elephants. He was a half-way between bestiality and humanity. How could he have a culture? Africa was a primitive people. The Negro is recognized by its characteristic features such inordinate length of sex and laughter. Hegel, one of the emblematic figures of modern philosophy, was of African children of the night. In Reason in history, Hegel refuses to grant the certificate of humanity to these beings of the continent. (Gavin) During the course of this discussion we would be looking at some of the fundamental aspects of the ways through which the phenomenon of globalization has imposed its effects on different areas primarily Africa and the ways though which it has facilitated the dissemination of cultural imperialism. Scholarly look on globaliza tion and cultural imperialism When talking about globalization and the resulting phenomenon of cultural imperialism which takes place and emerges because of this, it is important to consider a couple of multitude dimensions in order to fully develop our understanding regarding the entire issue and the connection which can be formulated between the two processes. In order to understand this connection it is important that scholarly sources and their opinions are provided first hand priority. (Sirkin and James) In this context and during the course of this discussion we would be considering the perspectives which have been presented by two prominent scholars of American intelligentsia which include David Rothkopf (38-53) and James Petras (139-48). Both of these scholarly personalities have their own opinion about the phenomenon of cultural imperialism and how does globalization play an extremely pivotal in the facilitation and subtle proliferation of this process in different countrie s of the world. It is however interesting to note here that the opinion and point of view of both these scholarly individuals is completely different and on contradiction to each other, hence it is also important for us to assess the validity and rationale that the argument and thesis statement laid by each of them supports and decide our side accordingly. Rothkopf advocates the idea of cultural imperialism and states that it is important for the West to impose its set of ideologies and values upon other nations so that they may adopt and inherit a similar system and institutional framework which is implemented in the West. (Moore) These ideas mainly emerged in the Cold War era after World War II which brought the intelligentsia of capitalists and communists at loggerhead with each other and with each of them making an attempt to manifest their cultural, ideological, political as well as economic leverage and hegemony over other states of the world.