Ich bin ziemlich krank, deshalb ist es ein bisschen schwierig für mich, im Moment diese Blog zu schreiben, aber ich werde versuchen!
Firstly, I am quite surprised at the level of Americanisation in Germany (though perhaps I shouldn't be). Just like in Australia, a McDonalds or Pizza Hut can always be found nearby, and German television is filled with all the American shows I am familiar with. Therefore, I find that a part of the culture of Germany is somewhat familiar (perhaps, even reminiscent of our own culture back home).
Second, (something I touched on briefly in my previous post) is the cultural diversity of Stuttgart, and indeed other major cities of Germany, such as Munich. Much like Australia, Germany seems to be a nation comprised of a number of different types of people. This then reflects on the culture of the nation: it is not restricted to one type, but rather there is a "mix". This is something that I also find familiar, because being an Australian I am used to a cultural mix resulting from our diverse range of people.
Something, however, that I have found quite different is the cultural attitude toward smoking. Public places (such as the U and S Bahn stations) are smoke free; however I constantly find that people smoke in these areas anyway. Cigarettes are heavily advertised (is anyone else sick of those "Don't be a Maybe" adds by Marlboro?) and there are even cigarette-pack dispensers in places like supermarkets and restaurants. It is not difficult to find a smoker on the street, and there are a lot of young people who also choose to smoke ("choose" is perhaps the wrong word, given that they are saturated by cigarette advertising). Overall, there seems to be a completely different attitude to smoking than in Australia. Of course, people smoke (I should also say here that I have nothing at all against people who do smoke), however it is largely discouraged by anti-smoking campaigns, and the overwhelming majority of young people are (at least from my view) against it.
I look forward to observing more of these similarities and differences over the next few weeks. Jetzt, muss ich mich ins Bett legen.
Bis Bald,
Dan.
The Americanisation is so strong! You cannot fight it, but i think it just comes from this domination of the western media for sheer tonnage of stuff produced, along with tonnage of pizza and burgers, but who knows, there might be a change in this if America falls from being the most powerful western nation?
ReplyDeleteYeah I agree Kai- we could perhaps see a change if America's position as the global power were to slip or something. American cultural dominance has also been somewhat affected in recent years, so this could also have an impact on the Americanisation of other nations. Interesting stuff.
DeleteI am also sick of those Marlboro advertisements! It shocks me to see them but I suppose that's just because we're not used to cigarette advertising at home. I guess that alcohol advertising is just as bad.
ReplyDeleteThis is true, smokers are everywhere and it is really interesting how the German approches smoking, they do not have campaigns or advertisments against smoking, but they are promoting it. And many people do smoke, which is really interesting. While Australians continue to campaign about the hazardous effects of smokings Germans and Europeans in general dont seem to care about them. Sehr interessant!
ReplyDelete