Globalizing While Keeping Roots

Globalization is a word that is becoming stronger and ever more debated about since the integration of economic, political, and cultural systems across the globe. Depending on whom one asks, older generations vs. the newer generation, a wide range of answers will be given. The elder generation tens feels that globalization takes away from their past cultures and their children and grandchildren will become a product of globalization with no ties back to their heritage. As for the younger generations, they tend to soak up all of the new ideas and technology that bring our world to become globalize. As the old saying goes, “too much of one thing is not good for you”, the same go for everyday life and globalization. Our newer generations along with our older generations need to establish way of transcending simplistic binaries to preserve the culture and ideas of the past along with implementing new knowledge and thoughts.

As I recollect back to the novel An Artist of the Floating World by Kasuo Ishsiguro, Ono was a Japanese artist during World War II who at first could not bring himself to accept the changing world but later finds out that change is for the positive and accepts it. Ono was once a well known, prominent artist who painted art that led Japan into World War II. Once the war was over and Japan had lost, Ono was reluctant to give up his past and move on to create new chapter of his life with his two daughters and grandson. Setsuko is the oldest daughter and is married with a son, Ichiro, and Noriko is the second daughter and is in marriage arrangements. As Ono spends time with his daughter and grandson, he feels that they have moved away from the traditional view he imposes and have become more like the western world. As Ono continues to put up a fight to try to maintain his views, he realizes that the world is changing and in order to create unity with in his family he must change.

Ono has changed his views for the positive. In order for his youngest daughter to get married, he had to accept that Japan has lost the world and things have changed. Ono will always be able to hold on to and cherish his past. “There are things we should both be proud of. Never mind what people today are all saying. Before long, a few more years and the likes of us will be able to hold our head high about what we tired to do” (Ishiguro P94). Ono past helped Japan become what it is today. Even though it was not the vision he had imagine, he created a place his children could experience two worlds. With the help of each other, Ono and his family, they are able to spread diverse knowledge about the old past and the new which can help both generations thrive.

Another example of diversifying globalization is in the novel Jasmine By Bharati Mukherjee. Jasmine the main character is born in a small village in India. At the young age of 17, she made the long journey to America. Jasmine came to America to fulfill her deceased husband dreams of coming to America to go to school, although she did not attend school, she made an astonishing life for herself. Upon arrival, Jasmine experienced many great hardships. But Jasmine continued on strong and never gave up. Being from a different country and coming here to America without knowing anybody or were you are at, Jasmine wonder if people “even see America as I do” (Mukherjee P109).   America was a place of fright and demons for her at the beginning but as time went on and from her experience in India, helped her to continue on and realize that things cannot get any worse when you are at the very bottom. Jasmine continued on and learned the ways of America while still holding on to her knowledge and past life in India.

Globalization is a good thing but it can also lead to bad. People must keep a sense of who they are and where they came from. The two characters describe above came from two different walks of life but held on to what made them unique while still accepting the waves of the future. Without the separation of difference, we as a whole will become mindless zombies walking, talking, and acting the same. But without some sense of globalization, our world will not be able to flourish to its full potential and conflict will arise.