Transculturalism

Transculturalism is defined as "seeing oneself in the other".[1] Transcultural (pronunciation: trans kul′c̸hər əl or tranz kul′c̸hər əl)[2] is in turn described as "extending through all human cultures"[2] or "involving, encompassing, or combining elements of more than one culture".[3]

Other definitions

In 1940, transculturalism was originally defined by Fernando Ortiz, a South American scholar, based on the article Nuestra America (1881) by José Marti. From Marti Gra's idea, Ortiz thought that transculturalism was the key in legitimizing the [hemispheric] identity. Thus Ortiz defined transculturalism as the synthesis of two phases occurring simultaneously, one being a deculturalization of the past with a métissage (see métis, as in the Métis population of Canada and the United States) with the present, which further means the "reinventing of the new common culture". Such reinvention of a new common culture is in turn based on the meeting and intermingling of the different peoples and cultures.[1] According to Lamberto Tassinari, the director of Vice Versa, a transcultural magazine in Montreal, Canada, transculturalism is a new form of humanism based on the idea of relinquishing the strong traditional identities and cultures which […] were [the] products of imperialistic empires [...] interspersed with dogmatic religious values. Tassinari further declared that transculturalism opposes the singular traditional cultures that evolved from the nation-state. He also stated that transculturalism is based on the breaking down of boundaries, and is contrary to multiculturalism because in the latter most experiences that have shown [reinforces] boundaries based on past cultural heritages. And that in transculturalism the concept of culture is at the center of the nation-state or the disappearance of the nationstate itself.[1] In this context, German cultural scholar Dagmar Reichardt stresses the didactical relevance of a paradigmatic shift in academia through Transcultural Studies, mainly focusing on the European model of conviviality in a globalized world. [4]

Origins

According to Richard Slimbach, author of The Transcultural Journey, transculturalism is rooted in the pursuit to define shared interests and common values across cultural and national borders. Slimbach further stated that transculturalism can be tested by means of thinking "outside the box of one's motherland" and by "seeing many sides of every question without abandoning conviction, and allowing for a chameleon sense of self without losing one's cultural center".[5]

Characteristics

According to Jeff Lewis, transculturalism is characterised by cultural fluidity and the dynamics of cultural change. Whether by conflict, necessity, revolution or the slow progress of interaction, different groups share their stories, symbols, values, meanings and experiences. This process of sharing and perpetual 'beaching' releases the solidity and stability of culture, creating the condition for transfer and transition. More than simple 'multiculturalism', which seeks to solidify difference as ontology, 'transculturalism' acknowledges the uneven interspersion of Difference and Sameness. It allows human individuals groups to adapt and adopt new discourses, values, ideas and knowledge systems. It acknowledges that culture is always in a state of flux, and always seeking new terrains of knowing and being.[6]

Transculturalism is the mobilization of the definition of culture through the expression and deployment of new forms of cultural politics. Based on Jeff Lewis’ From Culturalism to Transculturalism, transculturalism is charactized by the following:[7]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Cuccioletta, Donald. Multiculturalism or Transculturalism: Towards a Cosmopolitan Citizenship., LONDON JOURNAL OF CANADIAN STUDIES 2001/2002 VOLUME 17, Plattsburgh State University of New York, Interdisciplinary Research Group on the Americas
  2. 1 2 transcultural, thefreedictionary.com
  3. ↑ transcultural, yourdictionary.com
  4. ↑ Essay on "The theory of a transcultural Francophonia" by Dagmar Reichardt in German: PhiN. Philologie im Netz, 38/2006, Online; and in French: "Relief. Revue électronique de littérature française", vol. 5, 2/2011, 2
  5. ↑ Slimbach, Richard. The Transcultural Journey, Essays, Asuza Pacific University, 26 pages.
  6. ↑ Jeff Lewis *2008) 'Cultural Studies', Sage, London.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Lewis, Jeff. The Cultural Dynamic, From Culturalism to Transculturalism
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