Generations And Culture- (Subcultures In Saudi Arabia) Essays Examples

English

There are several subcultures in the world today. Each of these subcultures has its beliefs that define the way of life of these cultures. There exist very many communities and societies in the world. These communities have their customs and cultures. These cultures define the way of life of a certain people. These cultures vary from one community to another. These cultures are an important element in people’s lives (Fischer, 17). They give a sense of belonging and enable an understanding of people’s unique environment by providing a platform on which individuals can comprehend the cultural diversity that cuts across all these communities. There are many reasons that lead people into adopting certain cultural norms in their societies. These cultural norms also differ even within a community that has many sub-communities in it. These cultural norms also vary with events and purpose in the communities. Therefore, it is important for people to understand cultural diversity by familiarizing themselves with the similarities and differences in these cultures.
Saudi Arabia is a region with some of these subcultures. For instance, the Emo is a subculture likely to be found in Saudi Arabia because of the increasing proportion of young individuals in the country. This segment of the total population, about sixty percent of the population, strongly associates itself with the ongoing and recent socioeconomic changes and cultural movements in the region (Hebdige, 17). Bicultural identity is an element of the subcultures of Saudi Arabia, and it enables people to belong to a bigger community, the global culture, which influences the global and local identities of Saudi Arabians. This aspect suggests the importance of bicultural identities in the Saudi Arabian communities. Bicultural identity has become a global phenomenon with many adolescents and children growing up with a global conscious. The media plays a significant role in forming the bicultural identity because it is an important resource in the world today (At-Twaijri and Al-Ghamdi, 10).
Many topics can be included under this term “Subculture” which can be defined as group of people who have similar characteristics such as age, race, or beliefs. Each particular subculture reflects knowledge and practices of those people who belong to it, but often subculture considers in opposition to the main culture or previous generation. Always people have something in common, and subculture gives them a sense of unity, safety and not feeling alone. So, being a part of the subcultures is important because it is making life easy and joyful and for that people should be active with their subcultures. In many countries, subcultures are taking part in society by sharing the values, behaviors. However, not all of them are good because there are some representing crimes or violence such as gangs.
Subcultures are different from country to another, but there is no doubt they have a direct effect on society and economy in a positive way or negative way. U.S is one of the countries that has multi-culture varieties and if I would count the Arabian culture as subculture in Cookeville, many people from Arab countries live in around here and Saudis are ranked as the first of population of the Arab communities in Cookeville because are more than 400 people. It is noticeable for me the change that happened since 2012 until now because the influence of that subculture. For example, in 2012, I used to go to Nashville to do grocery because there are some markets that offer some Arabian food, but nowadays I can find it easily around Cookeville neighborhood and which means that subculture become a part of the main culture. On the other hand, if anyone make problem, it will be counted against the Arab community and that might lead to creating a negative serotype about them.
The subcultures in Saudi Arabia make the individuals develop tendencies to the customs of the major culture instead of their subcultures whenever they are away from their homes, which may lead to a decline in the preservation of subcultures. This aspect suggests the perspectives of the Saudi Arabians on their subcultures while in different cultures within the country. Whenever they are in a foreign culture, they tend to neglect their subcultures to adjust to these new cultures and have a sense of belonging to the place they are (Hebdige, 26). Nevertheless, by being part of the same culture, these Saudi Arabians would help each other willingly as if they belong to the same subculture. Moreover, by embracing the major cultures, issues of other subcultures will be everyone’s issues and will motivate individuals to find solutions to these problems.
I also believe that developing and embracing the subcultures is an important aspect for the Saudi Arabians. That is; they have to respect their traditions and preserve their cultural values by embracing their subcultures. Although the issue of developing bicultural subcultures may seem of concern to only a group of individuals in the country that understand and know what is happening in around the world and in the country in terms of subcultures, it should in fact concern every individual who cares about having a cohesive society. That is, having a bicultural subculture is like developing a divergent identity, which could lead to the cultural loss and connection loss between the community members. Although most of the Saudi Arabians develop bicultural identities with reference to their subcultures under the influence of globalization, I believe that people should not forget their original subcultures, and they should be practicing their traditions. I also think that the changes made by globalization and media make people realize how important their cultural values are. Therefore, they respect their traditions and preserve their cultural values more.
Haddow says that the artificial appropriation of various styles of variant eras, especially with the representation of the Western civilization, has influenced the loss of culture its past superficiality. That is; it is existing as suicidal and unsustainable. In addition, whereas various movements of youths challenge the decadence and dysfunction of the elders, the individual youth subcultures mirror doomed shallowness of the mainstream societies.

Works Cited

At-Twaijri, M. I., and S. M. Al-Ghamdi. "Bases of Power, An Empirical Case Study in Saudi Arabia Cultural Dimension." Cross Cultural Management: An International Journal (1997): n. pag. Web. <10.1108/eb008420>.
Fischer, C. S. "Toward a Subcultural Theory of Urbanism." American Journal of Sociology (2008): n. pag. Web. <10.1086/225993>.
Hebdige, D. "Subculture: The Meaning of Style." (1979): Print.