Experience Of Cultural Shock Essay Examples

The differences between the cultures of the people of the United States and the culture of my country, Saudi Arabia are so much pronounced in every aspect. The differences are visible and notable in every field of society ranging from religion to family and social relationships. The family, being the most fundamental social unit in every society, determines to a great extent the cultural values of a society. The culture and social order of a society is described by the language of the people, the mode of dressing they embrace, the foods they eat, the religious practices they observe as well as the style in which they communicate among themselves. A person that moves from their native culture to a different culture is bound to experience a transitional period before they adapt to the new culture. During this period, they experience difficulties trying to understand why the new culture is different from their own. This difficult period is referred to as the period of cultural shock. This paper endeavors to explain cultural shock through my personal experience in the United States.
Being of Arabian origin, I encountered serious cultural shock when I arrived in the United States. Arguably, the culture of the United States is the one most complex culture in the world, thanks to the metropolitan nature of its demographics. When I arrived in the United States, the first difference I noted was that the foods here are so different compared to our foods back in Saudi Arabia. The American people like or rather prefer fast foods to any other meal. The fast foods and steak, which are the favorites of the Americans, are not given prominence in the culture of Saudi Arabia. The people of my country, Saudi Arabia, prefer rice and meat, such as mathlota, to fast foods. As such, fast foods are not common in Saudi. Rather, such fast foods are associated with school age children who do not have to commute home for lunch. I, at first, experienced serious difficulties trying to adjust my diet from foods characterized by goat meat and rice to steak and fast foods. Even so, am coping well, thanks to influence and encouragement from my friends.
Another serious problem I encountered during my first days in the United States was the language issue. The English language, arguably the most widely used languages globally, is not my first language. Evidently, learning a second language is not the easiest of things. As much as I had little knowledge of the language prior to coming to the USA, I encountered serious problems communicating with people both at school and around the place where I reside. The English language posed a serious problem especially when it came to writing. My lecturers could always complain of my poor mastery of the language. Such things as sentence structure and spellings were a serious problem to me. Though I am not perfect yet, I am trying hard to master the language. With assistance from my friends and private tutor, I am doing well with regard to the language. My problem with English has seriously affected me. For instance, I do not have as many friends in the United States. This is because speaking the language is something I am not so sure about. As such, I tend to avoid people for fear of embarrassing myself. The fear is gradually fading away as I can now talk almost fluently.
The family unit in the American setting is so much different from that of Saudi Arabia. For instance, while in the United States polygamy is unheard of, it is a common phenomenon in Saudi Arabia. In other words, the Saudi culture considers polygamy as a normal source of pride. In America, people consider a man having two women as promiscuous. Additionally, the way members of the family relate to one another in America is quite different from the way family members relate in Arabia. I was shocked that in America a girl can get as intimate with the father as to hug. This is an abomination in my culture. In the Arab culture, as well as in the Islamic religion, the social distance between men and women is something that is immensely respected. A man and his daughter cannot get any closer except where necessary. I am however, learning to live with such things since I have to accept the ways of my neighbors and friends. This is actually an eye opener to the fact that, just like any other member of society, family members should be close to one another.
In conclusion, the differences between the Arabian and American cultures are so much pronounced that they give a cultural shock with so much impact. However, copying is not as challenging as it may seem since interacting with people is all it takes to be well versed with the social order of the American community. It is from such interactions that a new person can learn the language and get explanations on why things are done the way they are done. Such aspects of society as religion, food and family are core aspects of a community’s culture. For this reason, one has to endeavor to adapt to the differences in such institutions. As for my case, I am getting comfortable each day, thanks to my unlimited capacity to interact.