___________ University
Abstract
Many people never had the opportunity to travel. Some refuse to travel and prefers to remain ignorant of other cultures and societies. Those who do travel can sometimes still lead very ignorant lives because they refuse to accept the reality of other cultures or societies. However, some travelers can accept the reality of foreign societies and can not only immerse themselves in the foreign culture but also educate others about what they had experience. Through traveling, I was able to learn about the social issues of other countries firsthand. I also learned that many cultures have been inspired by others to rid themselves of the negative aspects of their society. I have discovered people in the past such as Plato, Maya Angelou, Hermann Hesse, and even people who helped with the American Civil Rights Movement have inspired others to seek out ways to help positively change the world around them.
Not many people have the opportunity to travel around the world and experience different cultures and ideas. When I was able to travel with friends and family, I had encountered three groups of people. I had the opportunity to meet people who had never traveled and were ignorant of the world, people who had traveled but remained ignorant, and people who were enlightened by their traveling experience. My encounter with those three type of people helped to partly shape my view of the world. I have noticed how similar my experience is to those of Plato’s parable The Allegory of the Cave, Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha, and the movie Boycott. Each of the stories speaks about a struggle of some sort or another which I could relate to in my life. As I reflex on the stories, I hope that I do not become ignorant in my ways as the people in Plato’s parable.
In The Allegory of the Cave, Plato wants to show the condition of human nature that is very similar to the type of people I have witnessed on my travels. The Allegory of the Cave is a “parable of education and ignorance as a picture of the condition of our nature” (Plato, Ferrari, & Griffith, 2000). While this parable was written during ancient times, it still reflects the nature of people today. Similar to the people who have never left the cave, during my travels, I have met people who have never traveled outside of their cities or towns. Even though they have access to the internet and other forms of media, these people remain ignorant about other societies and cultures. They tend to spread their ignorance to other cultures. When I have attempted to correct their mistaken beliefs about other cultures and countries, I was met with disdain and disbelief. Such people refuse to accept the truth about certain situations or customs. Moreover, some people have traveled to distant places but remain ignorant in their ways. These world travelers, even though they can experience the world and various cultures, are unable to cope with the reality of foreign people. Instead, the worldly travelers believe that foreign cultures and societies should work the same as the travelers’ culture and communities. This action leads many to label certain travelers as being “spoiled”, “lazy”, or some other undesirable description. For example, some people believe that people from the United States are lazy and spoiled when the American citizen insists everyone should speak English even though many Americans refuses to learn a second language. Some Americans demand the English language be spoken in foreign countries where English is not the dominant language. Their actions lead many to be wary of American travelers. Finally, I have met travelers who were able to go to other countries and adapt to the reality of the cultures or societies. Similar to the people who were able to adjust to life outside of the cave and convince others to join them in Plato’s The Allegory of the Cave, the travelers who can adapt to the reality that other countries, cultures, and societies are different. These are the type of travelers that tend to learn a few words of the local language that helps the locals to understand them rather than demand everyone speak or learn English. Furthermore, they can convey the nature of the foreign country, society, or culture to their friends as well as strangers. Unlike some travelers who started their journeys when they were young children, I started traveling at a later age. I met people who were rude and others who were helpful.
In her book, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou writes about her life and as it pertains to the various social issues of her time. When traveling, money becomes an issue which is why so few people tend to take time off to go to different places. It means a lot to a traveler to have someone offer any form of help. Angelou wrote about how the “Negro passengers, who always traveled with loaded lunch boxes, felt sorry for “the poor little motherless darlings” and plied us with cold fried chicken and potato salad” (Angelou, 2009, p. 06). Similarly, I had the opportunity to meet people from various races that were not only helpful regarding food but also willing to give their knowledge of their world to me. I had spoken to many people over a free meal. They asked me about my journeys and gave me stories about their lives or the local customs. However, each of my journeys was not without hardship. Like Maya Angelou’s story, there were times when I either witnessed racism or was discriminated against by others. I quickly learned that when someone uses racism to try and hurt another person, it is important to speak up and help in whatever way that I could do so at that moment. Being discriminated against taught me that, because of their ignorance, some people tend to be threatened by other people and strike out by using offensive words or actions. Discrimination also taught me that there are strangers who can be relied upon for help against racism. Their actions gave me hope that not everyone is bad.
The 2001 movie Boycott is one of the struggles of the American society to accept those who were different. In the film, the character of Martin Luther King Jr. states that “There comes a time when time itself is ready for a change” (Johnson, 2011). While changed had begun in his time, Dr. King had left a lasting impression on the world. There are still people who think the positive changes that were made in the past are wrong and that we should go back to our old ways that I have found to be wrong. People like Rosa Parks should not be forced to give up her seat only because she was born of a particular color. As a traveler, there have been times when I have been so exhausted that I had fallen asleep standing up.
Therefore, I could understand the reason Mrs. Parks had decided not to give up her seat that day and after traveling to various countries, I can understand how brave she was to refuse to commit to the bad social norms. I had the opportunity to speak to women in Saudi Arabia once. They expressed that they would love to have the freedom to drive a car or even to own a driver’s license. For them, going against the social norm can be extremely dangerous because they could lose their life. For many of the people who were part of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States, gaining individual freedoms met hardships and even death. However, they were able to change society for the better. It is the hopes of the Saudi Arabian women I had met that they will one day be freer to live their lives as they choose.
In his book Siddhartha, Hermann Hesse writes about a man called Siddhartha who is unfulfilled with life. “Siddhartha had started to nurse discontent in himself, he had started to feel that the love of his father and the love of his mother, and also the love of his friend, Govinda, would not bring him joy for ever and ever, would not nurse him, feed him, satisfy him” (Hesse & Rosner, 1971). Instead of staying home and becoming a Brahmin like his father, Siddhartha sets off on a spiritual quest. Unlike Siddhartha, I wanted to travel so that I could immerse myself in different cultures. I wanted to see and experience the world for myself rather than rely on the stories and experiences of others. My need for traveling became apparent after witnessing some people discriminating against another person. It made me realize how little I knew about the world around me. Reading books and chatting with people online was very limiting in certain ways. So like any person thirsting for knowledge, I packed my things and started traveling.
Traveling has not always been easy for me. There were times when the lack of funds stopped me from going on certain journeys. The lack of cultural understanding also hindered my travels. Fortunately, I was able to overcome both issues and went on to learning about cultures that were very different from my own. Language can be a barrier as well. For people who did not speak my language, universal signs for certain words or actions can be very helpful. While my travels are not over for me yet, I have slowed down in recent years because other things in my life needs my attention. At the end of his story, Siddhartha had found nirvana. For me, there is just too many countries and not enough time for me to visit them all. Therefore, while I am happy to have visited the places that I did, I do not think my thirst for cultural knowledge will be fulfilled.
Traveling around have always been a dream of mine. Even when I could not afford to travel, I was making plans as to which countries I wanted to visit based on my perceived understanding of particular cultures. When I realized how little I knew about the world, I took the time to journey to other countries and learn about different cultures. My journeys have not always been easy. There were times when I was mistreated or seen others being mistreated. However, speaking to many people about their social issues gives me hope that the world is changing for the best. People are finding inspiration from other cultures to help get rid of the bad aspects of their societies. Movies such as Boycott has helped people to understand the struggles people went through to try to eliminate discrimination in America. Writers like Maya Angelou and Plato understood the nature of humans. Maya Angelou experienced rape and racism, yet she went on to live a successful life speaking out against discrimination. Until her death in 2014, Maya Angelou was very outspoken about social issues that were negatively influencing society in America. Furthermore, it is Plato’s parable that shown me that there are people who can be freed from their ignorance and still refuse to see reality. He also demonstrated that there are people who can see reality for what it is and help others to come to terms with reality. Even though his parable was written many centuries ago, it still reflects how society perceives reality today. Throughout my travels, I was able to take many pictures and videos of the places I visited. Similar to the people in Plato’s parable, I was able to educate those close to me about cultures they had never encountered. Like Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha, I will continue to travel to distant places to experience cultures until I am satisfied with the knowledge I have picked up. I look forward to future trips that will hopefully enlighten me.
References
Angelou, M. (2009). I know why the caged bird sings. New York, NY: Ballantine Books.
Hesse, H., & Rosner, H. (1971). Siddhartha. Retrieved from http://www.gutenberg.org/files/2500/2500-h/2500-h.htm#2H_4_0001
Johnson, C. (Director). (2011). Boycott [DVD]. USA: HBO Studios.
Plato, Ferrari, G. R., & Griffith, T. (2000). The allegory of the cave. In The republic. Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Press.
