Cultural Imperialism in China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Cultural Imperialism in China - Essay Example Cultural imperialism gained prominence in the 1970s with the cultural imperialism theory laying a foundation for new concepts such as New World Information and Communication Order, and the inter-relations between nations in terms of information flow. Organizations such as the United Nations Educational, scientific, and Cultural Organizations (UNESCO) provided such impetus. On different fronts such as anthropology, education, sciences, history, literature and sports, cultural imperialism has different connotations.   In context of international communication, cultural imperialism has been attributed to the work of Schiller who opines that â€Å"The concept of cultural imperialism today best describes the sum of the processes by which a society is brought into the modern world system and how its dominating stratum is attracted, pressured, forced, and sometimes bribed into shaping social institutions to correspond to, or even promote, the values and structures of the dominating centr e of the system† (10)Peter Hesslers’ Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory offers insights into how globalizations has brought about cultural imperialism in China. For instance, in Book II: The Village, Hessler offers snippets of the impact of modernization in China. The rising middle class are exploring the country side, owning a car is a symbol of status in society, and the people have become individualistic in thinking and behavior. This are hallmarks of western culture not known to traditional Chinese culture.