Though there are many dangers presented by the notion of globalization, there are also many benefits. Despite attempts to assume an isolationist stance of political and socio-cultural autonomy, I am patently arguing that those relic ideas of the past no longer have any merit or serve any use in an era of globalization. Thus, to understand the meaning of globalizing Americana, one must understand both the process of globalization and American culture.
Forks, Standards, Norms, and Quesadillas
A norm may be described as a standard with which actions or tastes of a particular kind can be referenced against. Norms, in a sense, govern actions. They inform interested parties as to the way in which actions of a particular type are typically performed.
For example, in discussing etiquette, the norm is — at least within the United States — to use a knife and fork when eating. There is a shared understanding within American culture as to the functions of each utensil. The fork serves a particular function and so does the knife.
The function that each utensil serves is contingent, meaning it is dependent, on a perceived need. Someone invented the fork to satisfy a very specific function. Once the function was satisfied and it was demonstrated that the fork was a good utensil for securing food, a standard governing that function emerges.
The emergence of a standard governing cultural norms and instances of etiquette emerges from the standard governing actions of a particular type. This standard is also known as a norm and as such prescribes proper action.
In the case of the fork, the action is its proper use; that is, the fork is used to secure and transfer food from the plate to one’s mouth. This process, then, is standardized, such that one may say, “This is a good fork.” To say that the fork is “good” necessitates a reference to the standard with which this judgment is made.
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Article comments
1 - j.Ramsay Sutherland
As an Australian I see and hear all the time American influence, the TV and movies depicting a lifestyle which seems to have no reality outside fiction; the slang and the vernacular is being cultivated here by our media. Our own is being subsumed by it all.
If it comes from the US it must be OK in some peoples eyes. Our late Prime Minister took that view and tumbled us into war in Iraq.
Historically we have had Pax Romana and Pax Britannica. Now we have 'Pax Americana'. However by virtue of the world-wide web we are more cogniscent of the consequences of these catch phrases and what they eventually became.