An Ethnography Study on the Differences of Arab Culture and Western Culture - Assignment Example

Lecturer An ethnography study on the differences of Arab culture and western culture In this research paper, ethnography aims at individually studying the western culture and the Arab culture; and then effectively describing the areas where the two cultures contrasts; while also recognizing similarities. This cultural comparison will be achieved through collection and analysis of cultural data collected using the appropriate method. This study focuses on using several tools for collecting data; in order to have a balanced view on cultural aspects of the respondents and their communities. These tools / methods include; interviews, observations and field notes. Analysis of the collected cultural data will reveal the unique characteristics found in the Arab and also the Western ways of life. Introduction This research paper is intended to study, compare and contrasts the Arab culture and the Western Culture. These two cultures are similar religiously because they both recognize a Supreme Being (God and Allah) in their religion, and they both have places of worship called Church for the Western world Christians, and Mosque for the Arab world Muslims. The two cultures also recognize territorial boundaries, in form of nations or countries. Alternatively, the two cultures are also so different. The major difference is seen in the geographical locations where these two cultures are found (Ankerl, 2000). The Arab culture is mostly practiced in North Africa and Western Asia; while the Western culture is most prevalent in Europe and America. Theses contrasts will further be explored in the research paper. Literature review Ethnography is a type of research method which is designed to study cultural issues where researchers study the society or community from the unique point of view of subject under study. Ethnography also involves graphical or written representation of the culture of a specific group. The resulting field reports indicate knowledge and meanings in live of the cultural group under study. Ethnography, which provides data on human societies or cultures was initially represented in the three main branches of anthropology; social, cultural and biological (Clifford & Marcus, 2007). It has however, become so popular in the general social sciences; for example communication, history and sociology, where people are involved in the study of ethnic groups, spirituality, social welfare and ethno genesis. Arab culture describes culture in countries or nations where the official language used is Arabic. The countries are sometimes referred to as Arab countries; or Arab nations. These Arab countries are mostly found in the North Africa, and also the Western Asia. The cultural heritage in the pan-Arab world include; literature, music, language, architecture, philosophy, art, spirituality and mysticism (Kai, 2007). The Arab world is usually separated in to regions like; the Nile Valley which comprise Egypt and Sudan, Al-Maghrib Al-Arabi which comprise Libya, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria and Mauritania. The Fertile Crescent comprises Jordan, Syria, Palestine, Iraq, Lebanon, and Kuwait. Finally the Arabian Peninsula comprises Yemen, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iran Jordan, Iraq, Omar, Bahrain and the United Arabs Emirates (Samovar, et al., 2002). The Arab Culture is generally separated into three main parts: The Rural Culture called Ar-Reef, which has countries like Egypt, Syria and Sudan. The Urban Culture called Al-Hadar, which has countries like Lebanon, Tunisia, Algeria and Palestine. The Nomad Culture called Al-Badow comprises countries like Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Arabia. Western culture is usually represented by Western civilization, European civilization or Western lifestyle. The term Western culture broadly refers to cultural heritage of ethical values, belief system, political systems, traditional customs, technologies, social norms and artifacts; often associated or trace origin to Europe. The term also applies to countries with historically strong European immigrants like countries in the Americas and Australasia (Ayalon, 2005). Western culture is strongly represented by artistic, literary, legal and philosophic traditions. The Western culture has also been strongly influenced by Christianity, especially from the 4th century; and also the heritage of linguistic or ethnic groups like Latin, Hellenic, Slavic, Germanic and Celtic. Western culture values in history have been got from free political thought, widespread rational argument which favors free thought, and assimilation of democracy, equality and human rights. Research Sample The research sample of my study is a group of Arab students who are studying at Nottingham Trent University. However my main respondent is Abdullah who has been in the UK for the last years studying Finance and Accounting. Abdullah is a 28 years foreign student from Saudi Arabia and is the oldest son from his family. Abdullah was very open about his culture and so he introduced me to his friends, family and most important a place that is sacred to him, the Mosque (Rugh, 2004). The sample groups that were chosen were mainly Arab students, this was to enable me get an in-depth understanding of the Arab Culture and how they coped in the western culture and society. The groups of sample had variety of age differences and views on the Arab culture (Duchesne, 2011). One of the limitations I anticipated was getting access to the mosque however the gate keeper of the mosque was very welcoming and was fascinated about my interest on the Arab culture. The gatekeeper is the leader and the main voice of the mosque; that is seen as a much respected role and portrays him, as a wise man. Accessing Respondents Getting hold of the gate holder was not a time-consuming process for me as I had someone in mind, my Arabic tutor. I emailed my Arabic Tutor explaining my research and she forwarded some of her student emails. I emailed 8 potential respondents expressing my interest and clarifying the process of the research (Erickson & Stull, 2008). However I had one reply that is Abdullah, who agreed to take part in the research and was pleased to see my interest in his culture. We meet at the Student union and I gave him in depth information about how and why I am conducting the research and he was more than happy to assist me in any way to get an understanding of his culture. Research Process This ethnography process involved the scientific research criteria of cultural data collection, data recording, data presentation and finally data analysis. Data collection was done through interviewing respondents from both the western and Arab cultures. Observations of cultural practices were done; and the data recorded in field note books. Data recording was achieved through voice recordings during interviews, and orderly recordings in the field note book. Personal involvement I participated directly in this cultural research process. This was through directly contacting potential respondents and then encouraging them for provides the necessary cultural data and information. I also convinced both the Arab and Western respondents that the data provided will be used strictly for academic research purposes; because it will handed over to the Nottingham Trent University. I also personally collected the data through observation, interviews and note taking; and finally analyzed the data. Main Themes in Research Study Firstly the research aims at understanding the culture difference between the Arab culture and the western culture. During my research I have come to understand why it important for one to value and practice their culture (Ankerl, 2000). When meeting Abdullah he greeted me and firmly shook my hand; this is an important aspect of the Arab culture because greetings are handled with respect. The Muslim religion is also taken seriously in Arab culture, and that’s why Abdullah pray five times a day, and introduces friends to his place of worship, the Mosque (Stearns, 2003). I even realized that the family unit is the most important social unit in Arab world. The man is considered the provider and the protector of the family and social issues. He was actually late by 35 min but it did not bother him, unlike the western culture, the Arab world takes punctuality less seriously. He always made arrangement to meet at the coffee shop or shish; and this location is where we discussed the research data on culture. Majority of his friend s are male; this is because he regards men as a superior gender to females. The Arab culture does not encourage free relationship between the males and females. Religion in the western word is mostly Christian; however my research findings indicate that Christianity is further divided in to denominations like Catholic, Protestant and Anglican. These denominations have so many churches in the United States of America and Europe. But, Muslim religion has a good number of followers in the United States as proved by the Mosques built across the country. Religion has the capability of merging the two cultures because citizens of America belong to the Christian, Muslim and other faiths. Another theme explored in this study is politics. The Western countries have stable and democratic political system; where ballot voting is the preferred avenue of electing countries’ leaders; for example elections in USA. However, most countries in the Arab world apply the monarch system of governance; where ruling is done by an established monarchy with kings, queens and princesses, for example the United Arab Emirates. Other Arab countries are governed through military dictatorship; where people in power are Coup leaders; for example Libya. Democratic leadership should be embraced in the Arab world because it ensures that the rights of all citizens are respected and protected. Technological innovation practices is more dominant in the Western culture; with the USA leading globally in Information Technology and space exploration; the Arab world should borrow these useful practice in order to improve the living standards of their citizens. Internet connectivity is an important factor that drives economic growth in this global village; therefore the Arab world governments should minimize control and regulation of the internet service. For example; Lebanon and United Arabs Emirates have strict regulations on internet use; this hinders the rights of citizens in accessing information. The thematic answers that my respondents gave me; are guided by the interview question guide contained the appendix section. Conclusion This research is very important because it enables people to understand and appreciate the differences in cultural practices; as long as they adhere to basic human rights principles. It also explains that culture is always dynamic; and that the western and the Arab cultures can always share good cultural practice and values. For example technological innovation culture of the western world can always be adopted by the Arabs (Ankerl, 2000). This research faced limitations or challenges of inadequate time and inadequate travel to cultural locations; I suggest that further research should be physically conducted in geographical locations where the cultures are practiced, for example travelling to an Arab country to collected data on Arab cultural practices. Reflection The main lesson which I learnt in this research task is that any culture in the world which adheres to basic human rights principles is good and it can share ideas with the other cultures. For example United Kingdom western culture can share political democracy practices with Arab culture found in maybe Lebanon. In my future placement abroad; I will first embark on understanding and practicing good and legal cultural issues; found in my host community or society (United Kingdom). Bibliography Ayalon, A. (2005). The Press in the Arab Middle East: A History. New York: Oxford UP. Ankerl, G. (2000). Coexisting Civilizations: Arabo-Muslim, Bharati, Chinese, and Western, INUPRESS, Geneva, 119-244 Ankerl, G. (2000). Global communication without universal civilization, INU societal research. Vol.1. Coexisting Contemporary Civilizations: Arabo-Muslim, Bharati, Chinese, and Western. Geneva: INU Press. Clifford, J. & E. Marcus (2007) Writing Culture: The Poetics and Politics of Ethnography. (1986). Berkeley: University of California Press. Duchesne, R. (2011) The Uniqueness of Western Civilization, Studies in Critical Social Sciences, Vol. 28, Leiden and Boston: Brill Erickson, K. & D. Stull (2008) Doing Team Ethnography: Warnings and Advice, Sage, Beverly Hills. Kai Hafez (2007) Arab Media: Power and Weakness. New York: Continuum. pp. 147–64. Samovar, et al. (2002) Communication between Cultures, 7th Ed. Boston: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning. Rugh, W. (2004). Arab Mass Media: Newspapers, Radio, and Television in Arab Politics. Westport, CT: Praeger, p. 9. Stearns, P.N. (2003) Western Civilization in World History, Routledge, New York. Appendices 1 Unstructured Interview Question Guidelines 1. Do you practice western culture or Arab Culture? 2. Which part of the Arab world or the Western world do you come from? 3. What is the most important issue or practice in your culture? 4. How do you view other cultures? 5. Can you agree to practice some aspects of the other cultures? 6. How will you behave if you visit a country which practices other different cultures? 

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