Unit3-Goods-Move.-People-Move.-Ideas-Move.doc

Unit 3
Goods Move. People Move. Ideas Move. And Cultures Change.
Erla Zwingle

Structure of the Text
Part I (Paras. 1-3)
Globalization is a reality but it is not something completely new. What is new is the speed and scope of change.
Part II (Paras. 4-6)
This part deals with different views on globalization.
Part III (Paras. 7-9)
Three points are made in this part:
(1)Westernization is not a straight road to hell, or to paradise either.
(2)Cultures are as resourceful, resilient, and unpredictable as the people who compose them.
(3)Teenagers are one of the powerful engines of merging global cultures.
Part IV (Paras. 10-13)
This part describes the author’s experience with Amanda Freeman, a “cool hunter.”
Part V (Paras. 14-19)
In order to prove that the trend is toward fusion, the author uses Tom Sloper and mah-jong as an example.
Part VI (Para. 20)
This is a transition, using China’s change in the past 20 years as an example.
Part VII (Paras. 21-24)
This part deals with cultural trends in Shanghai.
Part VIII (Paras. 25-28)
The author uses her experience at the Shanghai Theatre Academy to illustrate her point that the change is at the level of ideas.
Part IX (Paras. 29-34)
In this part, the author introduces Alvin Toffler’s view on conflict, change and the world order.
Part X (Para. 35)
A summing-up of linking---goods move, people move and ideas move.
Part XI (Para. 36)
Conclusion: The result of linking is change which means transformation of each other.
Part XII (Paras. 37-39)
The author again uses an example from Shanghai to illustrate the transformation of cultures.
Part VIII (Para. 40)
 Linking in the end means the linking of heart.

II. Detailed Analysis of the Text
1. Questions on Paragraph 1:
l How does the author begin this article? Why does she quote Marx and Engels?
The author begins the article with the statement “Today we are in the throes of a worldwide reformation of cultures” which is called globalization. Here the author points out that globalization is a worldwide movement and a movement of reformation of cultures. She does not say, “merging of cultures” but “reformation of cultures,” indicating that the cultures in the world will continue to exist but they will not exist unchanged.
l The author then says that globalization is not an exact word to describe the changes. Why?
The author quotes Marx and Engels to prove her point. According to polls, Marx and Engels are rated among the most influential figures of the past one thousand years. The author’s intention is two-fold: on the one hand she wants to show that globalization has resulted from the rise of modern industry and world markets; on the other she wants to stress that it is a process and a historical process at that.
Editor’s note: The favorable reception in the West of Chinese Kun Qu (昆曲) “Peony Pavilion” (牡丹亭), the popularity of Korean films in China, the uproar over tainted milk powder involving a Chinese-New Zealand joint venture company, the alarm caused internationally by bird flu are all examples of the development of globalization.
2. Today we are in the throes of a worldwide reformation of cultures, a tectonic shift of habits and dreams called, in the curious vocabulary of social scientists, “globalization.” (Para. 1)
in the throes of: in the act of struggling with (a problem, decision, task, etc.)
Translation: 今天我们正经历着一种世界范围文化剧变的阵痛,一种习俗与追求的结构性变化,用社会科学家奇特的词汇来称呼这种变化，就叫“全球化”。
3. In place of the old wants, requiring for their satisfaction the products of distant lands and climes, ... (Para. 1)
Paraphrase: Instead of people’s traditional needs, we find new “felt” needs, demanding goods from distant and far-off places to meet them.
Note:
The object of “requiring” is “the products; “for their satisfaction” is an adverbial phrase, showing purpose.

4. Their statement now describes an ordinary fact of life. (Para. 1)
Paraphrase: Marx and Engels made the prediction 150 years ago. But today it is not a prediction but something that happens every day.
5. How people feel about this depends a great deal on where they live and how much money they have. (Para. 2)
Paraphrase:
People’s attitude toward globalization is to a great extent determined by whether they are in developed or less developed countries and whether they are among the haves or the have-nots.
Note:
The author is to a large extent correct in making this statement. According to polls in the U.S., the attitude towards globalization has a lot to do with a person’s level of income and education. An analysis of the economic situation in the world in recent years shows that most of the benefits of globalization have gone to the developed world, hence the dissatisfaction and resentment of many in the Third World.
6. Yet globalization, as one report stated, “is a reality, not a choice.” (Para. 2)
Paraphrase: Globalization is not something that you can accept or reject; it is already a fact of life, which you will encounter and have to respond to every day.
7. Humans have been weaving commercial and cultural connections since before the first camel caravan ventured afield. (Para. 2)
caravan: a company of travelers, esp. of merchants or pilgrims traveling together for safety, as through a desert
venture: to undertake the risk of, to brave
afield: away (from home)
Paraphrase: People in the world made commercial and cultural contacts long before merchants on camels risked traveling to places far away from home.
8. wrought (Para. 2): (past participle of work) to produce results or exert an influence
9. Telegraph... between individuals and the wider world. (Para. 2)
Paraphrase:
The invention of the telegraph brought individuals and the outside world closer but at the same time the connection was more complex, less direct, not so easy to see or detect.
Translation:
电报、电话、收音机和电视把个人和外部世界更紧密地连在一起,这种联系更为复杂、不那么直接也不易察觉。
Note:
The author uses “intricate” and “complicated” to describe the connection because with the emergence of advanced technology, the connection is not only faster but also more difficult to see, to explain. For example, connection with the outside world through watching cable TV or listening to radio is less tangible and much less direct than camel caravans. But a connection is established. Telegraph and Internet connections are examples. You can connect through the Internet to a person you may never have actually met in person.
10. Still, the basic dynamic remains the same: Goods move. People move. Ideas move. (Para. 3)
dynamic: a force producing motion or change
Note:
“Still” here introduces a contrast. Paragraph 2 tells the readers that modern technology makes the connections and changes faster and more complicated. Paragraph 3 stresses that the basic pattern is the same. The difference lies in the speed and scope of change.
11. Questions on Paragraph 4：
(1) How do Western social scientists, anthropologists and politicians view the trend toward globalization? Does the author agree? What is your view?
Many members of these groups believe that globalization will result in the spread of American goods as well as American values and culture, and that the consequence will inevitably be the Americanization of the world.
The author is not so pessimistic. She does not think that globalization means Americanization; she believes a variety of cultures will continue to exist, but that they will all be changed. This can be seen in her opening statement, in Para.3-4, and in her concluding paragraph.
The factors mentioned by the critics of globalization do exist. The United States, as the world’s only superpower, has taken advantage of globalization to greatly expand its exports of goods as well as ideas and values. If you go on the Internet, the overwhelming amount of information is in English. In international business, the prevalent means of communication is English. That is why critics include the English language as part of the “cultural assault”. This concern is shared by some Chinese citizens/intellectuals. But globalization is a double-edged sword, which means it can cut either way. Advantages and disadvantages coexist. The determining factor is government policy. Closed-door policies have proved to be disastrous.
So the only feasible approach is to make full use of the advantages and to minimize the negative effects.
(2) Is the author’s description of the book China Can Say No accurate?
No. ‘The burning of Hollywood’ is the subtitle for a section in the book in which the authors discuss the burning of Hollywood films by the French – it is not advice to the Chinese The author said he would not fly on a Boeing 777, not because of anti-Americanism, but because of technical flaws in the design. Since it is based on inaccurate information, her analysis cannot be correct.
Note:
The author makes three more crucial points: that the book is an example of “exploiting nationalist anxieties”, that China struggles between xenophobia and ambition, that the book’s central theme is that Chinese people should not believe blindly in foreign things.
12. Whatever their backgrounds or agendas, these critics are convinced that Western—often equated with American—influences will flatten every cultural crease, producing, as one observer terms it, one big “McWorld.” (Para. 4)
agenda: program of things to be done
crease: a fold or wrinkle
McWorld: a world modeled on McDonald’s, meaning a world filled with American goods and culture
Paraphrase: Western... influences will overwhelm all non-western cultures, making them lose their own unique characteristics, so that in the end there will exist only one westernized or Americanized world or culture.
Translation: 不管他们的背景和纲领如何,这些对全球化持反对态度的人深信西方的影响——往往等同于美国的影响——会把所有文化上的差异一一压平,就像一位观察家所说的,最终产生一个麦当劳世界,一个充满美国货和体现美国价值观的世界。
13. Popular factions sprout to exploit nationalist anxieties. … suggesting that Hollywood be burned. (Para. 5)
popular factions:反映公众情绪 (或得到公众支持) 的派别
Paraphrase: Political groups with broad popular support have come into being to take advantage of people’s worries and uneasiness over foreign “cultural assault.”
Why does the author view “xenophobia” and “economic ambition” as opposing tendencies?
‘Xenophobia’ means hatred or fear of foreigners or foreign things. If xenophobia became predominant, it could lead to movements to drive out foreigners and foreign goods as, for example, occurred during the Boxers’ Movement. ‘Economic ambition’ refers to the desire to build China into a strong, industrialized country to improve the livelihood of the Chinese people.
This would mean being open and welcoming to the outside world, and introducing foreign capital, technology, and goods.
Note:
In China, trends toward closed-door and open-door policies have struggled for dominance for a long time.
suggesting that Hollywood be burned: Hollywood stands for American films. This is a rhetorical device called synecdoche. 建议把进口的好莱坞大片烧掉。
14. Those people out there should continue to live in a museum while we will have showers that work. (Para. 6)
museum: “Museum” here stands for ancient life or backwardness, the kind of life you can only find in museums now.
showers that work: It stands for modern life with high-tech gadgets.
Paraphrase:
The Chinese people should continue to live a backward life while we live comfortably with all modern conveniences.
15. Questions on Paragraph 7:
How does the author bring out the inconsistencies in the concept of Westernization?
First, she compares the critics and the boosters. Then she compares the inconsistencies within each group. The critics blast Coke and Hollywood but not organ transplants and computers, indicating that their critique is selective. The boosters emphasize environmental protection but make no mention of cigarettes and automobiles, indicating that they deliberately overlook those things that bring damage to health and the environment. Her conclusion is: Westernization is neither a direct, uninterrupted road to hell nor to paradise. In other words, it is neither terribly bad nor extremely good.
16. Westernization, I discovered over months of study and travel, is a phenomenon shot through with inconsistencies and populated by very strange bedfellows. (Para. 7)
(be) shot through with: to have a lot of, as if full of holes after a shotgun blast
inconsistencies: not uniform, including inharmonious or self-contradictory factors
bedfellow: an associate, ally, confederate, etc.
Paraphrase: After months of research and travel, I found that westernization is a concept full of self- contradiction and held by people of very different background or views.
17. Yet they make no mention... disastrous effects. (Para. 7)
Translation: 然而他们不提西方文化中不那么健康的一面,譬如香烟和汽车,就在发展中世界急切地接纳这些东西时,它们已带来很坏的后果。
18. Apparently westernization is not a straight road to hell, or to paradise either.
Translation: 很显然,西方化既不会直达地狱,也不是直通天堂。
19. But I also discovered that cultures are as resourceful, resilient, and unpredictable as the people who compose them.（Para.8）
resourceful: able to deal promptly and effectively with problems, difficulties, etc.
resilient: recovering strength, spirits, good humor, quickly; buoyant
Translation: 不过我也发现文化就如构成文化的民族一样,善于随机应变,富有弹性而且不可预测。
Question: In what way are cultures resourceful, resilient, and unpredictable? How does the author prove this?
The author attempts to prove this by giving three examples.
The first is Hollywood High School in Los Angeles, a city that many people consider a source of cultural degeneration. Even in this city where Hollywood is located, you can still find a school in which thirty-two languages are spoken. This is a sign of cultural diversity. The second is how Sesame Street has been adapted in Shanghai. Sesame Street is a popular American television show, yet the Chinese have been able to borrow the form and use it to teach Chinese values and traditions. This again shows how resourceful and resilient cultures can be. The third is McDonald’s in India. This example shows on the one hand that McDonald’s is clever in catering to Indian demand, on the other, the resourcefulness and resilience of American and Indian cultures. When such unexpected developments take place, the author is justified in calling cultures unpredictable.
20. In Los Angeles, the ostensible fountainhead of world cultural degradation...（Para. 8）
Translation: 在洛杉矶,世界文化堕落的明显的源头……
21. McDonald’s serves mutton instead of beef and offers a vegetarian menu acceptable to even the most orthodox Hindu.（Para. 8）
Translation:
麦当劳供应的是羊肉而不是牛肉,而且提供一份素食的菜单,连最正统的印度教徒也能接受。
Question:
Why does McDonald’s serve mutton instead of beef in India?
Because the Hindu religion regards the cow as sacred, so beef can’t be eaten.
22. Questions on paragraph 9:
(1) Why are teenagers so important?
Their number is huge and they have time and money to spend. So entertainm