A Fez of the Heart Response

A.      “by law, you could go topless in this Middle Eastern and almost exclusively Muslim country, but you could not wear a fez. These reflections set me off at a high speed and without brakes down a metaphorical cul-de-sac to arrive at an unavoidable comparison of breasts and fezzes. Little, it struck me, was more quintessentially Turkish than the fez; little was less representative of the country than breast-covered beaches. Was one to be banned while the other was encouraged? Was Turkey really more at ease with breasts than fezzes?” (Seal  14).

This part of the reading fascinated me. It truly showed to sacrifices made to culture in the name of economic advancement. In our discussions about whether or not we, as a nation, should interfere with another country in order to help them develop, this shows one of the major arguments against. The other fascinating part is that it happened naturally over time, not by choice. The western world must be wary of its effects on the rest of the world, even if they are not through a formal decision, but rather a cultural transfer that may not benefit the country receiving the influx of ideas.

B.      One of the more disturbing interactions was the man wearing a fez to attract tourists. “’ My boss like me to wear it,’ he replied in English. ‘He think to bring tourists.’ From his disgruntlement, it was apparent that he was an unwilling fez wearer”(Seal  13). This man’s boss was clearly exploiting the former culture of Pomegranate for business.

Another interaction involved the food made available in Pomegranate. “Turkish food had been replaced by ‘handburgers’” (Seal  8). The tourists cause an increase in demand for their traditional foods rather than those of Turkey. It is now more profitable to serve to serve European foods, such as “handburgers” , than the other traditional Turkish foods. As a result, some of the traditional culture of Pomegranate is lost.

“Suddenly, there was a new livelihood called turizm, predicated on the astounding discover that foreigners seemed ahppy to pay for the things---accommodation, meals, and even visits to ruins---that the local people had always marked down under hospitality”(Seal 6). Common courtesy had been turned into a business. Because it was profitable to charge, people no longer invited other people to stay in their house for free. Part of their culture was replaced by a thriving business.

C.      A lot of times, seemingly unimportant parts of culture, that are simply different from what a tourist is used to, will get highlighted. For instance, in East Germany their walk signals had funny pictures rather than the traditional walking man symbol. Walk signals are normally not a huge part of culture, but because these ones are slightly different than normal they are celebrated and shirts are sold with the designs on them.

Language is hugely affected by tourism. In countries in Latin America, such as Costa Rica, whether or not you know English is very closely related to whether or not you work in the tourism industry or live in a highly visited area. On the zip line through the jungle almost everyone spoke English. In one of the poorest areas of the country, where we put on an arts and crafts experience for children, almost none of the children or their parents spoke English.