Blending in

Pictures by Laura Kneale

These 13 stills aim to show the progression of blending that many a third culture kid goes through when integrating in a place they have moved to. The shots of the girl, Vanessa Kneale, a third culture kid herself, tells the story of so many girls that are not content with their natural look and think adding accessories, make up and clothing to their body will help them project a better image of themselves. As we can see, as she adds more to her body, she slowly is fading herself into the wall behind her. More than a ‘wallflower’ [i], her identity has slowly disappeared into the bigger picture.

The choice white as being the color towards which the girl in the picture is blending into was chosen specifically because of the symbolism ‘white’ retains internationally. In slides 2,3,4 &5, the black shadow emanating from the girl occupies a relatively important part of the photo’s space. This black shadow contrasts to express the resistance and self-doubt the girl is feeling in light of her conversion and burial in whiteness.

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UNESCO definition of cultural diversity states in Art. 1 that cultural diversity is “a heritage to humanity”[ii]. In light of this definition, the idea of blending can be weighed against the wealth contained in the variety of world cultures. This refers to a phenomenon in TCK psychology called “cultural marginality”. In “Phoenix Rising: A Question of Cultural Identity”, Barbara Schaetti identifies two versions of “cultural marginality”. The first “encapsulated marginality” is the one that these stills are a metaphor of. In other words, the child feels completely isolated in their marginality. Hence, they tend to be very influenced by the world around them. Bennett claims they are “buffeted by conflicting cultural loyalties.” What tends to happen is that they go with the flow. The second “cultural marginality” is “constructive marginality”. In this case, the TCK is a lot more re-affirmed and accepts their identity as something to be celebrated rather than forgotten. However, in regards to nationalism or defining oneself by nationality, TCKs tend to shy away from such a practice. As Schaetti explains, developing a strong sense of identity as cultural marginals is not easy, so describing oneself according to your passport hinders the real personality of the TCK.[iii]

 

 

[i] Britten, Samuel (November 30, 1998) “TCK World: A Comparison of Different “Versions” Of TCKs” Third Culture Kid World. Retrieved December 3, 2006

[ii] Chan-Tibergien, J. (2006) “Cultural diversity as resistance to neo-liberal globalization: The emergence of a global movement and convention” in Review of Education, Vol. 52: 94.

[iii] “Phoenix Rising: A Question of Cultural Identity” 15 Nov. 2007 <http://www.worldweave.com/BSidentity.html>

Welcome home! or to something you don’t know…?

“The thing I miss most about home is the way it smells”, she said with a reflective look on her face.

Sacha didn’t know what to respond. Amongst everything she had given up moving here and there over the years, she longed to not miss so much. What did home mean anyways? For some home is simply where you live, your house. For others it’s where you were born or where you grow up.

The teacher continued her presentation about the different meanings of globalization and it’s incidence in our lives today. All of sudden Sandy woke up, I’ve been glocalized! I am a product of globalization that has adapted to each new place I call home. So my home is Glocalization. It’s every place I’ve been to and every manifestation I expressed there to fit in. Whether growing my hair long, straitening it and dying it black to look Ecuadorian, or wearing Dock Martens boots in Spain when that was the hip thing to do when you are 13 and European, my home is to dress up. Dressing up helps reduce the barrier and you can more easily fit your personality in that little box we call a geographical location.

Facebook’s Global Nomads group (posted by Claire Tinsley)

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Third culture kids can sometimes have trouble identifying to one single home and must re-negotiate their cultural identity in light of this. Research points to the fact that TCKs grow up in a “neither/nor world”.[i] Although this lifestyle comports immense advantages such as learning a new language, being exposed to different values & practices, the child’s identity tends to be more complex. Not being able to characterize their identity in national/cultural terms can at times be frustrating. [ii]

This poem written by a third culture kid sums it up well:

Colors by Whitni Thomas, MK (1991)

I grew up in a Yellow country
But my parents are Blue.
I’m Blue.
Or at least, that is what they told me.
But I play with the Yellows.
I went to school with the Yellows.
I spoke the Yellow language.
I even dressed and appeared to be Yellow.
Then I moved to the Blue land.
Now I go to school with the Blues.
I speak the Blue language.
I even dress and look Blue.
But deep down, inside me, something’s Yellow.
I love the Blue country.
But my ways are tinted with Yellow.
When I am in the Blue land,
I want to be Yellow.
When I am in the Yellow land,
I want to be Blue.
Why can’t I be both?
A place where I can be me.
A place where I can be green.
I just want to be green.

[i] Pollock D. C. and Van Reken R. Third Culture Kids. The Experience of Growing Up Among Worlds (Yarmouth Maine, Intercultural Press 1999), 19.

[ii] Seelye HN, Wasilewski JH (1996). Between Cultures: Developing Self-Identity in a World of Diversity. McGraw-Hill Companies.

Because nothing exists independently, not even a third culture kid

To better understand our world a good way is to frame it. A phenomenon is seldom completely independent from the environment around it, and generally many factors can be linked to one event.

Globalization is ever more present in our lives today for reasons linked to the economy, technology and politics. Arjun Appadurai’s division of the different scapes such as the technoscape, the ideoscape, the mediascape, the finanscape and the ethnoscape, is effective in illustrating the global cultural flow we are seeing today all over. [i]

Cultural diversity arises from these transnational flows. Generally speaking, cultural diversity is defined as a variety of human social structures, belief systems and strategies for adapting to situations in different parts of the world. [ii] More specifically UNESCO devised a definition to cultural diversity in 2001:

“source of exchange, innovation and creativity […]. Cultural diversity is a heritage to humanity (Art.1), indissoluble from democracy (Art. 2), a root of development (Art.3), human rights (Art. 4), cultural rights (Art. 5), accessible to all (Art. 6), fosters creativity and dialogue among cultures (Art. 8), a state prerogative (Art. 9), in the need of international solidarity (Art. 10), sustained through private-public-civil society partnership (Art. 11), and a mandate for UNESCO (Art. 12).” [iii]

Just as the expression enunciates, cultural diversity covers multiple identities. Third culture kids are also relatively complicated individuals. Analyzing the third culture effectively could only be done thanks to a framework that can also reflect the multiple facets of “a person who has spent a significant part of his or her developmental years outside the parents’ culture.”[iv]

In order to do this, we will therefore use a different article of the UNESCO definition in each or almost every blog entry. This aims to achieve a clearer link between cultural diversity and third culture. Furthermore, the parallels between third culture and cultural diversity analysis will hopefully lead the way to a richer definition of what the world will increasingly define itself by.

[i] Appadurai, A. (2003) “Disjuncture and difference in the global cultural economy” in L. Parks and S. Kumar (eds.) Planet TV: A Global Television Reader (New York: New York University Press).

[ii] “Definition of Cultural diversity”. IP Mall. 2007. A glossary of terms. 10 Nov. 2007<http://www.traditionalknowledge.info/about.php>.

[iii] Chan-Tibergien, J. (2006) “Cultural diversity as resistance to neo-liberal globalization: The emergence of a global movement and convention” in Review of Education, Vol. 52: 89-105.

[iv] Pollock D. C. and Van Reken R. Third Culture Kids. The Experience of Growing Up Among Worlds (Yarmouth Maine, Intercultural Press 1999), 19.