Living in another culture

Therecent problem that Indian students have faced in Australia brings up an important question. Have Indian students been trained, through their education and upbringing, to interact with Western cultures?

A cultural gap exists between students coming from India and Indians who have settled in Australia. This became evident by the unfavourable reaction to the tenpoint plan put up by FISA (Federation of Indian Students in Australia) for solving the problems that Indian students face by the Indian Consul-General’s Community Committee on Indian student issues to that plan.

In India, ethnic groups tend to persevere in inculcating their traditions and values in their young so as to preserve their “cultural purity”. This engenders ethnocentrism, leaving no room for appreciating facets of other cultures. Indeed, little attention is normally paid to teaching young people about other cultures and how to interact with them. Thus when young Indians come to the West, they become candidates for “culture shock”.

In India, as in Australia, other cultures are perceived through stereotypes, most of which are negative. People are often grouped on single factors like religion, caste, language or country, thus ignoring the diversities that exist within any single group. The greater the distance from where people originate, the broader the factors become. In India, all “Europeans” or “Westerners” are often lumped into one category. Likewise, Australians tend to categorise all “Asians” together. Only in recent times have “Indians” been differentiated from “Asians” and “Middle Easterners”. Such broad generalisations lead to erroneous stereotypes.

Two contradictory stereotypes prevail in India about the West. The first is that the West is prosperous and modern, but the second is that Western culture is decadent and should be avoided. Young Indians are, therefore, cautioned about never losing one’s original culture and the values of one’s elders when in the West.

When young Indians come to the West they get the impression that everyone is living in ease and luxury with the trappings of modernity, such as cars and electronic goods. But as time passes, considerable disillusionment can set in as the newcomers realise that homelessness and deprivation also exists. They begin to realise that their own lives are not made of ease and luxury, and this culture shock can cause resentment and inhibit personal development.

That is why Indian students, before coming to Australia, should have adequate knowledge of Australian geography, history and culture, thus avoiding the inevitable culture shock that many individuals feel when immersed in an unfamiliar way of life. Both Australia and India are multicultural countries, but in different ways. As Indian states are carved on linguistic grounds, an Indian from one state could be at a loss in another state which has a language which he or she does not understand. This is particularly true in small towns and the countryside where the local language predominates. If Indian students coming to Australia feel lost, then they should ponder on how they would feel in parts of India where they do not know the local language.

Multiculturalism in Australia, in contrast, tends to channel migrants from diverse origins into a mainstream culture fashioned by English alone which is the medium of education, law and parliament and which dominates the entertainment media. However, diverse cultures have contributed to the mainstream culture and study of other languages is encouraged.

Australia has been undergoing a quiet cultural revolution through its education system. It teaches its young people about other cultures through programs, like the “Cultural Diversity and Community Relations Policy” in New South Wales, which are designed to “enable students from diverse cultures and communities to identify themselves as Australians within a democratic multicultural society …...” Students are also taught to be sensitive to disadvantaged people such as the sick and infirm, the aged and Aboriginals.

Geography is used to “develop an understanding of and empathy with people from different countries and cultures” and to appreciate “different perspectives that people and communities have.” Much has also been achieved through Asian Studies which gives quite some importance to India.

Visiting Indian students should realise that sympathies and antipathies exist between individual humans everywhere. There are persons who will be friendly with some and not with others. Knowledge of good spoken English, including its Australian variant, can help. They should also realise that there is no utopia anywhere. One should not take needless risks remembering that honesty and dishonesty are human traits no matter in which culture.

Australia has taken great pains to put a racist past such as the White Australia Policy behind it just as India has with regard to disadvantaged castes, untouchability and tribes. Those who are looking for a perfect society in Australia need to ponder on the situation back in their own countries. They should realise that many diverse peoples have happily settled in this country.