German culture is a melting pot of life, everything is the same but different from other cultures all around the world. Religion, Music, Politics, Economic issues all exist. Regardless of where you may be, you can bet that there will be social issues, social hostility and that as a whole the human race pulls together when needed to do so. The only thing that truly separates German culture from other countries is language and traditions of being passed down from generation to generation. Germany is more than the media perceived culture of drinking beer.
Comparatively speaking there is a lot in common between German culture and that of American culture. Perhaps this is due in part to the fact that a lot of the Immigrants that came over during the Industrial Revolution were that of German heritage. Still to this day you can see direct similarities’ between the two cultures in all areas; Religion-though there may be minor differences the United States shares a lot of the same Religious views. Music- the United States and Germany tend to mirror one another’s style of music. Politics- The two cultures tend to have similar Political and Economic concerns/issues of the state; corruption to jobless concerns, to one party being “better” than another. This is most likely do to the fact that one economy depends on how the other does for success, if one side or the other has a rise an unemployment causing concern for consumer spending. You will see cuts being conducted a crossed the board from country to country. We all depend on one another to be successful, and until we learn as humans to work together you will continue to see these issues.
German culture shares similarities to other neighboring Europe nations such as Austria, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein/Luxemburg as well as differences. Similarities among the German speaking countries (other than that of language) are the concerns of governing others from Political concerns as economic hardship to the music culture. Differences between the cultures are extremes in the separation between the classes; upper class- middle class- or the lower class. For instance in Switzerland they have no minimums wage set up and there is an extreme inflation concern with the difference in pays between people, with differences between managers the equivalent as Managers making $14000 per hour and $14 per hour. This raises some concern when you see the middle class start to dwindle down and disappear.
Over the past 10 weeks of the quarter my understanding of German and its surrounding countries has grown 10 fold. Even though I had an insight into German culture through my wife’s family, I have learned much more this quarter to expand on my knowledge. For instance how you order food and Germany and how the waiters and waitresses take your order to the tip being in the bill, how in Germany vacations are an important venture whereas in the states it seems not to be as big of a thing. The most important thing that I learned this quarter in my opinion is that all cultures are just a melting pot of life. Regardless of your religion, music taste, and economic stance-you are in the pot. Though we may be different, it is important to try and gain an understanding of where others come from and appreciate where they come from. Besides at the end of the end of it all, where we end up is not the important part, but the journey that we took to get there. To me culture represents just that, the journey that one took to get where they have gone.
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