Cultural Metaphor Indida
Country Analysis: India
There are some aspects about India that would seemingly indicate that the country would embrace and accept the idea of Western expansion. English is the official language, the government is democratically elected, and twenty percent of India is “English-speaking urban upper class” which is roughly 240 million people (Tapper, 2014). Historically, the transition has been anything but smooth for some of the most dominant Western businesses. Companies such as McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, Nokia, Walmart, and Motorola have had their respective issues with attempts at infiltrating Indian culture, and subsequently the marketplace (Tapper).
Culture is complex and contains multiple layers or levels. Gannon references a 1985 paper by Schein stating that culture contains multiple levels: a level comprised of visible things that a culture produces (things that can be seen, heard, or felt); the next level is only partially observable (values and ideals); and the last level contains a culture’s assumptions (Gannon, 2000). India has such a diverse culture, that it would be difficult to pick a cultural metaphor that is an absolute constant. A cultural metaphor that can span India’s culture, while still retaining the unique identity of individuals, can be found in the Kolam: a creation made by many women across India every morning. To understand why we chose the Kolam as our cultural metaphor, it is important to look at why Kolams are created on a daily basis, how they are created and fit into Indian culture, and what they represent. A Kolam is a symbol of auspiciousness. It is Hindu belief that the geometrical patterns and designs applied with rice flour at the entrance of a home, invite the Goddess Lakshmi into the household while driving away evil spirits (Indian Heritage, 2014).
There are a variety of Ethnic groups (Indo-Aryan, Dravidian, Mongoloid and other), languages spoken (English, Hindi, Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Gujarati, Kannada,
There are some aspects about India that would seemingly indicate that the country would embrace and accept the idea of Western expansion. English is the official language, the government is democratically elected, and twenty percent of India is “English-speaking urban upper class” which is roughly 240 million people (Tapper, 2014). Historically, the transition has been anything but smooth for some of the most dominant Western businesses. Companies such as McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, Nokia, Walmart, and Motorola have had their respective issues with attempts at infiltrating Indian culture, and subsequently the marketplace (Tapper).
Culture is complex and contains multiple layers or levels. Gannon references a 1985 paper by Schein stating that culture contains multiple levels: a level comprised of visible things that a culture produces (things that can be seen, heard, or felt); the next level is only partially observable (values and ideals); and the last level contains a culture’s assumptions (Gannon, 2000). India has such a diverse culture, that it would be difficult to pick a cultural metaphor that is an absolute constant. A cultural metaphor that can span India’s culture, while still retaining the unique identity of individuals, can be found in the Kolam: a creation made by many women across India every morning. To understand why we chose the Kolam as our cultural metaphor, it is important to look at why Kolams are created on a daily basis, how they are created and fit into Indian culture, and what they represent. A Kolam is a symbol of auspiciousness. It is Hindu belief that the geometrical patterns and designs applied with rice flour at the entrance of a home, invite the Goddess Lakshmi into the household while driving away evil spirits (Indian Heritage, 2014).
There are a variety of Ethnic groups (Indo-Aryan, Dravidian, Mongoloid and other), languages spoken (English, Hindi, Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Gujarati, Kannada,
References: Gannon, Martin. Cultural Metaphors: Exercises and Applications. College Park, Maryland. 2000. Indian Heritage. Arts and Crafts: Traditional Customs and Practices. Retrieved September 19, 2014, from http://www.indian-heritage.org/alangaram/kolams/kolams.htm. Pattanaik, Devdutt. India is Not Chaotic. TEDxChange. 2013. Retrieved September 19, 2014 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sGZi_npPog#t=384. Prins, Curt. Apple Just Lost the Global Smartphone War to Google. LinkedIn. 2014. Retrieved on September 21, 2014, from https://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20140919163322-4292087-apple-just-lost-the-global-smartphone-war-to-google. Sharma, Ravi. iPhone Sales in India up 55%: Apple CEO Tim Cook. The Times of India. 2014. Retried on September 21, 2014, from http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/tech-news/iPhone-sales-in-India-up-55-Apple-CEO-Tim-Cook/articleshow/34149154.cms. Tapper, James. Why Do Western Businesses Fail in India? Global Post: ABC News. Retrieved September 20, 2014, from http://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/why-do-western-businesses-fail-india-n178091.