Studying America in Europe: Four Vignettes and a Program

Abstract

Vignette #1: Santa Claus in Holland There has never been much of a debate about impending Hollandization of world. Yet if only Dutch had put their mind to it at critical moment of opportunity in their national history-and had they been with larger numbers-the world might well have looked different in wake of their commercial expansion. America's national language might have been Dutch, and all of its presidents, not just three, might have been of Dutch descent. Traces of what might have been can still be seen. America's Santa Claus, in very pronunciation of his name, goes back to Sinterklaas, a.k.a. Saint Nicholas, an icon of Dutch popular culture brought to American shores by early Dutch settlers. Once in America, he merged with English Father Christmas, in a process of adulteration that is more generally characteristic of what happens when different cultural traditions meet far away from their countries of origin. Now, ironically, when American Santa is beginning to make inroads into Dutch culture, meeting Dutch Sinterklaas on latter's home turf, there is an outcry in Netherlands about their national culture becoming Americanized. The litany of protest is familiar. For one thing, yet another national tradition is seen as caving in under overbearing weight of rival American traditions. More ominously, though, Santa Claus is seen as only latest stooge in a drama of Americanization whose central vector is commercial. An age-old Dutch tradition, centrally geared toward family, where giftgiving was only part of a larger exchange of goodnatured comments at expense of receiving parties, mostly in form of doggerel verse composed for occasion, is giving way to more facile option of a family potlatch, relentlessly fed by an advertising frenzy. In that sense Sinterklaas eve, preceding bishop's birthday, had already become ever more commercialized. With ongoing shift away from Sinterklaas towards Christmas as main occasion for consumerist excess, Netherlands is merely falling in line with international trends, losing one tradition while commercializing an occasionChristmas-that until recently had not been quite so profane. Santa Claus in that sense may have come home to roost. He may well become yet another fixture of popular culture in Netherlands, but not without parts of population putting up at least some resistance. His precise niche is still being negotiated. The New York Times of December 11, 1996, deemed it sufficiently newsworthy to devote a part of its International Section to this cultural battle. As was pointed out there: Some people are upset about competing versions of same character. The city of Assen has even decided to keep St. Nicholas and Santa Claus apart. City fathers have told shopkeepers to wait with Santa Claus motifs until after departure of St. Nicholas, Dec. 6, even posting signs at city limits: image of a fat Santa, crossed out with a large red X.' Vignette #2: in Turin In same issue of New York Times, on Op-Ed page, Thomas L. Friedman addressed role of in current globalization of culture. He begins by recounting a story popular among the folks at McDonald's about a young Japanese girl arriving in Los Angeles. Looking around, she said to her mother: Look, mom, they have here too. What this illustrates in eyes of people at International-and Friedman goes on to elaborate this point-is success of their strategy of multi-localism. By insisting on a high degree of local ownership, and by tailoring its products just enough to blend into local cultures, counts on avoiding worst cultural backlashes that some other U.S. companies have encountered. Part of stake localities and nations now feel they have in is therefore economic, through local sourcing, through ownership, through employment. …