Commodification of culture
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Commodification of culture
According to dictionary.com, Commodification means to turn something into a commodity; to make it commercial. Commodification of culture means that you are associating one or more single tangibles to represent a certain culture as a whole. For example, in Singapore, the Merlion is largely commercialized as a tourist destination and is transformed into some small souvenirs for tourists. As a result of this, when foreigners or tourist’s think of Singapore, the first thing that comes in mind is the Merlion. Some may not even know other aspects of the culture such as its traditions, values or even other physical components of the country.
There are several aspects in Turkish culture which have been comodified. Here are lists of practices or tangibles which are associated to the country:
Belly Dancing
Belly Dancing is not the only form of dance in Turkey. In the above posts, Turkish culture has a number of folk dances and belly dancing is not one of them. In fact, belly dancing has its origins from Spain and was brought into the Middle East when Jewish immigrants were travelling. When tourists visit Turkey, many of them are exposed to belly dancing performances or even classes. Besides that, Turkey has produced many famous Belly Dancers such as Burcin Orhon. Therefore, a certain stereotype was incorporated into their mind when they have been constantly exposed to this form of dancing during their visit.
Turkish Kebabs
Kebab is a type of dish which contains several forms of meat such as beef, goat or chicken. When many tourists visit Turkey, there are many side stalls which sell Kebabs to the public. With such convenience to obtain the food in Turkey, tourists might think that Turkish Kebab is the national dish of the country! In fact, Kebabs were not from Turkey. They were actually from Persia, known as modern day Iran. Therefore, many tourists get the misconception that kebabs are always made in Turkey.
Turkish delight
Turkish delight is a type of confectionary which is very popular in Turkey. It is a type of sweet made out of starch and sugar. Before this confectionary got its name as “Turkish delight”, it was actually named Lokum. When tourists arrive in Turkey, they can find this delicacy in places such as the Grand Bazaar where their tour operators encourage them to visit. As a result, many people tend to associate Turkish delight to the country. Even the movie “Chronicles of Narnia” had a small segment of Turkish delight where a small boy rooted for the side of evil because of this small delicacy!
Turkish Ice Cream
Turkish ice cream, also known as Dondurma is made out of milk, sugar, salep and mastic. This form of ice cream has been largely commercialised and can be found even in Singapore! Dondurma is usually sold by street vendors in Turkey where they entertain their customers with their ice cream tricks. Tourists who visit the country or even people who outside who have access to this gourmet wonder always associate this food with the country.
As a result of such Commodification, many people might have a misconception of Turkey as the country has much more to offer other than Kebabs, Turkish delights and belly dancing. There are much more in Turkey for us to explore and see. However, without disneyization or globalization, getting to the destination would be inconvenient and tough. Therefore, I believe that certain globalization forces are required for us to gain more knowledge and mutual understanding of a country.
