informal writing #1

In Kwame Anthony Appiah’s examined life, he shares his understanding about the idea of Cosmopolitanism. According to Kwame, there are two means by Cosmopolitanism. First, we have to recognize that we are responsible for all the people in the world, not just those we encounter. Second, it is okay to be different. I was kind of confused about the statements because I think they conflict with each other. In my mind, cosmopolitanism is similar to universalism or globalism. They all suggest that we, all the human being live together as a whole. We should share everything we have, and be responsible for everything we own. If it is okay to be different, cultural relativism must follow. Then how can we be cosmopolitan?

Later on, I check it out in the internet, I realize that I focus too much on the question about whether we should be the same or different under cosmopolitanism. Instead, it is all about attitude. Cosmopolitanism becomes a recommended attitude when we encounter different cultures and traditions as globalism becomes the new trend in the world. The first sentence “we are responsible for all” means we belong to the world, not just to our own country. The second means even more. I think “it is okay to be different” is the spirit of cosmopolitanism. It suggests that it is important to realize that one’s own culture is just one of various cultures in the world, and we need to know how to understand and respect the cultural difference between each other. Therefore, the essence of cosmopolitanism is appreciating ones’ own culture and compromising others. Let me borrow the words from Kwame, Cosmopolitanism is exchanging ideas about right and wrong. Exchange is a very appropriate word used here, it points out that there is no superiority or inferiority between cultures. We are all equal.

The sad thing is that the ideology is too idealistic to accomplish. No everyone would like to be open-minded to other cultures. Although some people move to other country, they still live the way they used to live. For example, my whole family immigrated to the United States in 2008, my parents still refuse to learn English for they say it is not their language. Another example is travelers are not always interested in studying the cultures of foreign countries in a deeper way. People who leave their hometown and work abroad just want to earn more money, and send it to their families in order to give them a better life. In other words, still, all they care about is the country where they are from. Therefore, there are not many people who are cosmopolitan in the world, but they play very important role in the progress of globalization.

I am not professional in Philosophy and there is still a lot for me to explore about cosmopolitanism, but I can say it is good. At least there will be no more wars under a cosmopolitan world. For those anti-cosmopolitans who argue that the national identity of each one is very important, I have a question for them. Why do they care so much about their race or nationality? If you have a white mother who is from Europe and a black father who is from Africa, how do you define yourself? Therefore, national identity can mean nothing. What we should care about is the whole world, what we can do to contribute all the people and how to make the ultimate benefits for everyone. It is not hard to get started, just try to know more, learn more and open your eye to see more. You will be pleased to find out that there is a lot of fun learning about others’ cultures. And it will be a shame not knowing anything about other countries in the world where you are living in.