National Art Education Association

Carrying Two Suitcases and Traveling Third Class in Overcrowded Coaches in Foreign Lands:An Argument for Multi-Cultural EducationAuthor(s): Jerome J. HausmanSource: Art Education, Vol. 44, No. 2 (Mar., 1991), pp. 4-5Published by: National Art Education AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3193298 .

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Carrying Two Suitcases And Traveling Third Class In Overcrowded Coaches

In Foreign Lands An Argument For Multi-Cultural Education

Ir --

Mircea Eliade is generally regarded as one of the greatest scholars of religion. Born in Bucharest, his ideas have reached far and wide to encompass many areas. He is referred to as a "Renaissance Man" who truly is an individual with a "multi- cultural perspective" including that of India. Reflecting upon his youth in Autobiogra- phy: Journey East, Journey West 1907- 1937, he recalled what "seemed to me a fabulous era: the time of my naivete' and ignorance, when I spoke bad English and did not understand Hindustani at all, when I scarcely could syllabalize Sanskrit and had not yet discovered the beauty of South Indian sculpture; the time when I carried my two suitcases and traveled third class in overcrowded coaches, being then, probably, the only European who dared to undertake such an adventure."

How prone we are to certain predisposi- tions about cultures other than our own. All too often there is a tendency to think in terms of a dominant, mainstream culture

(our own) and make comparisons in which other cultures are seen as being marginal or inferior. They are seen as being "primi- tive" in relation to our own more sophisti- cated accomplishments.

If other cultures are more "primitive," a function of more simplified thought and understanding, then it follows that their study is a more simple matter. How glibly we make reference to multi-cultural per- spectives in some of our educational practice. It is as if the inclusion of a single Hispanic poem or a Native American dance or an African artifact would suffice to realize cross cultural perspectives. Obvi- ously, such is not the case! What is needed is another "mindset" in which egocentrism gives way to a more humble and open orientation: humble in the recognition of all that there is to be learned outside of one's culture and open to the struggle and joy in such learning. This is what Eliade went through - composing a comparative history of Yogic techniques;

4 Art EducationlMarch 1991

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intensive study of Sanskrit, Bengali, Pali, Chinese, and Australasian languages; and analysis of meditative techniques. In short, there was a very deep and profound im- mersion in Indian Culture. This takes time and extended efforts. Of course, young students are not ready to do this. But, the point of view and attitudes with which they engage in study of other cultures is impor- tant. Token inclusions of learning activities that give the surface appearance of multi- cultural concerns will not suffice. What is needed is an approach to multicultural education that is non-hierarchical. This is an approach that is personalized and is sustained throughout the learning process.

The stakes for our creating an educa- tional system that provides students with a deep understanding and appreciation of their own culture as well as the ability to reach out and appreciate perspectives afforded by other cultures are high. Each of us lives within particular patterns of thought and values that are infused by culture. It is important to feel good about oneself, to know and appreciate the roots from which we come. Yet, this sense of self-worth must be balanced with the openness and generosity of spirit that admits, enjoys, and celebrates the cultures of others. Perspec- tives gained from others can then be turned to more informed self-reflection and enhanced understanding of one's own culture. June McFee has observed: "To be effective in cross-cultural teaching and in responding to art, we need to become more aware of our cultural patterning, less ethno-centric, less judgmental from our cultural perspectives, more flexible and empathic with others, as well as prepared to develop our cognitive understanding of them." (Keynote address, Joint Conference of the Canadian and the United States Societies for Education Through Art, 1986).

The data concerning global migration are abundantly clear: the world's popula- tion is shifting. Whereas, not too long ago, most students went to school in a relatively homogeneous group setting with more predictable attitudes and values, today's urban school context is made up of a very different cultural mix. One need only look to the make-up of our urban communities

for verification of this generalization. The ethnic and racial make-up of our cities has been significantly altered. What are the consequences? In all too many instances, the result has been a kind of ethnic or cultural tribalism in which competitive or exclusionary tactics prevail. Ghetto lines are drawn in the name of preserving and protecting group identity. Hierarchies are established with one's self image on top while others are relegated to some inferior status. These very acts of polarization and exclusion become self-defeating. The choices need not be between self preser- vation or an amorphous clustering of ill- defined or superficial cultural values.

It seems to me that a more reasonable response has been set forth by Edward T. Hall Beyond Culture: "man is constantly interacting with strangers, because his extensions have both widened his range and caused his world to shrink. It is there- fore necessary for man to transcend his own culture, and this can be done only by making explicit the rules by which it operates."

Of course, there needs to be attention given to the study and celebration of our own cultural traditions. There also needs to be an immersion in the marvelous tradi- tions other than our own. Like Eliade, we need to carry our "two suitcases" and travel "third class in overcrowded coaches" to experience the world from another perspective. A multi-cultural perspective is one that invites and challenges us to encounter differing points of view. We can be enriched by them! It is not a matter of force-fitting that culture into our own system ( a kind of cultural imperialism); rather, it requires our empathizing with and inquiring into the cultural context in which particular forms or rituals or ideas were created. As Eliade observed in a later book, The Forge and the Crucible (1962), "There is, indeed, only one way of under- standing a cultural phenomenon which is alien to one's own ideological pattern and that is to place oneself at its very center and from there to track down all the values that radiate from it."

Jerome J. Hausman

Art Education/March 1991 5

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