Weeds of globalization

SCHAFFHAUSEN, Switzerland – Americans surely notice they are living, working and playing in a globalizing world.

From German cars to Chinese-made shirts and South American fruits, America’s economy is undoubtedly globalized. But in the relatively small city of Schaffhausen (population of about 30,000), globalization shows its inevitability in a different and much more intense way: language.

Yes, Schaffhausen’s economy is very globalized, much like any given American city’s economy. But unlike America, Schaffhausen’s “altstadt,” or old town, is a place where foreign text is seen on the walls, on the posters and in the cafes that line the cobblestone streets of this city on the Rhine River.

For Schaffhausen, the English language has become an unavoidable part of contemporary Swiss life and culture.

In a local shopping mall, the clothing stores contain racks of chic clothes alongside artificially vintage T-shirts bearing logos and sayings, the majority of which are in English. While viewing shirts that say, “Long Beach, CA – Surfing in the Sun,” or portray Animal from “The Muppet Show” above the caption “I am an Animal!” the Swiss shopper hears the sound of driving drum and bass beats beneath sharp English rhymes.

But the English language has not just infiltrated Swiss consumerism. Walking past the Kantonal high school, I ran into a street sign that had been vandalized with the English phrase “Angry, Young, and Poor.” At the train station, graffiti commented, “This Generation Sucks,” and another piece of graffiti replied in English, “Consider that you’re part of it.”

Also, many Swiss musical groups will cover songs in English and even use English when they write their own songs. What is so interesting is that these Swiss citizens choose to use English and not their native language as the vehicle for their social commentaries and for their art.

When asked about the use of English in music, Selina Girod of the Basel, Switzerland-based band Reding Street said, “We write English lyrics because they can be understood and sold in almost the entire world. ... Most Swiss bands do it that way.”

So in a sense, the English language provides a liberating way for artists to communicate to each other without translations.

But overall, the extent to which the English language has infiltrated and still infiltrates other cultures such as that of Schaffhausen is quite shocking to an American in Europe.

In Switzerland, an English-speaking person is perfectly capable of functioning without knowing any German because so many people know and speak a sufficient amount of English. While it is convenient for the American tourist, this type of universal language and culture does cater to the profound apathy and laziness of Americans towards other cultures.

As the world continues to adapt to America, Americans today do not need to experience other cultures, and they do not need to learn other languages. As a result, Americans do not need for foreign culture to be anything more than an expendable amusement.

If you want to travel to Switzerland, you might find the streets smaller and the prices more expensive, but if you are interested in different fashion, music or culture, then you really have to work hard to get away from the America that you just left.

Perhaps America was at one point in time a great melting pot, but in Schaffhausen, America seems more like a weed that has spread all over and become all too difficult to remove.