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Thanks to a college professor long ago, I'm firmly convinced that technological advancement is the main reason cultures get assimilated/eradicated. Or more to t

by beat 9y ago

Thanks to a college professor long ago, I'm firmly convinced that technological advancement is the main reason cultures get assimilated/eradicated. Or more to the point, new cultures rise with new technologies, and wipe out the previous ones. Along the same lines as my original comment and the source of this story, one of the most educational nights of my life was a lecture by a visiting professor from India. His research took him to the most remote villages, villages that had never experienced electricity before. He recorded their music, because the moment radios and tape players arrived, the local music was basically obliterated. And he felt guilt and shame, because while he was preserving it, he was also the nose in the tent - the first time they ever experienced recorded music.

golergka 9y ago
When you say "obliterated", doesn't it really mean that people in these villages liked the music from the radio more than their local stuff? Why label people's preferences with such dramatic words?
- umeshunni 9y ago
  >> people in these villages liked the music from the radio It could also be because (a) the low cost and availability of music on the radio (portable, on demand etc) was much higher than the availability of their native music which had to be played live by an artist. (b) the novelty of the 'outside' music or its sophistication due to the electronic instruments used etc could have temporarily make the local people to like the outside music long enough to stop making their own.
- intended 9y ago
  Obliterated is appropriate. Even in India - the few members of animist religions in the nort east often feel poorly when having to deal with the more advanced religions like Christianity/Hinduism/Islam - there’s a level of outreach, funding, polish, prep, conversion techniques and arguments - essentially human pleasing sophistication, that other religions just have not had the time or resources to develop. You see similar things happen with food and fruits.

by beat 9y ago

golergka 9y ago

When you say "obliterated", doesn't it really mean that people in these villages liked the music from the radio more than their local stuff? Why label people's preferences with such dramatic words?

umeshunni 9y ago
>> people in these villages liked the music from the radio It could also be because (a) the low cost and availability of music on the radio (portable, on demand etc) was much higher than the availability of their native music which had to be played live by an artist. (b) the novelty of the 'outside' music or its sophistication due to the electronic instruments used etc could have temporarily make the local people to like the outside music long enough to stop making their own.
intended 9y ago
Obliterated is appropriate. Even in India - the few members of animist religions in the nort east often feel poorly when having to deal with the more advanced religions like Christianity/Hinduism/Islam - there’s a level of outreach, funding, polish, prep, conversion techniques and arguments - essentially human pleasing sophistication, that other religions just have not had the time or resources to develop. You see similar things happen with food and fruits.