Globalization, Postcolonialism, Hybridity

Pieterse describes hybridity as an “antidote to essentialist notions of identity and ethnicity” (667), and goes on to define differing assumptions about culture between territorial and translocal cultures. For instance, societies, nations and empires are replaced by diasporas and migrations. For some reason, the whole chart on p. 673 inspires thoughts of New Age travelers and fire-spitting, devil stick-flipping neo-hippies. These fun-loving free spirits tend to celebrate hybridity without articulating it “‘in conjunction with questions of hegemony and neo-colonial power relations, run[ning] the risk of appearing to sanctify the fait accompli of colonial violence’” (667). Since New Age Spirituality liberally borrows from many eastern religions as well as Native American shamanism (Lewis), it seems like a fitting target for accusations of irresponsible espousal of hybridity. Practices are compiled from cultures at some time colonized and exploited, yet with seemingly nothing but reverence and the best intentions. It’s hard to judge them, though New Age shops with their moonstones and energy crystals and postcards of airbrushed, fantastical navajo mystic vistas at steep prices do appear problematic.

Adding to this weird commodification is the “New Age Drinks” aisle that I see at Shaw’s every day, with beverages like Rockstar and Monster. I don’t get it.

Pieterse theorizes that globalization leads to “global hybridity” and related phenomenon like “Thai boxing by Moroccan girls in Amsterdam, Asian rap in London, Irish bagels, Chinese tacos, and Mardi Gras Indians in the United States” (665). It’s definitely totally weird to hear a woman rapping in Mandarin, not least because you’d imagine a monotonous barrage of words to not translate so well into a tonal language. What’s even more interesting though, are the comments on YouTube like, “lol wtf is she sayin?” and “listen to these fagit ass posers.”