Kultur 2 Response

The articles for this week all involved satirical analysis of German cultural norms. While the articles for Kultur 2 were funny, they also offered insight to the nuances of German day-to-day life.

One article that I particularly enjoyed was Brutally Honest: "Have You Gained Weight?." It was interesting to read about honesty in Germany. My friend Anna and I had an experience with this way of conversation when flying to Europe. Our flight connected in Frankfurt, so we went through German customs. The customs agent took one look at my friend's passport photo and said "you were so fat!" (which is funny because she really wasn't, she was just a little rounder in the face) It was quite shocking to us, because she was maybe 5 pounds heavier in the picture (which was really just baby fat anyhow). He then smiled and stamped her in. She was left with her jaw wide open, and really embarrassed. The whole moment was just so shocking, and was something that NO ONE in America would say to you (Americans would sooner comment that you were cute or such a baby, etc). In America, people love to talk to you about your weight loss, but will probably stick to talking behind-your-back about your weight gain.

These articles also resonated with me because my dad's side of the family is German. After reading these articles, it was interesting to re-evaluate how my dad and his father have interacted. My grandfather, like the people in the articles, is painfully honest. I invited him to my college graduation, and instead of saying no, he told me that his knees, back and legs hurt when he travels, and that he no longer takes car trips over 2 hours, or flights... He said all of this instead of saying he couldn't make it. While I know that these articles are just commentary on certain segments of the population, I was definitely able to connect with what was written.