During March 10th to the 20th Kaitlin, Brittany, and me spent time in Europe. The first half of our trip was spent in Greece and the other half in Italy. We had a full itinerary that included a lot of travelling and sightseeing. Transitioning from city to city to we were able to see the culture and lives that Europeans live. To our surprise Europe was not only in different in its architecture and history but in how people dress, entertain, and run their businesses, all under the influence of different forms of media.
Some of the main things we noticed regarding media were:
- The different sports culture
-Nudity
-Food habits
-Music
-Lack of body obsession
-Fashion
-Advertisement
-Youth legalities
Below are our thoughts and feeling about the different categories.
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For the most part hockey and basketball are the most popular sports here in North America. I was very aware of how popular soccer was, or I should say foot ball in Europe, but I still didn’t expect to see so much sports culture. Throughout the trip in almost every hotel we stayed there was always a TV in the lobby open to a soccer game. On the streets you can pick up a jersey as easily as a bottle of water. It was nationalism at its best.
ReplyDeleteAlong with that was a large amount of popular sports brands like Adidas, Nike, and Puma. It was very common to see sports store no matter what city you were in, and they were anything but cheap!
But unlike Canada, many did not walk around decked out in sports attire. Everyone was impeccably dressed. Rarely, if ever did you see someone in casual clothes
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ReplyDeleteTo expand on Pari's topic of sports, in Canada, you almost always see fans wearing jerseys supporting their favourite players and teams, but over there jerseys were only to be seen in store front windows and never on a local.
ReplyDeleteAnother huge factor in Europe is fashion and it is legit to say that almost all Europeans know style like the back of their hand. Everywhere you look there is an advertisement for a name brand or top designer, such as Louis Vuitton and Gucci. The difference between an American ad and a European ad for these top designers is that all of the ads we saw while in Italy and Greece were highly sexualized with no discretion. Apparently nudity is a common thing there and it is not unusual to see.
Check out these product advertisements to see what I mean:
http://www.inklingmagazine.com/images/article-images/danone_boobies.jpg
http://www.inklingmagazine.com/images/article-images/danone_boobies.jpg
http://www.eitb24.com/archivos/imagenes/eitb24/sociedad/2007/02/20/Dolce-Gabbana-2007022008111517hg2.jpg
March 25, 2009 5:24 PM
Speaking of their attire, or should I say lack of attire in advertisements. As North Americans we have made many things our own. We have created our own foods, language, signs, stereotypes etc. One of the main digs that a lot of the world always makes fun of (and there are many) of North Americans is nudity.
ReplyDeleteWe claim to be an open, accepting, provocative and liberal society, and that we are comfortable with sexuality and nudity. However, if there is ever even a hint of nudity displayed we automatically censor. We censor shows during the day and night. We give warnings, symbols and more warnings throughout the duration of a show.
If a woman was half naked on the magazine we ensure there is a large random object covering her main sexual areas. This is not the case with Europeans. Censoring is not much of a concern. Having women naked is a very normal and familiar site. For example, Kaitlin and I entered an internet café and stopped to look at their large magazine display. There we saw normal English magazines such as Marie Claire, Elle, and Brides Magazine. But we also saw the Italian and Greek versions, and right beside that there was a whole rack of sex magazines. There was absolutely nothing left for the imagination. Everything was out there with no warnings or special instructions.
Some were aimed for women, but most like North America were geared for men. There were even some that included special gifts, ranging from DVD’s to posters. It made me think. They openly displayed these things and never were the consequences that we are told would occur happen. Granted I’m not sure what happens behind closed doors in European homes, but they certainly don’t have as many cases of sexual harassment, domestic violence, or pedophilia. This says a lot about the human mind.
The saying “You always want you can’t have” has never been so true. The minute you create borders, rules or regulations its human nature to go against it and suddenly it’s all you can think about wanting. For North Americans who claim to be so liberal and modern to not understand and not apply this concept is surprising. Maybe the European way is the right way, because from where I was looking it certainly appeared so.
They accept sexuality and nudity as a natural part of life- which it is. We all have bodies and we groom, nurture, display them in our everyday lives, so why should you be punished or kept in the dark of such an important and realistic part of life?
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ReplyDeleteAlthough it’s a realistic part of life, like I mentioned above, you do not see like Britney said people under dressed. Everyone looks good. Everyone is on top of the latest fashion trend and add their own flare. This goes back to what I was saying, there are no restrictions on these people, they just choose to look good and put an effort in their appearance. I found this very interesting and I think the media plays a big part of that.
All the clothing ads in most cases were for big or popular designers. The examples Britney linked are very good examples, it seems the bigger the fashion empire the better. But I also saw many brands that we only hear about in Canada but never actually see. For instance, Penelope Cruz and her line Mango. I always hear about it in interviews done about or with her, but I have never seen anything. It turns out it’s a very popular line in Europe. It’s so popular that they are actually stores. Throughout the trip I saw about five stores. When entering the store I was hoping I would see “recession friendly” prices, like many celebrity clothing lines these days, unfortunately that wasn’t the case. Personally I thought the pieces were expensive, and no purchases were made on my part.
I definitely have to agree with Pari and Brittney on this topic. Being from a conservative, North American family, I had no idea that nudity was so open in Europe.
ReplyDeleteBut doesn’t it seem odd that porn was right beside the ‘tween’ magazines? In Canada, you can buy porn in any bookstore, and even gas stations, but they are usually up on the top, covered by magazines that are readable. Unlike North America, Europe was so open about nudity. With so many billboards, advertisements or bars, there were naked people (mostly women) all over the country, being seen by every child, teenager, middle-aged man, and elders who happen to be passing by.
Like Pari stated, we want to believe that we have a very open country, which is comfortable with sexuality and nudity. Except, we’re not. We hide any part of the body that is considered ‘private’.
For clothing wise, everyone (men, women, teens, and even children) seemed very over dressed. We never saw anyone with sweats on, except for the tourists. Unlike Canada, all you see is teenagers going to school, the mall, or a friend’s house in ‘comfy’ clothes. For men, we’re used to seeing the normal guy in t-shirts, jeans, and sneaker. Whereas in Europe, all men dressed very formal: yet casual at the same time.
From my shopping experience in Europe, I thought many clothes, shoes, and purses were over-priced. You had to really dig deep to find amazing deals.
The main thing I was worried about, before departing, was the food culture in Europe. I’m a very picky eater, who hasn’t eaten cheese in 8 years, and who hates pasta. Why go to Italy, right? But, the food was nothing like I thought it was going to be. In my opinion, we didn’t experience the amazing food culture that Italy and Greece both have to offer. By eating at the different hotels every night, we never got to order what we wanted to try. We had to eat what they gave us, with meals being, chicken, pasta, fish, and a lot of bread.
Also, when walking down the street, you can find many little restaurants, bars, ice cream parlors, and pastry shops to stop in for a snack. With prices pretty reasonable, many of these restaurants were hardly busy, and were just waiting for some tourists (like us) to sit and eat.
We also saw McDonalds, and Subway (both American food chains), while we were in Europe. Subway had all the same meal deals, but McDonalds added some extra Mc burgers to their menu. Even with all the culture around us, we saw many tourists and locals still eating at the Big Mac, instead of a nice Italian or Greek meal.
Also, having a drinking age of 16 (although no one follows this rule) in Europe, beer was being sold by the cans in Subway. If Subway decided to sell that drink in their stores here, they would be highly criticized and would be attacked by any group (MADD) or competitor by saying that they are promoting drinking and driving.
ReplyDeleteThe drinking age that Kaitlin brings up is very interesting. It might sound strange but it reflects nudity theory greatly. Beer, wine, and various other alcohol beverages are norms everywhere you go. In restaurants like Subway the beer was very accessible like many other restaurants, in fact it was so accessible that is was at the bottom shelf of the refrigerator where any child can grab. But we saw no kids eyeing or drinking any cans of beers.
ReplyDeleteKaitlin is absolutely right about how fast various groups would complain. In no way are we or should we disregard the groups like MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving), but when you go and experience life in Europe your can’t help but begin to question our system.
Before our trip we were informed that we needed some money for food. Previous students warned us that it would be pricey but well worth it because the portions were huge. It’s a hard concept for many to grasp because of how fit most Europeans seem to be. But sure enough we learned that indeed everything that we were told was true.
ReplyDeleteA serving was nowhere near our serving here in North America or in Canada in general. Most purchases were usually 2-3 course meals. A perfect example is in Taormina, Italy. We found a very nice place to sit and enjoy some authentic pizza. We were planning to buddy up and share pizzas, but were later informed that each pizza was made for one person. So we all ordered our own pizzas. In less than 15 minutes, they were ready. To say they were huge would be an understatement, the size of my pizza was somewhere between a small to medium size in Canada. Most of us couldn’t manage to finish all of it, and other locals had no trouble whatsoever, and they all looked good.
This is where it gets confusing. We have mentioned that advertisements and nudity is not restricted, that people dress and look good, yet they eat big portions of food, how can that be? There were no gyms except for some here and there in big cities, but they were not very busy.
I believe that is because of the physical geography and the contents of the food. Going through every city we hardly saw perfect, smooth streets like in here and most towns are located in awkward areas like on mountains. You must have a flexible and adjusted body to live a daily life.
The next reason, is very important and is hardly mentioned in the media, or is always slipped into the topic but never really talked about. The ingredients and how the food is prepared are very different than ours. The ingredients are authentic and organic. The people that cook these meals know what they’re doing and aren’t just trained for two weeks. Just because something says no trans fat, low calories, or organic does not mean it’s that great for your health.
This is the common misconception about Europeans- that they don’t eat a lot. When the truth of the matter is they eat the same or more than us, but how they eat is different. There food is more wholesome, and is not instantly ready or microwave safe. The big companies that scam us into believing there convenient food like frozen pizzas, pre- cooked rice etc, are very misleading and do not care about our health. Their profits are much more important. They take whatever means necessary to convince and make us fall to their cheap ploys.
Pari is completely right about the food area. With the many variety stores we stopped at during the week, we never saw any Kraft Dinner, are frozen easy meals. Even though the portions are much bigger in Europe, they do get there fair share of exercise, battling the uneven roads, and climbing many stairs to get to their house.
ReplyDeleteWhen we had free time during the afternoon, the group would split up, and take sometime to visit the shops. While looking at the overpriced clothes, or eating at an authentic restaurant/café, all we heard was American music. Hits from a couple of years ago, blasted over the speakers. We never once heard a current hit or single that’s being playing in Canada, but instead songs like “Disturbia” by Rhianna or “Since U Been Gone” by Kelly Clarkson.
Comparing big cities like Athens and Rome to Toronto, it was very hard to find a music store. HMV, Music World, or Sunrise Records fill Toronto, making new released CD’s and DVD’s very easy to get. Unlike North America, Europe has many little shops that sell old vinyl records.
It was interesting to hear the different songs playing in the stores. We heard English songs everywhere we went, but they were not very recent ones. The Pussycat Dolls, Kelly Clarkson, Rihanna, Cyndi Lauper and Maroon 5 are all examples.
ReplyDeleteIt was very interesting to hear well known North American artist in Greece and Italy. I was expecting to hear their own musicians and artists or more traditional music. What was also interesting was that the artists that we heard were well known and all had new material. But the only thing we heard was hits from a couple of months or years ago. With the easy access to the internet I find it interesting that they know these musicians but never look up or download there new material.
Also, around the same genre were movies. I saw posters for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Watchmen and Marley and Me. They looked very similar to our ads, except the language. Marley and Me seemed to be very popular, as I saw many billboards of them in both countries. Interestingly, Marley and Me when it opened almost 3 months ago, on Christmas 2008 it went to number one. It finally gave Jennifer Aniston a number one successful movie since her many movies after her breakup with Brad Pitt. It was very much a celebrated idea with North Americans. She beat out her ex-husbands movie (brad Pitt, Benjamin Button), Tom Cruise (Valkyrie), and Adam Sandler (Bedtime Stories). I’m betting that Marley and Me, if it hasn’t already will also be a hit in Europe.
Pari, I definitely agree with your statement on the fact that all of the stores could be found playing songs that in Canada we now find out of date, but this is pretty weird because, while in Taormina's central square a group of us got talking to the local Italian kids about everything from school to music, and when that topic was brought up they started naming many artists who are still very popular in Canada. Some of their favourites were Lil Wayne, Lil Mama, Chris Brown and Highschool Musical, which are all still popular artists and groups here. So, I don't think it is their music taste that is out of date, I just think that the shops try to play songs with popular beats that everyone would know.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing, is that many of the Italians claimed that they are in LOVE with the OC, a popular teenage drama, but the problem was they seemed to believe that all of North America looks exactly like what is broadcasted in the show. They started talking about how they think Canada and everything is very beautiful and how they believed we all lived in huge houses overlooking the ocean and were very rich. Looks like media's illusions go both ways. It isn't only us who is being mislead in what certain countries actually look like, but media is also playing a huge role in the illusions of Canada in different countries. I'm pretty sure that if the Italians saw Canada they would be shocked at how different it looks than what they see on TV.
Also, to expand...
ReplyDeleteTwilight is a huge phenomenon over in Europe as well. For the most part they love the books and movies almost as much as we do, if not more. They proudly wear and own shirts broadcasting their favourite movie characters and are just as excited for the release of 'The New Moon' (the second movie in the series) as we are. I found that if you talked to any Italian teenager and mentioned the word Twilight, or Robert Pattison, they knew exactly what you were talking about, even if they didn't understand anything else you were saying due to the language barrier. It is crazy to think that the things we love here, are also loved around the world.
Good point, to go on about the media illusions. Kaitlin and I were very disappointed when we arrived in Athens. We expected all of Greece to be white with blue roofs, and people talking Greek. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. While there was still a lot of Greek culture and the houses were very pretty, it wasn’t exactly how the media portrayed it. Movies like The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and Mamma Mia painted an unrealistic picture of that country. That shows the power of the media.
ReplyDeleteYou’re totally right Pari. Once we got to Greece, I was somewhat disappointed with the whole atmosphere. Don’t get me wrong- I enjoyed Greece, but I was looking forward to the whiteness that the country exposes. With many stairs, white houses and blue roofs, we never really saw what the media says Greece is like. Instead, we saw more of the city, a lot of graffiti, and lots of shopping with name brand stores.
ReplyDeleteAnd to go along with what Brittany said, I’m sure that the Italians would be pretty disappointed with how Canada looks, compared to how the media portrays it.
I must admit I was picturing blue roofs, white houses and donkeys too, and when we arrived there I didn't see any of it, except for on the secluded islands where I guess the true culture of Greece has been fully maintained. But, even there everywhere you looked you would find tacky souvenir shops geared towards the American tourists.
ReplyDeleteAthens was very Americanized from the stores and food, to the language and tours. Everywhere you went you would see numerous amounts of tour buses, not what you would picture if you were told to imagine Greece.
Also, I feel the only time we really experienced true Greek culture was when we were at the Greek evening. It was the first time we really got to eat true Greek food and witness original music and dance, and I won't lie I found it to be really intriguing.
Unfortunately the rest of the country wasn't really like this and it was a shame to see.
Pari's right, so much for Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants and Mama Mia. It just goes to show that the media has way too much power.