Intercultural learning :
The iceberg
Compare a culture to an iceberg. Only the tip that floats above the water surface can be seen and even from
many miles away. What we know of a culture is often not more than the tip of the iceberg : special dishes,
peculiar clothing,… What is under the water is invisible and unknown. There the iceberg can have a very
craggy shape. You can collide with it the most unexpected moments. Even the cultures you believe to know
weel remain icebergs.
Yes, even our own cultural identity is partly under water. And … becomes a little more clear to ourselves
when we meet someone from another culture, just like other icebergs seem to come floating a little higher in
such an encounter.
The onion
Another good image to talk about cultures is the image of the onion. Just like an onion, a cultures has
different layers. The outer peel can be seen by everyone, the inside cannot. No two onions are exactly the
same, even if they all look alike.
The different layers :
1. A culture’s outside
All cultures have an outside, aspects that can be seen and touched, like clothing, utensils, musical
instuments or art. Those are the things that people buy as souvenirs when they travel, because they are
typical things in that specific culture. Those are the aspects you can easily get to know. You can touch them
and take them home with you.
2. A culture's language:
If you peel off one layer, you find the layer of language and symbols. These are lees concrete, but still well
perceptible. You can learn to speak a different language, although you will never speak it as well as your
mothertongue. Some say thatyour language influences the way you think and see. An example that is often
used is the fact that Eskimoes use no less than twenty different words for "snow".
3. A culture's actions
If we peel a little further, we get to a new layer: the one of the rituals. Rituals are actions or activities that are
often repeated and that are shared and recognised by an entire group. Rituals are executed almost
unconsciously, because you simply take them over from others (often when you are still young). Think for
example about birthday parties, going to mass, going out on Saterday night, conferences,… Every culture
has its own rituals. Falling into a ritual event of a different, culture can be surprising, funny, or even
frightening.
4. A culture's models
Before we get to the innermost part of the onion we meet the layer of the heroes and role models. They are
people, living or dead, real or imaginary, to whom a group looks up, or with whom they like to identify. The
heroes of a group or sub-group tell us something about what that group believes in. Jesus Christ and
Mohammed, but also Kurt Cobain, are some examples.
5. A culture's secrets
Our onion is now almost entirely peeled. In the centre we find the most intangible part: the principles, values,
standards, agreements and rules that exist, sometimes unconsciously, within a certain group. This part is
the hardest to discover, but also the most determining. Values and standards are often hard to capture in
words, but they are clearly present in everything that people do. You can not eat or see them.
They are ideas about what is good and what is not, what one can do and what one cannot do. They are
things you learn at your mother's knee. Your own values and standards are so self-evident that you never
really reflect on them. But when you are confronted with people who act by other rules and thereby break
yours, your reaction can be very emotional.
The image of the onion illustrates how rich cultures are and also how many challenges there are to
intercultural learning. Trying out an exotic dish can be a tasty culinary experience, but intercultural learning
is much more than that. Intercultural learning asks for an open and active attitude, and for perseverance:
you have to enter into a confrontation with the other. Starting from this confrontation, your curiosity and
creativity can help you to build up something valuable. A society where different people live peacefully next
to each other is not an intercultural society yet. Accepting your neighbors is one thing, actually living
together is quite another.