According to the general perception of the local population there exist two
different cultures in Egypt. One is what they call baladi (local), which can be
described as traditional and is considered by many to be backward; the other
represents what is called afrangi (foreign) and is the ‘progressive’ Western
one. The two cultures are considered by most people to be incompatible,
and many Egyptians are unable to accept their own original cultural identity.
Witness the following tragic event, which took place in Cairo after the Second
World War. A young man who had successfully completed his studies abroad
and was working in a good position in one of the ministries in Cairo was
visited in his office by his father, a fellah, who came from the village in his
kaftan, the traditional Egyptian dress. The young man felt so exposed before
his colleagues that he was unable to bear the shame, and shot himself. The
feeling of inferiority vis-à-vis the West, which is called the ‘khawaga [white
man] complex’ by the Egyptians, was exacerbated in the twentieth century
owing to the rapid technological development in America and Europe with
which Egypt as a whole could not keep pace. So Egyptians today see them-
selves confronted in their daily lives by a world full of the imported techno-
logy of TV sets, video recorders, CDs, mobile phones, computers and cars
of the latest models from all over the world. The urban youth, brought up
in the Western-type schools described above, today make up a constantly
growing social class that has developed a strong taste for the consumption
of Western material culture. This development has been accompanied by
estrangement from their own culture, on which they turn their backs. In an
effort to stress the relevance of the country’s ancient culture, the beginning
of the new millennium was celebrated in Egypt under the title ‘7,000 years
of Egyptian culture’. But as yet no proper esteem of native culture can be
observed even among educated Egyptians. For them, the ancient local culture
seems to supply no point of reference or source of pride, though in fact, as
is generally acknowledged by others today, it was of vital importance in the
formation of European culture.
different cultures in Egypt. One is what they call baladi (local), which can be
described as traditional and is considered by many to be backward; the other
represents what is called afrangi (foreign) and is the ‘progressive’ Western
one. The two cultures are considered by most people to be incompatible,
and many Egyptians are unable to accept their own original cultural identity.
Witness the following tragic event, which took place in Cairo after the Second
World War. A young man who had successfully completed his studies abroad
and was working in a good position in one of the ministries in Cairo was
visited in his office by his father, a fellah, who came from the village in his
kaftan, the traditional Egyptian dress. The young man felt so exposed before
his colleagues that he was unable to bear the shame, and shot himself. The
feeling of inferiority vis-à-vis the West, which is called the ‘khawaga [white
man] complex’ by the Egyptians, was exacerbated in the twentieth century
owing to the rapid technological development in America and Europe with
which Egypt as a whole could not keep pace. So Egyptians today see them-
selves confronted in their daily lives by a world full of the imported techno-
logy of TV sets, video recorders, CDs, mobile phones, computers and cars
of the latest models from all over the world. The urban youth, brought up
in the Western-type schools described above, today make up a constantly
growing social class that has developed a strong taste for the consumption
of Western material culture. This development has been accompanied by
estrangement from their own culture, on which they turn their backs. In an
effort to stress the relevance of the country’s ancient culture, the beginning
of the new millennium was celebrated in Egypt under the title ‘7,000 years
of Egyptian culture’. But as yet no proper esteem of native culture can be
observed even among educated Egyptians. For them, the ancient local culture
seems to supply no point of reference or source of pride, though in fact, as
is generally acknowledged by others today, it was of vital importance in the
formation of European culture.
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