ZEBIN LIU English 0812 Nicole M.

Banas Draft 5 10/29/2013 Americanization Flies to China After three industrial revolutions, humans have gradually entered a new eraglobal age. In this global age, people see sweeping changes in technology and communications which give rise to a sense of anxiety. Nowadays, America is making full use of globalization to spread its culture in the way that seems to be more powerful than past empires did. Given that, the authors Mark Rice-Oxley and Brendon OConnor argue that the world has gradually become deeply Americanized. China, for instance, has also been Americanized, and the impact can be seen in its fast food, entertainment, and commercial goods industries. Further, it may pose a threat to the existence of Chinese fast foods and the commercial goods in a long-term, and the American entertainment negatively affects the Chinese children physical and mental development. Nowadays, with the spreading of American culture to China, the American fast foods have enjoyed a great popularity in China and can never fail to attract Chinese peoples eyes, so this may stand in the way of developing the local Chinese fast foods and lead them to become extinct. Now, American fast food industries have successfully realized that understanding the local culture and integrating a piece of local culture is of strategic significance for them to thrive in a foreign country. For instance, Vicente Verdu mentions, in his essay We Are All Americans, that McDonalds in France serves salade nicoise along with hamburgers; in Greece, it serves feta cheese; and in Singapore, it serves fried chicken (24). It is explicit that many American fast food companies do as the Romans do, which means that they will produce the foods that cater to the local people tastes and that it is more attractable and competitive. Similar to verdus argument, the

McDonalds products sold in China are also different from the products sold in American McDonalds. Not only do they sell beverages but they also sell porridge, which helps attract more Chinese people because Chinese people were accustomed to eat it in the morning. KFC is also different from American and has a big share of the Chinese fast food market. Chinese customers can order original recipe fried chicken with orthodox sides like seaweed soup, so it is also regarded as an effective way to attract more Chinese people. Although KFC and McDonalds are considered as more working-class eateries in U.S, they have a higher status and attract a wide range of people in China. While some Chinese people still choose the Chinese local fast foods like steamed Bun restaurant or porridge restaurant, it will be dwarfed by the KFC and McDonalds popularity as the powerful weapon to attract Chinese people. The KFC and McDonalds around in China have reached such proportions that the American fast foods play a larger and dominated role in China than local Chinese fast foods do. As the Rice-Oxley argues in his essay In 2000 years, Will the world remember Disney or Plato, cultural domination poses a threat to diversity and McDomination poses several dangers. Rice-Oxley successfully realizes the cultural extinction. In light of the popularity of American fast foods, the Chinese fast food will be quietly replaced by American fast foods, because not having a large number of customers can be a serious obstacle preventing the Chinese fast foods from making enough profit to support its development. Given that, in the long run, Chinese fast foods will face extinction as Rice mentions, so they will gradually exit the history stage of Chinese fast foods. Similarly, the U.S commercial goods will also pose a threat to the Chinese commercial products. Nowadays, while some countries are boycotting the U.S commercial product because of their disagreement with U.S. politics, in China, people prefer to buy U.S Brands products. In his

essay Is the world falling out of love with U.S, Dan Roberts mentions that international consumers incline to avoid buying U.S brands (168). There is an example in Roberts essay showing that a Scottish management consultant did not give his four-year-old son Coca-Cola at birthday parities for the sake of boycotting the U.S brand product (168). However, people will never see that scene occurring in Roberts essay in China. The U.S brand products stand for fashionable, noble and grand in the minds of many Chinese young customers. Many U.S brand products are incredibly popular in China like Apple due to those products attractiveness and pricey traits; those products also quickly become a status symbol product in China, which also contributes to the factor that encourages Chinese people to buy U.S brands. It is common that a great deal of Chinese young people use Apple products like iphone, I-pad on the street and that many Chinese young people wear Nike products. It seems that Chinese young people accept American brands more easily and quickly than older generations. However, this phenomenon leads the Chinese government to have a sense of anxiety about the popularity of American brands. They deem that we cannot afford to neglect the popularity of U.S brands product because it has a big share of the Chinese market. For instance, Umeng Analytics Platform reported that in the last quarter of 2012 Apples iPad and iPad mini accounted for 83% of all tablet sales(Sauter). Nike had still the largest share of the sportswear market in China at the end of 2012(Sauter). Compared to the glory of those U.S products, the local Chinese brands like Lenovo, Li Ning, Te Bu are gradually dim and withered. The Chinese government worries about that the fewer people buy Chinese brands products, the more quickly Chinese products become extinct. As OConnors mentions, in his essay Bored with USA, that people have a sense of anxiety about local business and art being overrun by American cultural icons (161). Therefore, with the increasingly popular

of U.S brand products in China, the Chinese brand products are facing the same problem with Chinese fast foods; it has the potential threat of embarking on road to extinction. When Chinese people enjoy the American entertainment like various thrilling and excited American movies and video games, it may exert an inherent risk for the teenagers physical and mental development. In his essay In 2000 years, Will the world remember Disney or Plato, Rice-Oxley mentions, Hollywood dominates the global movie market, with up to 90 percent of audiences in some European countries(164). Similarly, Hollywood movies are also popular in China. For instance, the Iron Man 3 attracts the countrys mega-sized audience of over 1.3 billion people (Zakarin). While most of American movies are grand and excited, it will lead teenagers to be more aggressive because those moves are filled with some violent factors. According to the research by psychologists L. Rowell Huesmann, children who watch many hours of television with violent elements are more inclined to express aggression when they become teenager (Huesmann 200). Chinese children also prefer to play American games like Grand Theft Auto Vice City because those games are extra excited and they can do anything that they are willing to do in games without assuming legal liability. According to research by psychologist Craig A. Anderson, a person's aggressive thoughts, feelings will be raised in actual life by playing violent video games (Anderson). Given that, the popular American movies and games may negatively affect the Children physical and mental development. It goes without saying that Americanization has deeply affected China. Chinese people can use American advanced technology products like Apple; they can wear the American fashionable clothes; however, when they enjoy those American products, they should take the potential threat into account. The American fast foods and commercial products will make Chinese fast foods and

products at risk; the American entertainments will exert an adverse effect on the Chinese children physical and mental development. To some extent, The Americanization will pose a threat to the Chinese cultural diversity.

Works cited Anderson, C. A., & Dill, K. E. (2000). Video games and aggressive thoughts, feelings, and behavior in the laboratory and in life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 78, No. 4. Huesmann, L. R., Moise-Titus, J., Podolski, C. L., & Eron, L. D. (2003). Longitudinal relations between children's exposure to TV violence and their aggressive and violent behavior in young adulthood: 1977-1992. Developmental Psychology, Vol. 39, No. 2, pp. 201-221. OConnors, Brendon Bored with USA. International Views: American and the Rest of the World. Ed. Keith Gumery. New York: Pearson Longman, 2006. 161-163. Print. Vicente Verd, We Are All Americans. World Press Review. Ed. July 2002 Rice-Oxley Mark, In 2000 years, Will the world remember Disney or Plato. International Views: American and the Rest of the World. Ed. Keith Gumery. New York: Pearson Longman, 2006. 164-168. Print. Roberts, Dan Is the world falling out of love with U.S. Brands. International Views: American and the Rest of the World. Ed. Keith Gumery. New York: Pearson Longman, 2006. 167-172. Print. Sauter, Mike. "The Most Popular American Brands In China." FOX BUSINESS 16 May 2013, 1-2. Web. 30 Sep. 2013. <http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/2013/05/16/most-popular-american-brands-in-china/>. Vicente Verd, We Are All Americans. World Press Review. International Views: American and the Rest of the World. Ed. Keith Gumery. New York: Pearson Longman, 2006. Zakarin , Jordan. "How Hollywoods Obsession With China May Change Movies Forever." BUZZFeed Entertainment 12/05/2013, 2. Web. 30 Sep. 2013. <http://www.buzzfeed.com/jordanzakarin/how-hollywoods-obsession-with-china-may-change -movies-foreve>.