In today’s modern society, people are concerned about globalization creating a world of one culture, undermining national identity. Personally speaking, I firmly agree with the given statement. I believe that this phenomenon is damaging cultural heritage in many fields, such as local dialects and cuisine.
First, globalization negatively affects many traditional aspects, such as local cuisine. Especially among youngsters, individuals are attracted by the latest trends. These trends usually spread from social platforms, such as Instagram. This tendency also impacts the food industry. For example, in Italy, the concept of American fast food attracts millions of Italian teenagers. In these settings, many native restaurants declare bankruptcy due to the absence of clients. In addition to that, in the future, inherited family recipes for local dishes will be forgotten, and renowned Italian cuisine will disappear.
Beyond the loss of local cuisine, nations are facing the disappearance of native dialects. Globalization has led every country to speak a common language, namely English. In recent years, the use of English has notably impacted national languages, as it is mainly spoken on social media. In these circumstances, younger generations are motivated to communicate in their national language and English, while dialects become obsolete. Local dialects definitely contribute to a country’s cultural heritage. In fact, given their variety within a territory, they bear witness to the presence of preceding populations that are now extinct. For example, in Italy, from south to north, there are numerous dialects that, mostly in the suburbs, are still spoken and usually regarded as the main language. Although they express shades of the same language, they can seem very different from each other. This feature proves the existence of a cultural variety of populations, kingdoms, and nations, as the modern Italian nation was born just a few centuries ago. Forgetting native dialects will result in losing proof of our territory’s past and cultural heritage.
In conclusion, internationalization is damaging national identities worldwide. I firmly agree with this belief, as we are witnessing the disappearance of many cultural aspects, such as local dialects and cuisine.