Friends And Strangers - Margaret R. Nydell

 Friends And Strangers - Margaret R. Nydell

This essay studies the intercultural differences is relation with the concept of friends and strangers in American culture and in Arabian culture. In Arabian culture there is gap between friends and strangers. There are certain rights and duties in a friendship a stranger is neither alone for rights nor he is offered any duties. In Arabian culture refusing a friend as taken out breaking the friendship even if the work is impossible to perform, a friend never refuses it directly this response is “I will try my best”. This response from a friend keeps the friendship alive forever

          An Arabian culture personal benefits is taken from the friendship we often here “Do it for my sake” but in American culture no benefit is expected from the friendship even if a persona is helped by the other he is not morally obliged to help him.

          The personal choice is so much valued that even the children aren’t obliged to take care of their parents in American culture, personal details are much more important than a person himself. They readily disclose their social and economic backgrounds. In contrast to Arabian culture, the Americans are unwilling to disclose their personal details and individual is much more important than his background.

          An Arabian culture insulting the friends is frequent without information they used their friends and story there as a long as they please. They do not feel that they are interfering their personal life.  Being alone is taken as either being dissatisfied or being sad but in American culture privacy is highly valued. A person likes to have a moment of privacy so that they could feel oneself with their self. Besides the Americans enjoy being with the friends but they never let them cross the boundary of personal life.

          These are some of the differences between the Arabians and the Americans concept of friendship. The Arabians have distinctly the line between friends and strangers but the Americans have blurred the line.

-         For Arabs a friend is someone whose company one enjoys and whose duty is to give help and do his/her ability whereas for westerners a friend is someone whose company one enjoys but whom one doesn’t except to have the same sense of duty.

-         For Arabs and oral promise has its own value as response whereas for westerners actions are valued more than words.

-         For Arabs loyalty is expected from friends but westerns don’t accept the same sense of loyalty.

-         In the culture of Arabs when introducing oneself it is common to give a lot of information about oneself from a one’s family and one social connection where as in westerns culture less personal information are disclosed.

-         In the culture of Arabs one writes one's friends often and has little concern about privacy where as in western culture one just writes ones friend less after and has a strong sense of privacy.

-         Arab people, except a friend to reciprocate invitation but the western people don’t have as strong of a need for reciprocal invitation.