There’s that old saying that ‘learn something new every day’, and, if we live in culturally rich and diverse communities, clearly there are life lessons that can be learned if we take the time to appreciate culture that is different from our own.
Of course, you may not benefit from living in an eclectic community, and, in that case, you will need to look further afield to learn more about unique societies whose outlook on life may be different from that to which we have become accustomed.
Cloud Gate.. #Chicago #Illinois 🇺🇸 #Sculptures #MotoroilPhotography 🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/9qe7col3v3
— Motoroil Photography (@MotoroilStudio) April 27, 2020
It’s certainly one of the reasons why international travel – particularly for gap year students – remains so popular, although the good news is that you don’t have to reach for your passport if you want to learn about new cultures.
Daily entertainment is a fantastic way of learning, and it’s perhaps fair to say that today’s TV programming and gaming have never been so eclectic in their choice of subject matter.
Take Netflix, for example. Fire up the popular streaming platform and you will find hundreds of shows and movies dedicated to international cultures – the content contained within could be educational or designed for daily entertainment purposes, but, either way, it will open a window into a society that you may know nothing about.
Even gaming has taken on a cultural twist. Ground-breaking console titles like God of War offer a glimpse at Norse mythology and the relationship between the various gods. While Assassin’s Creed provides a modern history lesson – with the action unfolding in a stunning and faithful recreation of Renaissance-era Italy.
We are honored and humbled to be nominated for a BAFTA Games Award in Narrative alongside all these outstanding teams! Congratulations and good luck to all our fellow nominees. https://t.co/panozthQif pic.twitter.com/j2hSGf1UWx
— Assassin’s Creed (@assassinscreed) March 3, 2021
Furthermore, regarding the online casino industry, you might not think slot games are steeped in cultural tradition; but just take a look at the likes of Reel Lucky King, with its lessons of Irish culture, and Book of Kings, which reveals many insights into life in ancient Egypt. Load up Gates of Olympus and you’ll enjoy a potted history of traditional Greek mythology, for example.
Like we say, cultural lessons are all around us if we take only the time to look for them…
Chi-town Education
Just how well do we know Chicago?
What do we know about the French explorers whose interactions with native tribes paved the way for settlement? Why is there such a bustling Polish community in Chi-Town? Who built Cloud Gate?
There is so much going on in Chicago that many of us have not had the time or chance to explore, and the city’s culture – be it arts, music, cuisine, or politics – is so diverse and all-encompassing that we may never truly get to experience its treasures completely.
There are so many culturally-enriching movies and fly-on-the-wall documentaries you can enjoy about Chicago. The Story of Maxwell Street, Dreamcatcher, Fourth Partition and You Weren’t There are just four options that reveal so much about the city’s history, identity, and cultural beginnings. While City So Real captures the occasional madness of the political landscape of the Windy City.
Whether in fiction or true-to-life stories, we can learn about new cultures that are all around us – in Chicago and beyond. To continue to grow as people and as a community as a whole, the perspective that this education can bring may just have a profound effect on you.